Viruses are released daily.  It is imperative that you run some type of virus scanning software on your PC.  We like Symantec's Norton Antivirus, but there are numerous free alternatives available over the Net.

Below you'll find a brief description of the types of viruses and how they affect your computer.  You'll also find an updated list of current viruses in the wild, some of which could already be on your system.

Virus Types

Boot Sector: A Boot Sector Virus infects the System area of a floppy or hard drive. They are activated when a user boot from an infected disk.

File Infector Viruses: Most of these viruses reside in the memory of a computer and infect programs' .exe and .com files.

Master Boot Record Viruses: Similar to a Boot Sector viruses, these viruses infect the Master Boot Record and prevent your system from booting.

Multi-partite viruses: Infect both the Boot record and program files.

Macro viruses: Macro Viruses are prevalent in corporate environments where office suites are used. They use a program's code to infect data files.

Other Malicious Codes

Trojan Horses: These viruses do not replicate themselves. Instead, they often pose as a harmless file that is downloaded from the web. These programs can result in the theft or destruction of data files.  This type of virus is commonly picked up from peer to peer file sharing programs.  Scan your system frequently with Swat It.

Worms: Worms replicate themselves without using a host file and can spread very quickly across the internet by releasing documents it has infected.