Viruses

VIRUSES - HOW TO PRACTICE SAFE SEX/COMPUTING

On March 6th 1992 millions of PC users around the world waited to see if their unsafe practices had caught up with them.

The 'time-bomb' in question was the virus called Michaelangelo. Although why they thought that a virus called after one of history's most talented gays should be virulent after all the responsible safe sex that the homosexual community practices is beyond me.

However, panic they did. As it turned out there was little to panic about. As with AIDS, precautions were implemented by the more conscientious users and widespread infection was averted. It was only the ignorant and irresponsible who were smitten.

The object of this article is to enlighten those few who are still ignorant. Irresponsibility I cannot cure.

The parallels between safe sex and safe computing are legion.

Viruses, like AIDS, need some form of contact before they can be spread. With AIDS it is body fluids, with viruses it is data. In both cases they have to be exchanged before the infection can take place. Simply being in the same room is quite safe!

The best protection, in both cases, is prevention but, to catch the infection early is the next best option. To do this you need regular check ups and, in the virus' case, this means detection software of some kind, either shareware or commercially available.

Prevention of infection means taking some very basic precautions:

AVOID CASUAL CONTACTS - less partners applies to both infections. Remember, you sleep with or download all your contact's previous contacts and their contacts, ad infinitum.

DON'T CHANCE IT IF YOU DON'T KNOW THEIR ANTECEDENTS - if you don't know where they have been (men or disks) you don't know what they have got. Software, in particular, is dangerous. Some games publishers have been known to protect their packages by making them generate viruses when they are copied!

DON'T USE FREEBIES - if a piece of software (or a man) is given to you unsolicited, beware. Some people maliciously infect by this method.

INFECTION DOESN'T JUST HAPPEN TO THE OTHER GUY - we all know someone that is infected. Next time it could be you. You have a responsibility to keep both your body and your PC clean and infection free.

PREVENT UNAUTHORISED ACCESS - just as you need to be on your guard against getting drunk and letting the first man who asks avail himself of your body, so you must make sure that no-one can unknowingly use your PC.

PROTECTION - a condom is good protection against many of life's infections and a write-protect tab is just as efficient against software germs.

TESTING - if you are going to use a new piece of software or get involved with a new man, do get either of them checked out first. Send the man to a clinic and scan the software discs with an anti-virus. Safety is better than sorrow.

Finally, get the most out of your clean man/package and remember,

men and computers are opposites; with computers it is the software

that is inserted in the hardware ......

(c) Paul Towers 1992