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Coronavirus pandemic
OpinionLetters

Letters | How medical science’s coronavirus fight can learn from computer science

  • There are parallels between the preventive systems and incident responses that information systems deploy against malware and those that medicine uses against Covid-19
  • The fight against Covid-19 leaves little room for experimentation, but medical practitioners can still learn from how information systems fight against malware

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While the term “virus” has a specific meaning in information systems parlance, it has long been broadly used to refer to malware, any software with detrimental effects on the operations of an information system. Photo: Shutterstock
Letters

Several magnificent innovations have been inspired by nature. For example, engineers learn from biological behaviour to model their designs. One such example is solar cell panels that mimic the wings of the rose butterfly, which help the insects absorb energy.

Medical science could take a leaf out of the way computer scientists deal with malware. While the term “virus” has a specific meaning in information systems parlance, it has long been broadly used to refer to malware – any software that has detrimental effects on an information system’s operations.

Information systems have matured in dealing with the various forms of malware. In signature-based detection, once malware is observed, its signature is recorded and the stored signature can be used by anti-malware programs to detect any such incoming or resident malware.

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Heuristic detection goes much deeper by analysing the underlying code or algorithms that could be malicious to their host. By now, one would expect that the signature, or fingerprint, of the coronavirus has been captured and will be used for future reference.

Malware developers try to create malware that can escape detection, sometimes by ensuring that each iteration has an altered underlying code. This is similar to the mutations in the coronavirus.

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Preventive measures that information systems have put in place range from user education to anti-malware software, patching operating systems, updating software and configuring firewalls. In the medical field, this translates into measures such as masking, wearing protective gear, social distancing, washing hands and disinfection.
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