Conficker is or is not an April Fool's joke, depending on who you believe. Whatever the case, you had better protect yourself anyway.

One reason to take it seriously is the $250,000 bounty Microsoft is offering for the information about its so far unknown creator. This is pretty serious money.

Conficker is a computer worm that targets the Microsoft Windows operating system. It uses a previously patched vulnerability in Windows to highjack your computer using advanced techniques. Some claim Conficker, which has been around since October last year, will become even more dangerous on April 1, when it is due to be reconfigured by those who released it.

According to the latest estimates by security firms, about nine million computers are infected with the worm. The new variant will affect those who have not patched their computer with the latest Microsoft updates.

Here is how to find out whether you have Conficker or not. First try surfing to www.Microsoft.com If your browser does not allow you to get to the site then you probably have Conficker, or some other problem. At the site, Microsoft has a patch against the worm. But first use the free removal tool to kill it on your computer. You may also not be able to visit other security websites, such as Symantec and McAfee.

Lastly you already know you have a problem if you cannot turn off your computer. This sign probably means someone is using the worm to gain control of your computer and access your personal financial information. Change your passwords immediately!

In the end, the best defence is to keep your Windows operating system and your security software up-to-date.

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The IT job market is not all that bad, according to a report by Forrester Research - though I think the company may be jumping the gun a bit by saying the job market prospects are better now than in 2001, when the dot-com bubble burst.

While overall IT staffing levels will decline in 2009, more jobs dealing with IT infrastructure and operations (I&O) will open up during the year. Such jobs require those with experience to fill the roles of network and systems administrator, support specialist and systems analyst.

The job growth in these areas reflect the increasing importance of the web in business functions. The various strands of IT are slowing moving online - and out of the business - under the names of managed hosting, software-as-a-service and cloud computing.

Without the need for some of the traditional roles being moved outside the company, IT departments were on a slimming trend even before the economic downturn. Now the key needs in IT departments include service integration roles, which covers administrators, software engineers and network analysts.

Those in programming and operations research are on the out, though they may find a re-birth by joining one of the outside vendors who made them redundant. Jobs for systems analysts and network analysts will buck the downward trend and continue to grow in 2009.

For those who like just the raw numbers: the total market for IT jobs in the US is expected to fall by 1.2 percent in 2009; while the number of IT department staff will decline by about 0.7 percent; jobs in product development and support at IT vendors will fall by 2.8 percent; and average salaries for IT professionals will increase by 1.1 percent.

"We believe that by the time this recession is over, the I&O team at your company will be well on its way to adopting a service-oriented, process-centric approach to operations instead of a technology-led, silo-constrained structure," says Forrester, while referring to the old adage: "Never waste a good recession."

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