7 reasons to worry about Trojan viruses, and 1 more reason to worry right now

I am typically busy during my day, sending and receiving tons of email and browsing multiple resources on the web during my research hours.  I feel my computer is safe while I am at it – I have a killer anti-virus protection on my computer network (Thanks to our partner ESET for keeping it safe, for us and for our clients!), and a great IT team that makes sure my anti-virus is up-to-date and at it’s best. (Thanks, powersolution IT Support team!)

That is why when I saw the popup from ESET alerting me that another version of Trojan Generik, a Generic Detection that identifies files with trojan-like characteristics or behavior was intercepted, I was not worried. I knew it will be quarantined and properly destroyed.

But if you have an inadequate anti-virus protection (weak, old or incomplete), you should worry.

7 reasons why you should worry about a Trojan Virus:

1. It is harmful: Trojan Generic/Generik is a very harmful program containing  malicious applications (malware).
2. It is deceptive: It can be deceptive by appealing to users to trick them into running the program – the example in the screenshot demonstrates that an email came addressed to me personally, with the subject of “Court Attendance notification to: Dina Dadian with Subject Pretrial Notice No9749”. Looks personal and can make me think – what if it is a legitimate email I should be worried about? It’s a good thing I know better…)
3. It is aggressive: It acts very aggressively by taking over super-quickly and spreading through your system.
4. It is destructive:  It can destroy complete computer systems.
5. It is criminal: in addition to being destructive to your (or your business) property, it can also be destructive to you personally: trojans can steal personal data.
6. It is resilient:  It cannot always be removed by antivirus programs.
7. It is tricky: It can get re-introduced into the system during System Restore (That is why it is best not to attempt to remove the virus, if you are not a trained professional.)

One more reason why you should worry right now:

1. This type of Trojans is not new – it’s been around for a few years. But there seems to be a noticeable spike in their activity in the beginning of 2014.

What next?

First, make sure to not even put yourself in the position when you have to fight off the malware. Get with the program and make sure your anti-virus is at it’s best, up-to-date.

If you notice any  symptoms of the computer virus [not sure? – see the checklist], it means your computer system may already be a victim. If you are not sure what to do best course of action is to immediately turn off your computer, contact your Managed IT Services provider , contact your IT Department, or reach out to your local computer repair shop.

more text