Predator Software; Learn How to Defeat Viruses, Worms

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Byline: Christian Toto, THE WASHINGTON TIMES

George Washington University professor Lance Hoffman compares the current Internet climate to his earliest days behind the wheel.

"When I learned to drive a car, there were no air bags or seat belts," says Mr. Hoffman, a computer science professor at the Foggy Bottom university. Enough accidents happened that the safety devices soon became a reality.

"We're in the no-seat-belt age of the Internet. We don't even have drivers licenses," Mr. Hoffman says. "That will change."

Proof of that is the continued onslaught of what some call malware, or malicious software.

These foul Web dangers include viruses, worms and other programs designed to tie up computer users' Web surfing, or let others peek at where their Internet travels lead.

The term malware has been around for several years, says Mr. Hoffman, editor of the book "Rogue Programs: Viruses, Worms, and Trojan Horses."

A particularly …