A computer virus is a program that installs itself on a computer without the user's knowledge or consent and can spread by copying itself to other programs and storage drives. Viruses typically infect files with extensions like .exe, .sys, and documents. To protect against viruses, users should turn on firewalls, keep systems updated, and use antivirus software which should be kept up to date. Symptoms of a virus include computers running slower, frequent crashing, apps not working correctly, unexpected sounds, missing programs, and printing or disk issues.