Antivirus SoftwareIn order to fully protect your computer from getting any type of infection explained here you need to obtain an Antivirus and Antispyware software. Some free Antivirus solutions are:
Macs are not completely immune to viruses and other infections. The main difference between Macs and Windows is that no successful virus has been written for OS X, that is, outside of a security research organization. That's not to say it's impossible to create a virus that could bring down a Mac; it's just more difficult than with Windows, because of the nature of OS X and its security model. Some free Antispyware solutions are: There are tons of commercial antivirus and antispyware solutions out there including McAfee, Avast!, AVG, Trend Mirco...etc. Spy Sweeper from Webroot is a commercial antispyware though using just a free one is sufficient. Using your Antivirus software: Just purchasing and installing antivirus software is not enough; you need to learn how to use the software and how to fix issues if they arise. Most Antivirus solutions have an automatic scanning feature that you can set to run everyday, every week or every month at a certain time. I highly recommend scheduling a antivirus scan every night at 3:00am since most likely you are not using the computer at that time. Please read through any documentation that comes with your antivirus solution to make sure you are using it to it's fullest. Using your Antispyware software: Antispyware software should be used as frequently as your antivirus software. I highly recommend using it every week or if you see your computer running sluggish. Also if the software finds spyware on your machine make sure to run the scan multiple times to completely get rid of the spyware instances. When purchasing these solutions you need to keep in mind that there your machine is not 100% protected. New viruses and spyware instances come out everyday so please make sure that you keep your software definitions up to date and that you run them consistantly. What do I do if I can't get rid of the infection? If all else fails and you can't get rid of the virus or the spyware that has infected your machine the best thing you can do is do a clean install of the operating system. To do a clean install you will need to get the restore CD that came with you computer and follow the instructions. If you don't already do regular back ups of your data make sure you back up anything important before you do a clean install. If you have any questions regarding how to protect your computer please email mlevitt@wolford.edu, Megan Levitt- technical support. Thank you!
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