Is Antivirus Software Important?
In a nutshell, yes. However, we do understand how some of you feel about this. Especially in times past, antivirus software has been notorious for adversely affecting your system performance even while protecting it from danger. The first point we'd like to make in response to that is that modern antivirus software has been specifically engineered in such a way as to make as little adverse impact on your system performance as possible. Plus, it's just as true now as it has always been that without antivirus protection, the hardware you've invested in is in jeopardy. Actually, that's even truer now than it was then.
Other Dangers
Of course, it's not just your hardware that's at risk when you don't run any antivirus software. Your data is also in a precarious situation. Think about how important that data is to you. If you're a business, you might have customer databases, sales records, and more to protect. Even if your computer is just for personal use, you could have downloaded lots of expensive songs and video files and written yourself lots of notes. Of course, we haven't even mentioned the significance of all of those precious memories which probably live on your hard drive in the form of digital family photos. If you're like us, then you've probably heard at least one horror story of someone who has lost years of such memories to one viral attack; all wiped out in a moment.
What Exactly is a Computer Virus, Anyway?
A computer virus is some unwanted piece of code that you generally download accidentally. If you make use of any file sharing sites to legally download pieces of software or other types of files, or if you open email attachments, there can be pieces of code illegally attached to those files which can be destructive to your computer system on various levels. Some of these can be harmless but annoying, and they only do things like display rude and/or annoying pictures. On the other end of the spectrum, some of them can wipe your whole hard drive clean or even disable some of your system components. They run the gamut in between as well.
Why Do People Make Them?
People make computer viruses for different reasons. Sometimes, they make them just to impress their friends. Occasionally, they make them in order to show big companies such as Apple and Microsoft that their security features aren't as stable as they think they are. In the event that the name of the virus includes the name of its creator, which happens more often than you might think, it could be speculated that the creation of the virus is an attempt to achieve some degree of immortality. Whatever the reason they're created, as you've seen, the consequences of your system can be devastating, both personally and financially. With effective, modern antivirus software installed on your system, running regularly, and staying up to date, you won't have to worry about that.
Other Dangers
Of course, it's not just your hardware that's at risk when you don't run any antivirus software. Your data is also in a precarious situation. Think about how important that data is to you. If you're a business, you might have customer databases, sales records, and more to protect. Even if your computer is just for personal use, you could have downloaded lots of expensive songs and video files and written yourself lots of notes. Of course, we haven't even mentioned the significance of all of those precious memories which probably live on your hard drive in the form of digital family photos. If you're like us, then you've probably heard at least one horror story of someone who has lost years of such memories to one viral attack; all wiped out in a moment.
What Exactly is a Computer Virus, Anyway?
A computer virus is some unwanted piece of code that you generally download accidentally. If you make use of any file sharing sites to legally download pieces of software or other types of files, or if you open email attachments, there can be pieces of code illegally attached to those files which can be destructive to your computer system on various levels. Some of these can be harmless but annoying, and they only do things like display rude and/or annoying pictures. On the other end of the spectrum, some of them can wipe your whole hard drive clean or even disable some of your system components. They run the gamut in between as well.
Why Do People Make Them?
People make computer viruses for different reasons. Sometimes, they make them just to impress their friends. Occasionally, they make them in order to show big companies such as Apple and Microsoft that their security features aren't as stable as they think they are. In the event that the name of the virus includes the name of its creator, which happens more often than you might think, it could be speculated that the creation of the virus is an attempt to achieve some degree of immortality. Whatever the reason they're created, as you've seen, the consequences of your system can be devastating, both personally and financially. With effective, modern antivirus software installed on your system, running regularly, and staying up to date, you won't have to worry about that.
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