Information Technologies Advises Cornell Computer Users to be Wary of Viruses

The Information Technologies sent out an alert yesterday advising all individuals on campus to exercise caution when using University computers. In the statement, sent out by Tom Young of I.T. Security, there are three “immediate threats to our computers and networks” — fake video software, hijacked network connections and a work called Conficker that is expected to undergo changes today.
“The I.T. Security Office has noted a large number of computers that became infected with [malicious software] when fake video software was installed,” the I.T. special bulletin read.

Rootkit Exploits Intel processors

In an earlier blog about antivirus programs, I briefly mentioned a malicious program called a rootkit. Make no mistake, rootkits are not something to be taken lightly. If your machine is infected with a rootkit, a hacker can access your computer remotely without your knowledge. And before all the Mac users shout in triumph about how Windows is vulnerable to every kind of exploits on the net, I would just like to make it clear that Macs has been equally susceptible to rootkits for a long time.

Antivirus roundup

If there are any words that nobody ever wants to hear, they‘re that “you have a virus on your computer”. Just thinking about the word virus sends chills down someone’s spine. While there are genuinely benign viruses that annoy you (the ambulance virus comes to mind), other viruses, such as Trojans that allow others to access your computer, are not so friendly.

So obviously, antivirus programs are a big market that is expected to reach over 9 billion dollars by 2009. However, not all them are the same, and not all of them pack quite the same punch against the nasty little buggers floating around the Internet.