VISUAL NEWSLETTER – AUG 2003
THE INTERNET
For some time now, the world has been
battling with E-mail Worm Viruses. This form of virus infects an e-mail
attachment, and when opened by an unsuspecting user it emails itself to
everyone in your address book. This type of virus can be controlled fairly
effectively by keeping your anti-virus up to date and deleting unsolicited
e-mail.
The Internet Worm Viruses of late are
far more difficult to deal with. They come in through your Internet connection
without any assistance from the computer user. They can hunt down vulnerable
computers in a matter of minutes causing a variety of calamities as well as
significant network traffic problems for companies as they search for another
computer to infect.
These Viruses exploit weaknesses in
Windows itself to attack your computer by entering via the “Back Door”. This
refers to security vulnerabilities in Windows, that
your Anti-Virus is unaware of. The MS-Blast Virus came in through this hole in
Windows security and initiated a Reboot of the computer just before the
Anti-Virus became aware of it. At that point it was too late.
Microsoft announced this particular
vulnerability weeks before the Virus took advantage of it. They put a patch on
their Windows Update site allowing users to fix the problem, but many users do
not take advantage of these updates. Automatic updates should be enabled if
possible.
Curiously another similar Virus came
along using the same entry point but when it infected a computer, it downloaded
the patch to repair the vulnerability. This led many industry pundits to label
it a “Good Virus”. Unfortunately it caused many of the same network traffic
problems while it actively searched for computers to repair.
Surprisingly Microsoft and Authorities
are getting better at tracking down the source of new viruses and the creator
of the MS-Blast virus was apprehended and charged within a couple of weeks of
the virus’s release. He turned out to be an 18 year old.
AN OUNCE OF PREVENTION
To repair defects in Windows and repair
vulnerabilities that are identified almost weekly, Microsoft has set up the
Windows Update site. This site analyzes the status of your computer and
determines which updates you need to bring your current version of Microsoft
Windows up to date.
You can configure Windows for automatic
downloads of critical updates by adjusting properties under My Computer in
Win-XP. This only downloads significant updates. Some updates that you might
still find useful are only available from the site.
To get to the Microsoft Windows Update
site, go into Internet Explorer and look in Favourites, Favourites/Links or
Tools depending on your Windows version. You can also type in the full site
address: http://v4.windowsupdate.microsoft.com
Updates are limited for older versions
of Windows but most new viruses seem to have targeted the newer versions
anyway. Many of these individuals seem to have a grudge against Microsoft so
attacking older more vulnerable versions would probably just help Microsoft
sell more copies of their newer version. It always seems more challenging to go
head to head with the flagship of their product line as well.
Occasionally a Windows Update will
cause a problem rather than prevent one. Like seatbelts however, these updates
still prevent far more problems than they cause.