What are the symptoms of a virus?

Some common symptoms that may indicate your computer is infected with a virus are:

• Unusual messages or displays on your monitor.
• Unusual sounds or music played at random times.
• Your system has less available memory than usual.
• A disk or volume name has changed.
• Programs or files are suddenly missing.
• Unknown programs or files are created.
• Some of your files become corrupted or suddenly do not work properly.

If you think your computer has a virus infection, do the following:

1. Do not panic.
2. Make sure your virus protection is up-to-date. Learn how to get the latest virus protection update:
   • VirusScan Enterprise 8.5i for Windows Vista, XP, or 2000 
   • Virex 7.7 for Macintosh OSX
3. Scan your computer or disks for viruses. Learn how to scan for viruses using:
   • VirusScan Enterprise 8.5i for Windows Vista, XP, or 2000
   • Virex 7.7 for Macintosh OSX
4. If you need help getting rid of a virus:
• Contact the Help Center: 552-HELP (2-HELP from on-campus), help.center@bc.edu, or fill out & submit the Problem Report Form.
• Faculty & Staff: You can also contact your Technology Consultant (TC). Who is my TC?
• Students: You can also visit the Campus Technology Resource Center (CTRC) in O'Neill 250.
5. If you got a virus from an email, learn whom to inform when you get an email virus.
6. If you got a virus from a shared file, inform:
   • Those who have access to the file on the network.
   • Those to whom you have emailed the infected file.
   • The person from whom you originally got the infected file.