Make sure your employees and/or family members know what to do if your computers become infected.



 Don't panic, but act swiftly: contain the virus so it does not spread to other systems, then take steps to eradicate it.


 Physically disconnect your computer from the phone line or computer network.  Hopefully you can reach the wall-mounted phone or data jack and simply remove the cable from the jack.  This may help limit the spread of the infection to other computers, and may also limit the amount of data that is exposed to the intruder.

   If you can't disconnect the data or phone cord, try to log-off and shut down the computer.  Turn off the power only as a last resort because the uncontrolled loss of power can cause damage to the data on your hard disk.


 Don't be silent: tell your office manager what has happened and alert your technical support contact.


 If possible, you should isolate the computer workgroup or network segment where the virus was first detected from the rest of your network.

   Once the virus infection is contained, take steps to disinfect the computer.

   Start automated virus scanning on the rest of the workgroup computers to check for the presence of viruses.


 After eliminating the virus from the first computer, start scanning all removable media (floppy disks, Zip Disks, USB Flash Disks, CDs, backup tapes, external hard drives) that have been in contact with the infected computer for possible viruses.


 Ask yourself who else may have used the infected computer during the past few days or weeks.

   If others have used the computer, their PCs could be affected and need help to remove the infection.

   The virus could also have spread to people with whom you have shared files via email, "sneaker net", or network drives. If any shared files were infected, you should inform those individuals or companies.

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