Corporate Anti-Virus Protection - A Layered Approach

Computer viruses are a force to be reckoned with for any network administrator. These malicious programs and scripts cause billions of dollars worth of damages to corporations in lost productivity and damages. Unfortunately, viruses are fact of life in today's computing environment, and they are becoming more and more common--and more sophisticated. According to a recent report by MessageLabs, the month of June 2003 'saw viruses increase by 13.6% over the previous month'1. Most experts agree that this trend is expected to continue. In this practical I intend to demonstrate that in today's technological atmosphere one must think creatively when trying to stay protected against computer viruses. The use of a simple out-of-the-box single-vendor or -application approach has become antiquated and more and more it has become necessary to think 'outside the box' and consider a more sophisticated 'layered approach'. The suggestions contained herein are meant to offer a 'defense-in-depth' solution for large enterprises and corporations where there may be thousands of entry points through which viruses can enter causing possible system damage and information theft or loss.