IT related information and \"how to\" instructions aimed at the UVM College of Arts and Sciences computer using community. CAS Computing Services Blog

Are you still running Symantec Antivirus?

Are you still running Symantec Antivirus security software on your computer? If yes, it’s time to remove/replace it. ETS has just announced that they are decommissioning the on campus management servers for that software package as of November 30th. Although this shouldn’t affect your use of your computer, you should note that because Symantec hasn’t been updated here on campus for several years now, you are not completely protected from the various flavors of malware that have appeared in the interim.
Recently the only running installations of Symantec Antivirus that I’ve seen have been on MacOS computers. I am sure though that there are still older Windows computers out there that haven’t been updated.
Please take this opportunity to remove SAV, and if you have a Windows computer, replace it with ESET’s NOD32 product, found at http://www.uvm.edu/software Unless you are running a 64 bit version of Windows, you need the 32 bit version.
MacOS users can simply remove SAV by opening Macintosh HD then Applications then Symantec Solutions. There should be an uninstaller application available. You will need to authenticate as an administrator in the removal process. At present UVM does not have a recommended MacOS antivirus solution, but since there are still very few instances of MacOS malware in the wild, we feel that it is reasonably save to run your computer without it.
Windows users should open their Add/Remove Programs control panel, locate Symantec Security as well as LiveUpdate and remove BOTH. Then restart your computer, and install ESET’s NOD32 32 bit version from the location mentioned above.
Lastly, Windows users should get in the habit of visiting the UVM software download page to check for updates to NOD32. ETS does not make an announcement when they update the NOD32 client version and although NOD32 does update its definition files automatically, it does not update the client software itself. Having the most current recommended version of NOD32 is important in order to avoid performance issues and malware infection.
As always, contact us if you have questions. http://www.uvm.edu/artsandsciences/computingsvs/

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