Helpdesk Disinfection and Acceptable Use Seminar

Information Technology HelpdeskUpdated: 5/7/2007

Course Description

• Welcome to the Helpdesk Virus Disinfection and Acceptable Use Seminar. The purpose of this seminar is to:• Help you use information resources such as e-mail

and the Internet safely to protect your computer from becoming infected by malware.

• Train you to perform routine maintenance on your computer to remove these threats. The Disinfection Agent will go into more depth during the appointment.

Disinfection and Acceptable Use Exam

• The secondary purpose of this seminar is to prepare you for the examination that follows.– The exam consists of twenty-five questions.– Once you have completed the exam, the Disinfection

Agent will walk you through the questions you have missed and explain why.

What is the Helpdesk Disinfection Service?

• This service is provided only as an educational service by the Valdosta State University Information Technology Helpdesk. You will, thus, need to be present for the entirety of the appointment.

• A Disinfection Agent will talk you through the downloading, installing, updating, and running of standard anti-malware software. The client will be asked to run the actions on their computers themselves as the Helpdesk will not actively initiate any of the programs.

• As this is not a technical repair service, the Disinfection Agent is not authorized to actually interact with a computer directly. Instead, he or she will be providing instructions only. If you need repair assistance from a technician, please contact the Valdosta State University Tech Shop in Langdale Hall at 229-219-1398.

Helpdesk / Tech Shop Comparison

• Helpdesk– Educational service– The Disinfection Agent

cannot touch your computer

– You must fulfill the requirements of the Disinfection Seminar

– Can only instruct in the use of standard anti-malware programs to correct the issue

• Tech Shop– Technical repair service– You may drop off the

computer– A fee will be assessed– Can deal with other

hardware and software issues and repair damage caused by malware

What is Malware?

• To begin learning how to protect your computer, you must first have some background understanding of the potential threats to your computer.

• Malware – Malware (short for “malicious software”) is any type of software designed to be transmitted to a computer without the owner’s consent. It is designed to cause damage to or steal information from the owner’s computer.

What can malware do to my computer?

• Malware infections can:– Damage the functionality of hardware and software.– Slow down your computer or Internet connection.– Prevent a computer from connecting to the Internet.– Compromise confidential or private information.– Cause your computer to be quarantined from campus

services such as the Valdosta State University wireless network, Hallnet.

– Spread these infections to other computers on the network.

What Types of Malware Exist?• Viruses – Viruses spread through data transferred from an

infected computer either by across a computer network or using a physical source such as a floppy disk or CD-ROM.

• Worms – Worms are similar to viruses, but does not require user interaction to spread.

• Trojan Horses – Trojan horses appear as legitimate files, but when opened, infect a computer. They often reside in files downloaded from the Internet or e-mail attachments.

• Spyware – Spyware infections collect data from a computer without the owner’s consent.

• Adware – Adware infections display advertising in various forms, such as pop-ups, on a computer without the owner’s consent.

How do I Protect my Computer?

• Protection software:• Keep an updated

personal firewall.• Keep your antivirus and

spyware removal software updated.

• Run your antivirus and spyware removal software regularly.

•Good habits:•Avoid peer-to-peer file sharing software.•Do not open suspicious e-mails or attachments.•Only visit trusted web sites.•Do not interact with online advertisements.•Avoid rogue anti-malware programs.

Protection and removal software alone is NOT enough to protect your computer, as even the most reputable protection can be bypassed or disabled. The best form of protection comes from developing a strong understanding and good habits when accessing information resources such as the Internet and e-mail.

Personal Firewall• Personal Firewall - A

personal firewall is a program that is installed on your computer to prevent intrusions from programs and other computers.

• Valdosta State University recommends PC-cillin, a package including both a personal firewall and antivirus software.

• PC-cillin is verified to be compatible with Valdosta State University Services including:• Registration

and Advising• The wireless

network• Online classes• Campus e-mail

Antivirus

• Antivirus - Antivirus software is used to detect and deal with viruses, worms, and Trojan horses. This is normally done by removing the infection from the file, but if this action fails, the antivirus software may quarantine or delete the infected files to prevent the infection from spreading to other files.

• Once again, Valdosta State University recommends the use of PC-cillin.

PC-cillin Assistance

• For instructions on how to download, install, run and update PC-cillin visit the Anti-Virus and Spyware page.

Anti-Spyware

• Anti-Spyware – Anti-Spyware software is used to detect, clean, and prevent spyware and adware programs from infecting your computer. Anti-Spyware programs clean your computer by removing infected files and, in some cases, by preventing the files from being downloaded in the first place.

• Valdosta State University recommends using Windows Defender, Spybot Search & Destroy, and Lavasoft Ad-Aware SE Personal.

Anti-Spyware Assistance

• For instructions on how to download, install, run and update Spybot Search & Destroy, Windows Defender, and Ad-Aware SE Personal visit the Anti-Virus and Spyware page.

What is Peer-to-Peer file-sharing?

• Peer-to-Peer file-sharing involves the use of software that allows you to download from other users on the network, rather than from a trusted source. Peer-to-peer file-sharing is the most common source of malware infections, as it is impossible to either verify whether the files are authentic and unmodified or to track down the source of the file.

Avoid Peer-to-Peer Software

• Peer-to-Peer software is one of the most prevalent ways that malware spreads.

• As you cannot verify the legitimacy of the download, you cannot tell if the download has been tampered with to include malware.

• It is best to avoid downloading anything from Peer-to-Peer software.

• Examples of Peer-to-Peer software include Limewire, Kazaa, Bearshare, and any BitTorrent client.

Suspicious Emails and Attachments

• Suspicious emails or attachments are another prevalent way that malware spreads. Emails are also another way online scams spread.

• If you receive any email from an address you don’t recognize be careful if you open it. Do not open any attachments or click on any links in the email until you have verified that the email is genuine and not a threat.

Only Visit Trusted Websites

• There are multitudes of websites that anybody can visit. You should always be alert to what websites you browse.

• When downloading programs download directly from that companies website instead of someone’s personal website as you do not know if that person has tampered with the program.

Do Not Interact With Online Advertisements

• If you get any online advertisements do not close it by clicking close or cancel in the advertisement as this could allow malware to infect your computer.

• Instead close the pop-up by clicking on the close “X” button in the top right hand corner of the pop-up.

• If there is no close “X” button hit Alt + F4 buttons.

Rogue Anti-Malware Programs• Rogue anti-malware programs claim to be anti-virus/spyware

programs but are really malware in themselves.• These are usually installed by the user clicking on a pop-up

saying that their computer is infected or the user is looking for anti-malware software and mistakenly downloads a rogue one.

• These programs will continually tell the user that they are infected with malware and that the user should buy their product to remove the malware. These programs are nothing more than a scam and buying the program will not remove the rogue program, nor will it remove any actual spyware on the computer.

Your Appointment

• When you come in for your Disinfection appointment, you will take a 25 question test which you must pass before a Disinfection Technician can assist you in any further actions at your computer.

• After you have passed the test and completed your disinfection you should have the tools and knowledge to keep your computer clean.