Protect Your Computer

To fully protect your personal computer there are four things that should be in place:

• Automatic Software Updates, where available, should be enabled. This ensures you are protected against know security flaws that have already been fixed. This option is available for most Windows and Mac products.
• Virus protection with automatic updates and real time file protection. There are many products available on the market like Symantec/Norton and McAfee and good, reliable, free virus protection is also available.  Please see our web page for additional information.
• Spyware protection and removal. Spyware, Adware and Scareware or only a few of the many types of different software that can infect your computer, commonly grouped under the term Malware.  Malware can be more of an annoyance, rather then a danger, however they have also been known to steal information.  Unlike viruses, they can not always be detected by an anti-virus software, therefore it is recommended that you look into getting anti-malware in addition to anti-virus.  Please see our web page for additional information.
• Common Sense. Your best protection, and your computer's weakest link, is you. Don't click on links or open attachments in emails if you did not ask for them even if you know the sender. If you know the sender, send a quick message asking for more info regarding the file or link they sent you. If you don't know the sender, delete the email and move on. No RRU staff will ever ask you for your username and password. Never enter your RRU username or password on any site that is not specifically .royalroads.ca. If you have any concerns about an email, contact us first!

How do I know what to buy?

When selecting products, we would look for comparison articles in reputable PC trade magazine websites along the lines of http://www.pcmag.com/ or http://www.macworld.com/. The PC section of your local magazine rack can be a good place to identify web sites that can be trusted.

We suggest that you scan your computer for viruses with a virus scanner that has up to date virus definitions as a first step. Second step would be to go to the Microsoft Update web site and make sure your Microsoft software is up to date. Never download files for Microsoft products that do not come directly from Microsoft.