When e-mail viruses attack, Case Western Reserve University's Information Technology Services (ITS) can only do so much. The rest is up to the individual.

According to Case's Council of Technology Officers (CTO), an advisory group of IT directors representing all management centers, central and school-based technology services have installed hardware and software solutions to contend with viruses like those that recently loaded campus e-mail boxes with large numbers of unwanted messages. But these efforts cannot address the vulnerability of each and every computer. Only faculty, staff and students can do that.

"Combating viruses effectively can only be achieved by the University and computer users working together," the council said in a written statement. "(You can) assist central and school-based IT in preventing and effectively responding to viral attacks by making sure your Windows operating system and anti-virus software is up to date."

In the recent virus attacks, the W32.blaster.worm exploited a bug in the Windows interface that allowed the virus to infect computers on systems that did not have the latest software updates for Windows installed. According to CTO, the W32.sobig.f@mm virus, which was responsible for sending the voluminous e-mails, did so by infecting computers that were not protected with installed, up-to-date anti-virus programs.

The council recommends that every member of the campus community load antiviral software, such as the Symantec AntiVirus software recommended by ITS, on every computer. The Symantec Antivirus software is available free for download from the University's online Software Center at http://www.case.edu/softwarecenter.

Since viruses keep changing, Symantec regularly updates its antiviral software to protect systems against new strains. CTO suggests individual computer users update their viral software daily to ensure that the most recent program is looking for new—and old—viruses on their machines, in e-mail messages and in files. When a virus does attack, the council suggests a user update more than once a day because Symantec may release new definitions to respond to that virus.

In addition to the Symantec software, Microsoft offers downloadable fixes for its Windows operating system to help fight computer viruses. The operating system can be configured to alert the user when updates are available, so the user can install them. The software also can be configured to automatically download and install new updates. Additional information on this feature for Windows XP can be found at http://www.case.edu/support/guide/help/sc/WinUpdate.html.

"As a computer user, you can take steps to reduce the chances that your computer will be affected by viruses that cannot be taken care of by central and school-based IT," the council said.

Faculty, staff and students also should regularly check the ITS Web site at http://www.case.edu/its and the Help Desk Web site at http://help.case.edu, according to CTO. Both feature information about viruses, including their names, characteristics and how to remove them. Symantec's Web site at http://www.symantec.com also offers information on current computer viruses.

"The software and hardware protecting the University network cannot always prevent viral attacks," the council said, "and those machines that are not updated or protected can contribute to the distribution of the virus throughout the University community. As a user, you play an important role in helping to protect faculty, staff and students."

For additional information, contact the Help Desk at 368-4357 (HELP) or help@case.edu.

Return to the online edition of the 9-18-03 Campus News.

Legal Information | © 2003 Case Western Reserve University | Contact the Department