As the weather gets colder, the flu isn’t the only virus going around campus.
Students with UNC-issued Carolina Computing Initiative laptops are among Windows users experiencing hard drives infected by a new virus.
The virus, which poses as a defragmentation reminder, has caused a spike in the number of complaints fielded by Information Technology Services, said Matt Howell, manager of walk-in services for the department.
He said the department is busier than usual but is equipped to handle the problem.
“There’s really not a whole lot to it,” Howell said. “People are bringing it in, and we’re doing the best we can in terms of getting them removed and computers back to people.”
Howell said because of the inexact and occasionally incorrect diagnoses given by users, the number of students who have been affected by the virus is uncertain.
But he said the total number of loaner laptops supplied to students is up, which he blamed on the outbreak of the virus.
Brandon Ballance, a student assistant for ITS, said they noticed the problem Sunday and Monday.
“It seems like a whole lot of people have it,” Ballance said. “A lot of people came in Sunday. It was pretty significant.”