Trojan horses and viruses

- Computers, as humans, are unreliable.
- Any system which depends on human reliability is unreliable.
- All programs contain errors until proved otherwise (which is impossible).
Depending of the OS, In your WINDOWS 95 folder, you'll find a text file called TIPS.TXT full of tips and tricks written by Microsoft's. In the WINNT folder, the file Y2k.txt offers Year 2000 Information for Windows NT 4.0 Service Pack 4 Installation.

Good data processing procedure dictates that any program be thoroughly scanned for viruses and tested with non-critical data before relying on it. Also all data processing procedures dictate that you must set up a process to regularly back up your files.   Even a simple power surge can destroy files on your hard disk. Your chances of being infected are slim if you take proper backup precautions. Configuration, mismatched and faulty hardware or software can cause virus like symptoms on your system. If you can't figure out what's wrong with your computer, and you aren't sure of yourself, just turn it off and call for help.

Guidelines to raise your chances of recovering from any computer related problem:
- Set up a procedure to regularly back up your files, and follow it religiously. Depending of the OS, some important files to backup are: AUTOEXEC.BAT, AUTOEXEC.DOS, CONFIG.SYS, CONFIG.DOS, MSDOS.SYS, CONTROL.INI, SYSTEM.INI, WIN.INI, SYSTEM.DAT and USER.DAT.
- Rotate between two sets of backups for better security.
- Consider using a friendly backup program that takes the drudgery out of backing up your files.
- Zip your personal files often and back them up on diskettes, CDs, or tapes. You can recover the important files from your backups without triggering the virus.
- Use software to keep different versions of code - VSS Google
- Attached executable files can contain viruses and should be scanned for viruses before you run them.
- Update your Virus scan engine (anti-Virus Software) and dat files as often as possible. Check once a week for updated scan engine and dat files.
For more information, visit:
Virus Bulletin Ltd: http://www.virusbtn.com/
Symantec Worldwide Homepage: http://www.symantec.com/
The Electronic Data Protection Advisory Committee (EDPAC)
McAfee home page: http://www.mcafee.com/
Trend Micro home page http://www.antivirus.com

Embedding a Microsoft Access database inside a web page or inside a mail message in HTML format as an Active-X control creates a venerability in Microsoft Outlook and Internet Explorer. To protect your system you must assign a password to the administrator account INSIDE Microsoft Access.
1) Start Microsoft Access
2) Do not load a database
3) Select Tools -> Security -> User/Group Accounts -> Change Login Password
The admin password is is blank by default, change your admin password to something... From now on when the Active-X control is activated, the Logon dialog box appears on the screen, at this point the user should select cancel and immediately delete the email, or exit the web page.
Microsoft TechNet Security http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/

More hints about Outlook Automation Macros from ContactEZ assistant in Gurley Alabama

Other important Links:

Find more information about computing security at http://www.microsoft.com/security/.

Give feedback by using the error-reporting features built into Office XP and Windows XP.

Use Microsoft Windows Update (http://windowsupdate.com/) to ensure that you have the most up-to-date and accurate versions of product updates, enhancements and fixes.

Businesses customers can take advantage of Software Update Services to download critical updates from Windows Update. (http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/windowsupdate/sus/)

Use Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer to analyze Windows XP and Windows 2000 for common security misconfigurations. (http://www.microsoft.com/technet/treeview/default.asp?url=/technet/security/tools/Tools/MBSAhome.asp)

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