Alex Has Never Worried About Computer Viruses

Multiple Choice

Alex has never worried about computer viruses. However, a friend who works in IT recently told him about a new wave of viruses. Alex is wondering whether he should pay more attention to this threat, and if so, what he can do to protect his computer. Which of the following represents the best advice for him?

A) Trying to prevent viruses is likely to be more costly and troublesome than just dealing with the virus if your computer becomes infected. Moreover, the chance of actually getting a virus is very small, and even if you get one, most viruses do very little real damage. Thus the best course of action is to simply continue to ignore the problem.
B) Although viruses are potentially harmful, there is no effective way to prevent their spread. The best approach is to back up important files on a regular basis and reformat the hard drive any time a virus appears.
C) The Internet has automatic safeguards that prevent viruses from being transmitted when files are downloaded. Thus, the best way for Tucker to avoid harmful viruses is to use the Internet to send any files he wants to share rather than swapping easily infected diskettes.
D) There is no absolutely foolproof way to avoid viruses, but one reasonably effective safeguard is to install antivirus software and use it to scan files before downloading them, particularly from unknown sources. It is important to make sure that the software is updated on a regular basis to remain effective.