[karim_sbitar]

Please did virus really attaks hardware? And what can I do to avoid this threat

[RickJ]

virus' attack data, not hardware. Certainly, though, you need to be running a good AntiVirus application. See here.

[NeedKarma]

The closest I've seen is that joke virus that opened your CDROM drawer. Otherwise it's as Rick explained.

[RickJ]

I heard many poeple talk...

Many people talk about many things. That does not make them true. Virus' do not "attack" hardware.

Have a good antivirus app running and you won't have any problems.

[NeedKarma]

I'm dying to see proof of a virus destroying a motherboard as you say. What "stuff" from the 'net can end up on your motherboard?

[RickJ]

I even found the question intrigueing myself thinking I'd like to learn something... so googled a variety of ways and found nothing.

What do I get for my efforts? A reddie! :p

Funny how this works: When I'm plain wrong people are kind and correct me in posts, but 4 of the 5 reds I've got visible are plain silly. Oh well

[NeedKarma]

Well, y'know, you DO have some good connections here. You could clean up that undeserved reputation of yours. :)

[RickJ]

Actually, I think a looooong row of greenies would look pretty boring, so the reddies mixed in gives the page a nice Christmas flavor. :p

[phillysteakandcheese]

It's technically possible for a virus to damage hardware. The recent PSP Brick virus proves that, and if you look back, the CIH virus a few years ago attempted to flash the BIOS of the infected system to disable it.

The problem with hardware damaging viruses is that they have to be highly specific in terms of the hardware and software they can actually be successful on. For most virus writers, there's either no payoff, or a very small one... Why fry someone's machine when it can become a Zombie that can be used to SPAM or hack others... for money?

In any case, running an up-to-date AntiVirus software package will protect you from these known threats - Although it's impossible to guarantee protection in the future from what "might" happen.

I'm more surprised that there are not more viruses out there targeting cell phones and PDAs.

[karim_sbitar]

Many people talk about many things. That does not make them true. Virus' do not "attack" hardware.

Have a good antivirus app running and you won't have any problems.

HI thank u, but I don't want to install an antiv on my system. It slows the PC performance. But I installed deep freez do deep freez protect my machine?

[Curlyben]

Karim, if you won't install any security then you are in for a world of hurt!!

Deep Freeze will NOT protect you from virus infection, much less malware.


Philly, I must disagree with you, the viruses you mentioned attacked the systems firmware, not hardware.

[karim_sbitar]

Many people talk about many things. That does not make them true. Virus' do not "attack" hardware.

Have a good antivirus app running and you won't have any problems.

I don't want to have a useless antivir to slow me and make me :mad:. Anti virus only keep bothering you with bannal messages all the time. And when a real treat is up the anti is out of date o something

[Curlyben]

Karim,
If you won't listen to the advice that has been given to you, then feel free, but DON'T ask us to help fix your machine when it becomes unusable due to massive infestation!!

Bear in mind that it takes less than 30 seconds for an internet connected computer to become infected !

[karim_sbitar]

The closest I've seen is that joke virus that opened your CDROM drawer. Otherwise it's as Rick explained.

If a 10k application can open your cdromdrawer why do u think virus can't attak hardware

[NeedKarma]

if a 10k application can open your cdromdrawer why do u think virus can't attak hardware

Because the CDROM drawer opening is simply a command that you can use everyday if you knew it.

Grisoft AV doesn't slow performance, it's what I use. You must be thinking of any and all Norton/Symantec product that DO slow the system.

[ScottGem]

HI thank u, but I don't want to install an antiv on my system. it slows the pc performance. But I installed deep freez do deep freez protect my machine?

Gee, I don't want to wear a condom, but the alternative is a lot worse! If you think an A/V affects PC performance, imagine what the virus or spyware will do to it!! Stop being foolish and install a good A/V. I use E-Trust Armor A/V which doesn't seem to have an appreciable affect on performance.

A virus does not attack hardware. That's not possible. But what one has to remember is that hardware is controlled by software. Some if that is EPROM (Electronically Programmable Read Only Memory). An example of this is your BIOS. So a virus COULD target the BIOS EPROM, thereby rendering the hardware unusable. This might seem like its attacking hardware but its not.

[phillysteakandcheese]

Philly, I must disagree with you, the viruses you mentioned attacked the systems firmware, not hardware.

That's a pretty geeky separation... and while I can see what you mean, in the case of the CIH virus, let me ask you: How many PC manufacturers offer a solution to fix a bad BIOS flash?

In my experience - not too many. And while I don't know about the PSP, other hardware that you might flash the firmware on (such as your CD-ROM, hard-drive, printer server, or multifunction machines) have no way of recovering a bad BIOS flash. You're going to be replacing the mainboard of those devices to get them up and running again.

The bottom line is that if the CIH virus managed to corrupt a PC's BIOS, and you can't boot the PC, and there's no way to re-flash the BIOS... the hardware is dead because of damage caused by the virus.

...I don't want to install an antiv on my system. it slows the pc performance...

It would be very foolish to use a network connected computer without any anti-virus protection. Even on a stand-alone machine, you usually would want a basic AV scanner available to scan removable media.

[ScottGem]

karim_sbitar agrees: thanks a lot man, but correct if am wrong I have all my important stuff on a partition and am connected from an other partition where the system is. So the worse that can happen if the hardwear is not attacked, can be solved by reinstalling windows

Just because yoiur data is on another partiton does not make it any less vulnerable.

[Curlyben]

Karim, as has already been pointed out repeatedly viruses attack data most notably your OS!!
Here's an excellent piece about how they work and what they do.
Read and learn !!