Columbus School of Law

Viruses and malware can cause your computer to slow down, destroy or corrupt files, and send personal information to third parties. These programs can also cause networks to crash or become unstable. If you wish to connect your Windows laptop to the Columbus School of Law networks, wired or wireless, you are required to have an up to date antivirus program.

Antivirus software can be downloaded for free from Microsoft at this link.  Microsoft Security Essentials is a robust, fully-functioning product that works at least as well as Norton or McAfee.  One big advantage of it is that it doesn't consume nearly as many system resources as many of the other "kitchen sink" security suites, which means Windows will run faster.

Retail security suites can be found at any electronics retailer, online, and also in the CUA bookstore. If you don't want to use Microsoft's free program, before you purchase another one, you should check with your internet service provider to see if they provide free antivirus software with your service, as many now do.

A note about antivirus software on Macs:

While it is true that no computer is 100% immune from malware, MacOS is effectively immune from virtually all threats that exist "in the wild."  Your chance of falling victim to a malware attack on a Mac is so small that you are better off not running any third-party security software on a Mac.  Though there are numerous security suites available for MacOS, and though many retail salespeople will recommend purchasing one, we do not recommend using them, as they needlessly consume system resources, and in many cases, cause insurmountable problems when it comes to things like Securexam.  If you are concerned with the security of your Mac laptop, feel free to contact us for more information on the matter.

It is easy to decrease your chances of contracting a computer virus:

• Install an antivirus program and keep it up to date.
• Do not install dubious programs from the internet such as "coupon printers."  If a website wants you to install software for purposes that are otherwise built-in (printing, viewing/uploading photos, etc.), chances are really good it's so that they can surreptitiously install other things that you don't want.
• If a program says it will "clean" your computer, but wants money to do so, it's fake.  Don't ever give your credit card, or any other personal information, to any software that you didn't specifically and intentionally install.
• Keep your computer patched via Microsoft/Windows Updates.  Click here for information on running Windows Updates.
• Pay attention to, and fully read security warnings that pop up, being especially wary of fake pop-ups designed to mimic legitimate Windows warnings.  Here is a Microsoft article about fake alerts, and here are some more examples of what they look like.
• Do not install free toolbars, deal alerts, etc. from websites, even ones that you generally trust.  Even if they'e not malicious, they rarely if ever provide any useful functionality, and almost always slow down your internet browser.
• Only visit websites you know to be safe.
• Do not participate in peer-to-peer file sharing.  Not only are P2P (Vuze and other Bit Torrent clients, FrostWire, LimeWire, etc) extremely dangerous to your computer, they could also jeopardize your chances of being accepted to the Bar, or prevemt you from getting jobs that require clearance. 
• Install an ad-blocker such as Adblock Plus.  It's free, it speeds up your web browsing, and aften provides more protection from web-borne malware than your antivrus software.