What do the following acronyms stand for: ISP, ip, IRC, PPP, tcp, FTP, html, url.

Read the text again and choose the right answer.

1. An Internet service provider (ISP) is

 

a) a program that connects you to the Internet.

b) a company that gives you access to the Internet.

 

2. HTML is

a) the software which allows you to fetch and see Web pages.

b) the codes used to create hypertext documents for the Web.

 

3. An IRC channel is

a) an IRC discussion area.

b) a computer system dedicated to IRC.

 

4. Usenet is

a) a big system of public discussion groups.

b) a newsgroup.

 

5. An intranet is

a) like a small version of the Internet inside a company.

b) a commercial online service.

 

In pairs, ask and answer questions

1. What web site do you visit to chat with friends?

2. Do you use your real name or nick-name?

COMPUTER VIRUSES

Read the text and answer these questions.

1) What is a computer virus?

2) What are the effects of the Jerusalem virus?

3) What type of virus was Code Red? How did it spread?

4) What is a Trojan horse?

5) How can viruses enter and infect your computer system?

6) What happened when you opened the attachment of the ILoveYou e-mail virus?

7) How can you protect your system from viruses?

 

Find these words in the text. Then match them with a synonym on the right.

1) damage            a) activated

2) Replicates       b) harm, spoil

3) Polymorphic   с) passing through various stages

4) triggered            d) propagates, extends

5) deleting            e) stop, fail

6) disguises            f) erasing

7) crash                          g) masquerades, conceals

8) spreads        h) creates copies of itself

 

Computer viruses

A virus is a piece of software written deliberately to enter your computer and damage your data. Topically it attaches itself to another program and replicates itself trying to 'infect* as many files as possible. Some viruses are polymorphic (e.g. the Tequila mutation). Others are capable of transmitting themselves acros the Net.

Here are some types of viruses:

Ø      Logic bomb - a virus which is triggered when a specific program is executed- A time bomb is activated on a certain day. For example, the Jerusalem virus activates on Friday 13th, displaying a black window on the screen and deleting infected flies.

Ø      Macro virus - it infects documents run by programs that use macros (e.g. word processors). A typical macro virus is Melissa, which was passed in MS Word files sent via e-mail.

Ø      Worm - a special type of virus that uses computer networks and security holes to reproduce itself independently; without having to attach itself to another program. A worm called Code Red replicated itself many times in 2001 infecting thousands of Web servers.

Ø      Trojan horse - a destructive program that disguises itself as a safe program. A Trojan horse does not reproduce itself but instead can crash the system or erase the files on your hard drive. The term comes from a Greek legend: the Greeks offered a wooden horse to the Trojans, their enemies. Once the horse was inside the city walls, the Greek soldiers came out of the horse's belly and captured Troy.

Viruses can enter your computer system in three different ways: (i) via a disk drive, when you insert infected disks or CDs; (ii) via files downloaded from the Web, or (iii) via e-mail attachments. 'When you open an infected file, the virus is activated and installs itself into the computer's memory Then it spreads to storage devices and may infect your friends* systems through the Net. A good example is ILoveYou, an Internet worm released in 2000 as an e-mail attachment (Love-Letter-For-You). When you opened this file, the virus was sent to everyone in your address book.

But there is protection software (e.g. Norton Anti­virus, McAfee Virus Scan) that will help you detect, diagnose and eradicate viruses. Don't forget that new viruses are created even- day. so try to update the database of your anti-virus program regularly.

It is a good idea to make a back-up copy of all your important files. It's also advisable not to open e-mails from strangers.

Santiago Remacha Esteras. Infotech. English for Computer Users. – CUP, 2002.