Help Tricks To Get Rid Of Computer Virus

What  is a Computer Virus?

A computer virus is a type of malicious software that, when executed, replicates itself by modifying other computer programs and inserting its own code.When this replication succeeds, the affected areas are then said to be "infected" with a computer virus.

Computer viruses are destructive programs that delete or corrupt files, interfere with your computer operations and reproduce themselves to fill disk or RAM space on your computer. There's typically a piece of code that causes an unexpected and usually malicious event (or "payload") to occur. 

A Computer Viruses are malicious programs that spread throughout computer files without user knowledge. Most widespread virus infections spread through email message attachments that activate when opened. The vicious cycle of a virus perpetuates as infected emails are forwarded to multiple users. Viruses also spread through shared media, such as Universal Serial Bus (USB) drives.

A computer virus is a malicious program that self-replicates by copying itself to another program. In other words, the computer virus spreads by itself into other executable code or documents. The purpose of creating a computer virus is to infect vulnerable systems, gain admin control and steal user sensitive data. Hackers design computer viruses with malicious intent and prey on online users by tricking them.



                                             The History of Computer Virus
1983, Fred Cohen, a USC graduate student, demonstrated a short program that infected a computer, replicated, and spread to other computers. The way it infected the system was compared to a virus and the term "computer virus" was born.

Cohen inserted code into a Unix command which allowed him to gain control of a mainframe computer system in just five minutes. The code was hidden in a legitimate program on a floppy disk.

His academic adviser, Leonard Adleman, pointed out that the self-replicating code worked like a virus, coining the term. Adleman is also known for being a co-inventor of the RSA (the A is for Adleman) cryptosystem, often used in security systems.

In his 1983 paper "Computer Viruses - Theory and Experiments," Cohen defined a computer virus as "a program that can infect other programs by modifying them to include a possibly evolved copy of itself."

Programs similar to Cohen's had been theorized and early hackers had already launched their own viruses on a small scale in the early 1980s. Before the term even existed, teenager Richard Skrenta had deployed the Elk Cloner virus as a practical joke that would infect his friends' computers.

Viruses became more of a problem when computers became mainstream and everyone got an email account, creating many more victims that were easier to infect.

Cohen didn't invent the virus, but his demonstration made computer scientists aware of the threat they posed



Robert Thomas, an engineer at BBN Technologies developed the first known computer virus in the year 1971. The first virus was christened as the “Creeper” virus, and the experimental program carried out by Thomas infected mainframes on ARPANET. The teletype message displayed on the screens read, “I’m the creeper: Catch me if you can.”

But the original wild computer virus, probably the first one to be tracked down in the history of computer viruses was “Elk Cloner.” The Elk Cloner infected Apple II operating systems through floppy disks. The message displayed on infected Apple Computers was a humorous one. The virus was developed by Richard Skrenta, a teenager in the year 1982. Even though the computer viruses were designed as a prank, it also enlightened how a malicious program could be installed in a computer’s memory and stop users from removing the program.



It was Fred Cohen, who coined the term “computer virus” and it was after a year in 1983. The term came into being when he attempted to write an academic paper titled “Computer Viruses – Theory and Experiments” detailing about the malicious programs in his work.
Types of Computer Viruses

A computer virus is one type of malware that inserts its virus code to multiply itself by altering the programs and applications.

 
                Different Common Types of Computer  viruses


File Infector

One of the most common types of computer viruses is a file infector. These viruses attach to host files, so this means they usually stick to files you use often. Any time you open or run the file, the virus is running. It can even take over the file completely.

Macro Virus
This is another type of file-based virus. It attaches to files made from programs that support macros. Some examples are Microsoft Excel and Word, and people often unknowingly download them from email attachments. A good security program scans these types of files before you download them to detect any threats.

 Polymorphic Virus
These viruses are harder to detect. This is because security programs scan coding to identify viruses, but these specific viruses both encrypt and change their coding. They continually changing their operations over time, which may affect the programs you use.

 Multipartite Virus
Some types of computer viruses only spread in one way, but these ones spread in several ways. Their actions usually depend on the form of operating system you use, certain programs on your computer or your use of specific files. It can have multiple actions, so it is one of the most frustrating viruses to deal with.

Direct Action Virus
Although it was once a devastating form of virus, this type is not as common as was in the past. It is only active upon execution of the file or program it is attached to. Once the program is not in use, the virus no longer runs its operations. Most security programs are good at detecting these types of viruses.

Web Scripting Virus

These viruses come from the programming used for a site's display. The image placement, videos, links and layout of a site are all constructed with coding. This can be altered with the intent of infecting your computer when you click links or watch videos on a malicious site. A site may unknowingly host malicious codes added by a third party, so be careful about visiting any sites. Good security programs have features that detect malicious sites while you browse the Internet.

Browser Hijacker
Imagine typing in an internet address and automatically bouncing through several different sites. When this happens, a browser hijacker is responsible for the incident. Unfortunately, hijackers are usually attached to appealing toolbars, programs and other free downloads you choose. They often have the word "search" in their names. A good security program can detect nearly all of these.

Boot Sector Virus 
This type of virus infects the master boot record and it is challenging and a complex task to remove this virus and often requires the system to be formatted. Mostly it spreads through removable media.



Direct Action Virus
This is also called non-resident virus, it gets installed or stays hidden in the computer memory. It stays attached to the specific type of files that it infect. It does not affect the user experience and system’s performance.

 Resident Virus
 Unlike direct action viruses, resident viruses get installed on the computer. It is difficult to identify the virus and it is even difficult to remove a resident virus.

Multipartite Virus 
 This type of virus spreads through multiple ways. It infects both the boot sector and executable files at the same time.

Polymorphic Virus 


These type of viruses are difficult to identify with a traditional anti-virus program. This is because the polymorphic viruses alters its signature pattern whenever it replicates.Besides these, the other file infector viruses come as a completely included program or script sent in email attachments.

Macro viruses:
As the name suggests, the macro viruses particularly target macro language commands in applications like Microsoft Word. The same is implied on other programs too.

In MS Word, the macros are keystrokes that are embedded in the documents or saved sequences for commands. The macro viruses are designed to add their malicious code to the genuine macro sequences in a Word file. However, as the years went by, Microsoft Word witnessed disabling of macros by default in more recent versions. Thus, the cybercriminals started to use social engineering schemes to target users. In the process, they trick the user and enable macros to launch the virus.

Since macro viruses are making a come back in the recent years, Microsoft quickly retaliated by adding a new feature in Office 2016. The feature enables security managers to selectively enable macro use. As a matter of fact, it can be enabled for trusted workflows and blocked if required across the organization.



Overwrite Viruses:
The virus design purpose tends to vary and Overwrite Viruses are predominantly designed to destroy a file or application’s data. As the name says it all, the virus after attacking the computer starts overwriting files with its own code. Not to be taken lightly, these viruses are more capable of targeting specific files or applications or systematically overwrite all files on an infected device.On the flipside, the overwrite virus is capable of installing a new code in the files or applications which programs them to spread the virus to additional files, applications, and systems.



Polymorphic Viruse 
More and more cybercriminals are depending on the polymorphic virus. It is a malware type which has the ability to change or mutate its underlying code without changing its basic functions or features. This helps the virus on a computer or network to evade detection from many antimalware and threat detection products.

Since virus removal programs depend on identifying signatures of malware, these viruses are carefully designed to escape detection and identification. When a security software detects a polymorphic virus, the virus modifies itself thereby, it is no longer detectable using the previous signature.



Resident Viruses:
The Resident virus implants itself in the memory of a computer. Basically, the original virus program is not required to infect new files or applications. Even when the original virus is deleted, the version stored in memory can be activated. This happens when the computer OS loads certain applications or functions. The resident viruses are troublesome due to the reason they can run unnoticed by antivirus and antimalware software by hiding in the system’s RAM.

Rootkit Viruses:


The rootkit virus is a malware type which secretly installs an illegal rootkit on an infected system. This opens the door for attackers and gives them full control of the system. The attacker will be able to fundamentally modify or disable functions and programs. Like other sophisticated viruses, the rootkit virus is also created to bypass antivirus software. The latest versions of major antivirus and antimalware programs include rootkit scanning.



System or Boot-record Infectors:

The Boot-record Infectors infect executable code found in specific system areas on a disk. As the name implies, they attach to the USB thumb drives and DOS boot sector on diskettes or the Master Boot Record on hard disks. Boot viruses are no more common these days as the latest devices rely less on physical storage media.

How To Be Safe From Email Viruses And Worms

You must do....


1. Use a professional, email service such as Runbox. Subscription services provide higher levels of security and support.
2. Make sure that your Runbox virus filter is activated.
3. Use the Webmail interface at www.runbox.com to read your email, or don’t download all your email to an email client unseen. Screen your email first, and delete suspicious-looking and unwanted messages before downloading the legitimate email to your local email client.
4. Make sure your computer has updated anti-virus software running locally. Automatic updates are essential for effective virus protection. Combined with server-side scanning, you now have two layers of security.


5. Disable message preview in your email client, especially on Windows platforms. Otherwise, malicious programs attached to incoming messages may execute automatically and infect your computer.
6. Ignore or delete messages with attachments appearing to be sent from official Runbox email addresses. Runbox rarely sends email to our users, aside from replies to inquiries and payment reminders. We practically never send an email with attachments to users.
7. Take caution when opening graphics and media attachments, as viruses can be disguised as such files.


8. Maintain several independent email accounts. If a virus infects your only business email address, you’ll be in trouble. Also, keep backups of your most important email and files separately.
9. If any valid message headers of a virus-email indicate what server the message was sent from, contact the service in question and file a formal complaint.

You don't these


1. Do not open an email attachment unless you were expecting it and know whom it’s from.
2. Do not open any unsolicited executable files, documents, spreadsheets, etc.
3. Avoid downloading executable or documents from the internet, as these are often used to spread viruses.
4. Never open files with a double file extension, e.g. filename.txt.vbs. This is a typical sign of a virus program.
5. Do not send or forward any files that you haven’t virus-checked first.


6. Viruses and spam
7. Virus-makers and spammers often cooperate in devious schemes to send as much spam as possible as efficiently as possible. They create viruses that infect vulnerable computers around the world and turn them into spam-generating “robots”. The infected computers then send massive amounts of spam, unbeknownst to the computer owner.

How To Get Rid Of Computer Virus

Never the neglect to take action on a computer virus residing in your system. There are chances that you might end up losing important files, programs, and folders. In some cases, the virus damages the system hardware too. Thereby, it becomes mandatory to have an effective anti-virus software installed on your computer to steer clear of all such threats.

 Common Signs of Infectious Virus

It is vital for any computer user to be aware of these warning signs –

• Slower system performance
• Pop-ups bombarding the screen
• Programs running on their own
• Files multiplying/duplicating on their own
• New files or programs in the computer


• Files, folders or programs getting deleted or corrupted
• The sound of a hard drive

If you come across any of these above-mentioned signs then there are chances that your computer is infected by a virus or malware. Not to delay, immediately stop all the commands and download an antivirus software. If you are unsure what to do, get the assistance of an authorized computer personnel. If you are confident enough, start investigating on your own by following the below mentioned step-by-step procedures.

Safe Mode


Boot the system and press F8 for Advanced Boot Options menu. Select Safe Mode with Networking and press Enter. You might need to keep repeatedly pressing to get on to the screen.

Working on the Safe Mode helps handle nefarious files as they’re not actually running or active. Last but not the least the internet spreads the infection, so remove the connection.
disk space, delete temporary files before starting to run the virus scan. This approach helps speed up the virus scanning process. The Disk Cleanup tool helps in deleting your temporary files on the computer.


Here is how you got to go about accomplishing it – Start menu then select All Programs, now you click on Accessories, System Tools, and then click Disk Cleanup.

Download Virus/Malware Scanner
If you are under the impression that a virus scanner cleanups the bad stuff from your computer then sadly, that’s not true! It helps in eliminating standard infections and not sufficient to remove the latest harmful infections. The virus/malware scanner helps to narrow down on the issue, so, download it now. In order to better protect go for a real-time anti-virus program, since it automatically keeps checking in the background for viruses.



P.S: Don’t install more than one real-time anti-virus program. If you do so, your system will start to behave weirdly.

Run a Virus/Malware Scan
Download the virus/malware scanner using the internet. Once you have finished downloading the virus scanner, disconnect it for security and safety reasons. After successful download complete the installation procedures of the Virus/Malware scanner, then start running your on-demand scanner first and thereafter run your real-time scanner.



The reason for running both is that one of them will effectively eliminate your computer virus or malware.

Reinstall the Software or Damaged Files
Once the virus removal from your computer is complete, go ahead and reinstall the files and programs that were damaged by the virus or malware. Make use of the backups for re-installation.



 In a nutshell,Viruses became more of a problem when computers became mainstream and everyone got an email account, creating many more victims that were easier to infect.

In simple, do the backups regularly and stay protected.