Inc. E-mail use is skyrocketing. Infection by a hidden virus in an e-mail is perhaps the biggest hazard a company faces. An e-mail virus can literally shut down a business in a matter of minutes. This risk must be managed just like any other risk a business faces. A computer virus is a small software program designed to replicate and spread, generally with the recipient being oblivious to its existence.
Viruses can come from a variety of sources and be spread in a variety of ways.
The virus can infect or become resident in almost any software module, including an application, operating system, and system boot code or device driver. Today, virus programs are distributed as an attachment to an e-mail message. When the e-mail is opened, the attached virus program is activated or executed. What makes viruses dangerous is their ability to perform an event. At the very least, viruses expand file size and slow real-time interaction, hindering computer performance.