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Virus Recovery: FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
Created on: (02.09.09)
Last modified:
(02.17.09)
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Virus Recovery Frequently Asked Questions and Answers
As of 2 p.m. Monday, Feb. 9, 2009
Are classes canceled?
The college remains open and classes have NOT been canceled.
Where can employees work?
The Employee Learning Facility has 6 Green Tagged computers with Datatel access and are now available. The Molstead Computer Center on the second floor of the library has also been opened for Employee use. Employees should go to the Check In desk and they will be directed to a computer that’s been cleaned and green tagged.
How many computers are on campus and at outreach sites? Of those, how many are affected by the virus?
Approximately 1,000 computers are on campus and there are 200 off campus. An estimated 90 percent of those computers have been affected by the virus.
Do you know how the virus started?
A previous strain is suspected to have originated in Russia. This particular virus does not appear to be targeted toward the college for any malicious reasons.
What exactly does the virus do?
The virus attaches itself to .exe, .htm and .scr files. It does not destroy the file, however, it uses the files to propagate itself. It caused problems with NIC’s virus protection software last week, which is why the college worked directly with Microsoft to write a completely new version of the virus protection software that could attack the virus. It’s not uncommon that multiple files on just one computer are affected, therefore the virus cleaning process involves multiple levels and takes anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours per machine.
Have NIC classes been affected by the virus? Are Internet classes affected?
For the most part, students have been relatively unaffected by the virus infection except during periods of time when student computer labs are unavailable due to the virus recovery team cleaning process. Internet classes have also remained relatively unaffected and have been operating as usual throughout last week and this morning. Another high priority of the Information Technology team the morning of Monday, Feb. 9 was to ensure that classroom technology was virus free.
When did the virus infection begin?
The first signs of the virus began the afternoon of Monday, Feb. 2 and mitigation began immediately.
Why is my red light not lighting up when I have voicemail?
This should only be happening for broadcast voicemails. Please report any problems with phone service to the HelpDesk at Ext. 3280.
If I sent an email to my home computer, is my home computer infected?
That’s a possibility only if there was an affected attachment that was an .exe or a .scr file that the home computer opened. If that happened, turn your computer off and contact the HelpDesk at Ext. 3280.
Do Smart Phones get the virus?
So far, we don’t have an reported incidents of this happening.
If a computer is not networked can it be turned on?
Yes.
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