Best practices for protecting your files and device and for preventing any malicious software or viruses to be installed on your computer. 

Windows has built-in software that is designed to help protect you from malware and viruses. ITS recommends using this built-in software to protect Windows. For more information see the ITS Antivirus support center.

If you suspect that you have malware located on your computer you can use Malwarebytes and Windows Defender to detect and remove this software. For instructions on how to use this software see this ITS article.

If you have any questions contact the ITS Help Desk.

Windows computers have frequent updates that help patch potential security issues. Keeping your computer up to date will help prevent malware-related issues.

Malicious software like viruses and spyware often gain access to your computer when attempting to download software from unreliable sources. This can happen through many different avenues, such as social media, email, or web advertisements.

Make sure you can verify the source and contents of the software you are installing. If you have any questions about software contact the ITS Help Desk.

Looking through your browser extensions and installed software on a regular basis will help to ensure that you do not have any malicious software on your device. Do not hesitate to contact us with any questions regarding software installed or extensions in browsers.

If you receive a suspicious email check any link by hovering your mouse over it. If the web address doesn't follow with what the link is supposed to be, do not click on it. Follow these further tips to avoid falling for a phishing scam.

The same applies to links on all websites - hovering over them before you click on them is an excellent way to ensure that you do not compromise your device or account.

Article number: 
108796
Last updated: 
May 14, 2020
Service: