In a recent scare, many PC users around the world updated their antivirus software hoping to protect themselves from the dreaded April Fools’ Day Virus. This virus, known as Conficker, has been spreading rapidly through the Internet via vulnerability in the Window’s system.
      First discovered in October 2008, Microsoft has since then released patches to close this vulnerability, but many PCs still remain unsecured. It is highly recommended that all PC users update their antivirus software immediately.
      “As soon as I heard about the virus, I was worried because I have a lot of important information on my computer that would be dangerous in the hands of the wrong person,” said senior Diana Munoz.
      “I updated my antivirus software right when I had the chance,” Munoz said.
      To this date, Microsoft is still unaware of Conficker’s true purpose but assumes it to be associated with a type of payload dumping. What this means is that the Conficker is downloading other forms of mal ware and viruses that infect your computer and may steal personal information.
      It was expected that the virus would detonate and wreak havoc on the computer world on April 1, 2009, but similar to the Y2K scare at the turn of the century, its effects have little to show. However, many users were frightened at the thought of a large-scale virus break out.
      “I was scared that something was going to happen, wasn’t sure what to expect, but I took lots of precaution upon what sites I was going on and made sure my anti-virus was up and working properly,” senior JR Sarmiento said.
      The Conficker virus is not only able to make its way through holes in Microsoft’s security but also through use of USB flash drives. This has caused many problems for Carson High students who frequently use their storage drives on shared computers. Once the drive is inserted into their home computer’s USB port, the Conficker virus is activated through a command known as AutoRun, which commonly appears when some type of media is inserted.
      This worry prevented many students, such as sophomore Claire Trinidad, from using the College Center computers, which are currently recovering from the virus.
      “I needed to print something off my USB drive, but I was warned that the computers might infect it, so I couldn’t print my homework,” said Trinidad.
      The virus is highly untraceable because it has a pool of 50,000 domains where it can receive instruction. This has made it very difficult for Microsoft, who is offering a $250,000 dollar reward for the creator of the virus.

Because the true actions of the virus remain unknown, all PC users are urged to keep up to date with the latest antivirus software and updates.