Posted by Helene on November 13, 2002 at 10:56:15:
In Reply to: Re: virus warning posted by Kerrie on November 13, 2002 at 10:17:51:
You have to be careful. Even if you only go to the Goat World site and check your email, other people have your email address in their address books, if they open a virus, they spread through the infected parties address book.
If you do not have an virus program, and you have access to the internet you simply NEED to have one. It is one of the most important investments you make. I have a friend who pretty much only goes to one or two sites on the internet and reads her email. She had no virus protection. It just cost her a fortune to have her computer "repaired"..She had over 5 viruses in there, and after a while they just eat up at your system.
Also going by the old, "well the attachment is from a trusted family member or friend" just does not fly. Believe me, I learned the hard way. I was too busy enjoying our new computer a few years ago to update my anti virus program. I had one, but having one will do you no good unless you update the virus definitions. My uncle is huge on sending jokes..I received an email that appeared to be from him, and it was a virus. I knew right away and it took me all of the next day to remove it.
Bottom line, if you do not have an anti virus program get one. You can purchase them in any store, and can even purchase then from eBay which is a little less expensive. If nothing else, you can go to the following URL
http://housecall.antivirus.com/housecall/start_corp.asp which is Housecall, a free virus scan. It will not stop viruses from getting into your machine, but it is a free service that will scan your computer for viruses. In some cases it can and will repair any damage it finds, but you cannot just rely on that, because it will not always be able to repair the damage for you.