Computer viruses - how computers get sick and how to cure them - includes related articles

Science World, Oct 19, 1998 by Michael Cannell

College major? English. I went to several colleges.

Why the interest in computer viruses? My first PC (non-Apple computer) came complete with two viruses. It was a brand new computer, but the store had pre-installed a whole bunch of software for me.

How old were you when you started at Symantec? Barely 21. I worked full-time and went to college part-time. I'm only 28 and I've done about everything at the company except be president.

So what do you do now? I analyze virus outbreaks in various parts of the world, and supervise a research team who writes anti-virus programs.

Is virus hunting exciting?. It's almost like being in an emergency room. Every day there is some virus outbreak with some company in the world that we're called on to help. We need to make sure we stay one step ahead of the problem. If our research takes a wrong turn, a lot of computers will be hurt. I really feel I make a big difference.

Advice to young computer fanatics? Take advanced computer science courses in college. The computer field is a great one to work in.

Thanks, Alex. We'll call you if we have a computer virus. By the way, do you make house calls?