Virus Information

Computer viruses are a constant threat for anyone using the Internet. These small programs can be quite destructive and can cause system-wide outages. You can help protect yourself from computer viruses by taking three simple steps:

1) Back-up important files

If your files are backed up, then you can revert to these backed-up files in the event that a virus "attacks" your system. Even if these files contain the virus, the very fact that the files are backed up means that the data is preserved so that the user can at least try to "clean" the virus from these files in an attempt to preserve the data (see below).

2) Install Anti-virus software on your personal computer

Anti-virus software is a program which helps to protect your computer from viruses. This software consults a database of "virus definitions", which can be thought of as a collection of "digital fingerprints" for viruses. These numerical fingerprints can be used to detect-and even remove viruses from your system, before they have the chance to "spread" or "attack".

Modern anti-virus software will pro-actively scan your system for viruses, attempting to detect one before allowing you to download a file or document to your system. The software will sometimes "scan" documents and programs before you open them, and will commonly perform regular "complete scans" of your system. If a virus is detected, the software will ask you if you would like to remove it from the infected files.

Students currently enrolled at the College are eligible to use same Symantec Anti-virus that the College uses on its computers, free of charge. The cost of the software is already included in the College’s License Agreement with Symantec and students are encouraged to download, install, and run Symantec Anti-virus on their personally owned computer.

You can download your free copy of Symantec Anti-virus from the Symantec Download page.

3) Update your Anti-virus Software database regularly

There are new and increasingly deadly viruses created every day. Each new virus that is created has a unique "digital fingerprint." If you do not have the fingerprint for a new virus in your virus definition database, then your software cannot detect it, and your system is NOT protected. If you are running anti-virus software on your personal computer, then you must make sure that you are using the current "virus definitions" in order to effectively protect yourself from the most dangerous computer viruses (the NEW ones!!!).

Some types of anti-virus software automatically update the anti-virus definitions monthly, by downloading them from the anti-virus software manufacturer. Older anti-virus software requires that a user manually download the definitions from the software company's Web site or FTP server. Whatever method you may use, it is recommended that each user download anti-virus definitions immediately upon being alerted of a new virus. Please visit the ResNet Downloads page for a list of popular anti-virus applications.

For more information or assistance, please e-mail us at helpdesk@purchase.edu or call (914) 251-6465 MON - THUR 8AM - 10:00PM and FRI 8AM - 7PM.