ResNet Anti-Virus Recommendation for Windows

For students running Microsoft Windows, ResNet recommends Microsoft Security Essentials. Microsoft Security Essentials provides protection against viruses and other types of malware for free. It's also very lightweight (download is less than 9MB) and easy to use, while still providing the same level of protection as some paid anti-virus programs.

Microsoft Security Essentials will run on Windows XP, Vista, and 7. View their website for more information about how to install Microsoft Security Essentials.

As a secondary antivirus scanner we recommend using Malwarebytes, also called MBAM. This is a free non-active scanner, meaning that it will only scan when manually started. It is a great compliment as a secondary scanner and will often help clean out malware that your primary scanner may not catch.

Note: Having multiple active anti-virus scanners installed simultaneously will be less effective as they often conflict with each other. We strongly recommend against using Norton AntiVirus, McAfee AntiVirus, and their internet security software, as the software may block your computer's network access.

 

ResNet Anti-Virus Recommendation for OS X

Recently, Apple computers have become increasingly popular with college students. While Macs are generally not affected by the same viruses or malware as Windows computers, they are still quite vulnerable. As the popularity of Macs increases, they become an increasingly attractive target for malware writers. In fact, hundreds of thousands of Mac users have been infected with trojans impersonating popular programs including Adobe Photoshop, Flash, iLife, and Java. More recently, the Flashback Trojan targets Macs and uses the machine to take part in DDoS attacks, which are capable of taking down company websites, as well as stealing personal information. Also, other viruses may spread through Office Word documents that may cause all your files to become unreadable, or possibly infect the Windows computers of friends or family. For these reasons, we strongly recommend all students to install an anti-virus program on their computers, whether it is a Mac or PC.

Sophos AntiVirus for Mac Home Edition is available to download for free. Setup instructions can be found on their website as well.

 

SafeConnect Compatible Anti-Virus Programs

Listed below are the anti-virus programs that are compliant with SafeConnect.

Free Anti-Virus For Purchase Anti-Virus
avast!
 Authentium*
AVG Anti-Virus
 F-Secure*
BitDefender
 Kaspersky*
EZ Antivirus
 McAfee* 
Malwarebytes
 NOD32*
Microsoft Security Essentials
 Panda* 
Sophos
 SpySweeper AV*
ZoneAlarm AV
 Symantec*

Symantec Corporate*

TrendMicro*

TrendMicro Corporate*

Vipre Antivirus*

*For Purchase Anti-Viruse programs will allow you a 30-day trial period before requiring you to purchase the program.

Privacy Policy and Terms of Use