A cat has nine lives and curiosity killed the cat, are common folklore sayings that, if you change the word cat to computer, provides Lead ins to a series of articles I plan to write for our newsletter over the next few months. A lead in is absolutely necessary to a writer and is very difficult for most writers to develop. If one works, it focuses the attention of the writer on his subject and at the same time captures the attention of the reader. Hopefully these lead in phrases will allow me to overcome this difficulty and, by simply mentioning the category they fall under, allow the reader (YOU) to provide an appropriate lead in.

Articles in the newsletter are, of necessity, brief and cannot cover a subject thoroughly or answer all the question they might bring to mind. Our web site has a message board. By opening a topic, perhaps under GENERAL, an expanded discussion could be developed. (Those not wanting to participate directly could still lurk.)

The first subject to be covered is protection (CYA before it happens). This one is only for computers connected to the internet. I don't care how you're connected, it applies. It's a jungle out there and the beasties will eat you alive if you don't fence them out. Ever since man began to run into bad guys, a high fence or a deep hole have proved most handy. In computer terms a high fence consists of a Virus protection program (kept current) and a Firewall program (or hardware device) provides the deep hole.

Virus, Worm, or Trojan, each is a program that wants to put a type of malicious code on your machine. They each have a different purpose but that doesn't matter. They are not put there for your benefit. You should regard them as you would a pile of fresh barnyard manure delivered on your driveway some morning. Avoid the situation at all costs, and if it does happen, get rid of it and its side effects as quickly as possible. Your anti-virus program is your protection against these programs. If kept up to date, it will identify and remove any that arrive at your computer. If a new one does get through, reputable companies that make anti-virus programs will usually have an downloadable update within two or three hours and a removal program shortly thereafter. It should be pointed out that the program cannot protect you against yourself. If you do not keep it up to date, if you turn it off while you're still connected to the internet (such as to install a program), or if you run an executable file delivered by email (it's already passed through the virus check) you can still be infected. The moral here is if in doubt, don't do it! If you aren't in doubt, you should be. Unless you absolutely know where a executable file came from and are expecting it, don't open it. Tricking you into doing it to yourself seems to be the latest favorite ploy.

One aspect of firewalls is to protect you from intrusions from the internet. Malicious individuals (usually called hackers although the name doesn't matter) are constantly seeking unprotected or weakly protected computers. In this day of automated programs there can be literally hundreds of attempts to penetrate your computer each day. The intent is the same as for viruses. The attacker wishes to preempt you computer for his own purposes. Whatever these purposes may be, they are not to benefit you. Intrusion firewalls are the equivalent of the deep hole. They seek to hide your computer from the internet. After all, if they can't find you, they can't attack you. Hardware devices, which I prefer, will normally protect you only from intrusions.

There is another side to firewalls, they can protect you from programs that are already on you computer which seek connection to the internet. Obviously there are many programs that require such connections. It's the ones that seek it when you don't want them to that you require protection against. This type of program has several aspects that need covering and will be the subject of my next article.

CAG