New strategy against computer viruses

2003/01/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Internet

Since computers are connected, the most direct and effective way to spread viruses is email. And when the virus infects the computer, it sends a contaminated mail to all the addresses that are in the mailing list, thus contaminating many computers in a very short time. Last year's Code Red virus, for example, contaminated 300,000 computers in half a day.

Matthew Williamson, a researcher at Hewlett-Packard, has a new vision of the spread of viruses. Its intention is to design a system that slows the spread of the virus. To do this, it is sufficient that when the computer detects that it is sending more messages from the usual ones in a given time, it is interrupted or at least the mail is inactivated.