Have you ever had to rebuild a computer? Load the OS? Reload your apps and restore all your files? I have and I finally got wise to the fact that email viruses had been entering my system and screwing around with my files. Computer viruses often enter your systems by way of emails and email attachments. They often get launched automatically just by opening up your attachment that you received from a friend or a relative. Once in they can set off a disastrous chain of events leading up to the critical loss of personal information such as passwords and account numbers.
Many companies offer anti-virus software that can scan your emails for potential threats. They will also check for new updates and apply those changes daily if specified.
One method of how to handle viruses is for the anti-virus software to deliver to the recipient a message indicating that received email was infected with a virus, what type of virus it was and only the header of the infected email. Upon detection the infected email is also destroyed.

On a personal level there are actions you can take to prevent viruses:

1. Do not download or open any unknown files that are attached to an email; they could be viruses. If you are unsure, err on the side of caution, and do not open the attached files. If you must download an attached file to an email, make sure to save it and scan it for viruses before you open it.
2. Periodically run a manual scan of your computer files to check for viruses that have “hatched”.
3. Remember to keep your Virus Protection software updated! I recommend you set your Virus software to auto-update. And be careful not to “cancel” out of auto-update if it tries to run when you are using your computer. For more information about virus protection, updates, downloads, and advice, go to: http://www.us-cert.gov/.
4. Turn off macros in Microsoft Word, Excel, or PowerPoint. There is a widespread set of viruses known as macro viruses. These are viruses designed to run when you launch a product such as Word. If macros are turned off, it is unlikely that a virus will be able to launch itself and do harm to your computer.
5. When using Outlook as your email program, turn the Preview feature off as an extra precaution.

And if you get a virus from an infected file, you should do the following:
• Inform the person you originally got the infected file from.
• Inform people who have access to the file on the network.
• Inform anyone that you emailed the infected file to.

I mentioned CERT earlier so I thought I should provide you with the acronym explained: “The United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) is a partnership between the Department of Homeland Security and the public and private sectors. Established in 2003 to protect the nation’s Internet infrastructure, US-CERT coordinates defense against and responses to cyber attacks across the nation.”