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IBM researchers have proposed an automated system that can identify new
viruses as well as develop and disseminate the antidotes. The software will be able to
identify a previously unknown virus by either analyzing changes to a file or studying
the characteristics of a file for code common to viruses. When a potential virus is
identified, the infected file will be sent to the virus-lab computer. If the virus is
known but not recognized by the user's system because of out-of-date software,
updated antivirus data will be sent back to the user.
If the virus is truly unknown, the virus-lab computers will let it spread within a
secure environment and then study the way the virus behaves, extracting its signature
based on the common characteristics of the infected files. The signature will be tested
to ensure it didn't misidentify clean files as infected. If the signature passes, it would
be sent back to the machine on which the virus was originally identified and the virus
will be removed.
IBM estimates that the entire process should take only about 3 minutes. Within
a day, the updated virus signature will be sent out to all computers running IBM's
software, protecting them from possible infection. This automated system will be
faster than the manual process used in today's antivirus software, which typically
takes several weeks to a few months to send new virus signatures to all subscribers.
Other disaster faces the antivirus community in the coming years. As computer
prices continue to drop and more users get connected, the general level of user
sophistication goes down. As a result, hoaxes have begun to spread around the
Internet like wildfire. They are so prevalent that most users are more likely to be
bothered by hoaxes than by actual viruses.
A hoax typically takes the form of an e-mail message: it warns the user of a
virus spreading as part of another e-mail message that will cause damage to the user's
computer. The message urges users to send the warning to all their colleagues. In fact
there is no virus, but the hoaxer's message can take on viruslike characteristics as it
replicates from system to system via e-mail. Although it is possible for a virus to
spread via e-mail, such a virus has yet to be seen and studied.
Most users do not understand the difference between viruses and other
malicious threats. Because of this, anti-virus vendors will have to continue extending
their products to address more types of security problems, as well as to better detect
the rapidly increasing number of viruses.
Notes
antidote - противоядие
hoax – дезинформация, трюк
seek out - выискивать
signature – отличительный признак, сигнатура
replicate - воспроизводить
sophistication- зд. профессионализм
COMPREHENSION CHECK
Exercise 1. Answer the following questions using the information from the text:
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