Internet Attacks, Part 2
Email Attacks
by Dave Clingman

(Published Sierra Star, March 24, 2004, page A3)

Many problems associated with the Internet are propagated through email.  Email is the number one use of the internet, and as such will probably increase in risk.  Email attacks can be circumvented through a few simple security steps.

Most viruses come into a computer through email.  Spyware programs and browser hijacks can also be installed on a computer from an email.  Spam, of course, is a huge problem that is only getting bigger.

An email address can be spoofed or faked.  This means that when you receive an email, you don't really know who sent it.  Even though an email might look like it came from a friend or family member, it might actually have come from a spammer or from a virus programmer.  Therefore, don't necessarily trust anything you receive in an email without first authenticating it.

When you receive an email from a friend, and that email has a file attachment, it is a simple safety step to contact the sender to verify they were the one who sent it.  This is especially crucial nowadays with viruses so rampant.  If a person's computer is infected by a virus, the virus can send itself to others without the person's knowledge.  Most of the time, though, when one person's computer is infected, the virus will send itself from their computer but with a different person's email address as the sender.

Even if the person sent you the file, a virus could still have infected that file.  If you do receive a virus in an email, a good antivirus program should remove it before it does damage to your computer.  If your computer still becomes infected by a virus, it can usually be removed without having to format your hard drive and losing all of your data.  Antivirus manufacturers offer instructions for manually removing a virus, or you can contact a competent computer repair person for assistance.

It is extremely rare that a virus will require the hard drive to be formatted (thus losing all your data) in order to remove it from the system.  Some computer repair people, however, will want to format your hard drive, because it is easier for them.  If that is their recommendation, you can always get a second opinion.

Most viruses will make your computer behave erratically, but they don't do any physical damage.  Others can wreak havoc on your computer and damage parts of it.  The worst can corrupt your BIOS, which makes your computer unable to start up, or can crash your hard drive and destroy your data.

Spyware and browser hijacks are another, though less common, attack that can arrive in your computer through email.  These attacks more commonly proliferate through other means.  To remove these pests, use programs such as AdAware and CWShredder.

Spam is probably the number one annoyance sent by email.  Many spam removal programs exist, and most internet service providers now offer such a service.  There are other things that you can also do to thwart this problem.  These will be discussed in next week's article.

Internet attacks, and especially attacks by email, are becoming more rampant with each passing day.  Some are simple annoyances, while others can cause real damage.  You can avoid these problems by taking a few precautions.  You need not fear the internet or email, but you do need to be safe.

For more information, please visit www.clingman.net and click on Attacks.



Dave Clingman has been configuring, building and repairing computers for foothill residents for twelve years.  He also sets up and trouble shoots networks, as well as designs websites.  His own website can be viewed at www.clingman.com

© 2004