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Anti-virus protection for PCs

A new version of the F-Secure Anti-virus software is now available. Although the previous version (5.41) is still supported we recommend users to upgrade as soon as convenient. Anyone running an earlier release of version 5 (5.40 or earlier) must upgrade now. If your PC is too old to run version 5, you can still use version 4.08, but we do not expect this to be supported by F-Secure for much longer.

Further information and instructions for downloading and installing the software can be found on the LIS web site at

http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/lis/help/virus

Why do we need a new version of F-Secure?

People sometimes wonder why they need to update the software, when they are already updating it every day by downloading and installing the latest virus definitions (often referred to as the signature strings). The reason is that every so often new sorts of viruses appear, which behave quite differently from earlier viruses, and which require different disinfection procedures. This is the main reason for requiring a new version of the software, but in addition the manufacturers usually tidy up earlier glitches and try to speed up the software and make it easier to use.

Why do we need anti-virus software on our PCs -

- when LIS provides site-wide security based on the Mailscanner software and the network firewall?

It is true that the Mailscanner software scans all mail traffic for viruses, but this does not in itself provide adequate protection. Not all viruses arrive by e-mail. The network firewall provides a high degree of protection from inbound attacks from outside the protected zone, but there remains the possibility that portable computers brought into the University will import viruses into the protected zone, bypassing the firewall. You must therefore maintain security on your own computer.

Is F-Secure anti-virus sufficient security on its own?

No. The anti-virus software needs to have a constantly updated database of virus definitions, but even so there is always the chance of a new virus arriving before you have had a chance to download the latest definitions. Therefore neither the campus-wide security nor the anti-virus software on your PC takes away the need for commonsense and caution in handling e-mail, particularly e-mail with attachments. (As I was writing this article a virus arrived on my PC in an e-mail attachment, having got through both the Mailscanner and F-Secure's e-mail scanning process.)

How can we find out about new security threats?

There is a link on the web page referred to above to information on recent virus alerts. You should keep an eye on this page to see what threats are current. There will always be new viruses which have not yet been reported, so you need to be alert yourself to meet the unexpected. Occasionally the Helpdesk will contact all users about a particularly serious threat. We are reluctant to do this every time a new virus arrives, partly because if we repeat the warnings too often people will stop listening, and partly because we don't want our users to wait to receive a warning before they will take care. You have to take care all the time, whether you have been alerted to a danger recently or not.

Two new versions of F-Secure

This time there are two upgrade options:

Pros and cons of F-Secure Client Security

The advantages of the Client Security package are the extra functionality and an interface which is more straightforward. If you currently have a firewall on your PC (for example ZoneAlarm) you cannot install F-Secure Client Security, and in any case you do not need it. Note that ZoneAlarm is free only for personally owned computers; you have to pay for it if you load it onto University-owned computers. Internet Shield, the firewall feature of F-Secure Client Security, is available under our site licence.

F-Secure Client Security requires more memory than the upgrade to F-Secure Anti-virus for Workstations, and some people have reported that it "slows down their PC". Details of the memory requirements are given on the web pages referred to above. As for slowing down your PC, the point at which this appears most noticeably is during the downloading of e-mail.

The e-mail scanning feature of F-Secure Client Security checks messages before they are placed in your e-mail program's mailbox file. Particularly if you are working over a telephone line and modem you will find that large attachments can take some time to be cleared, and this can make your PC appear frozen for a minute or so. One could say that this was rather an argument for not using large attachments than for not using F-Secure Client Security. Those who have had experience of infected mailbox files in Eudora or Outlook will welcome a version of F-Secure that reliably intercepts infections before they get into the mailbox file.

The Internet Shield firewall feature of F-Secure Client Security might take a bit of getting used to. Among other things it might surprise you to learn how often your PC makes, or tries to make, calls out to the network. Internet Shield gives you a measure of control over this. It will also log attempts made from outside to probe your computer. We have to admit that the working of the Internet Shield feature remains a little obscure, and if you already have a legal copy of ZoneAlarm we would advise you to continue to use it as your firewall package and use F-Secure for Workstations as your anti-virus package. But if you do not have a copy of ZoneAlarm, and if your PC matches the minimum recommended memory requirements, you should consider using F-Secure Client Security. If you wish to install F-Secure Client Security, then you will need to uninstall ZoneAlarm, as these two programs will not work together.

More detailed instructions on using Internet Shield and the other features of F-Secure Client Security are given on the web pages referred to above. If you have further questions that you would like answered before making up your mind, please contact the Helpdesk.

Is F-Secure an alternative to the Microsoft critical updates?

No. F-Secure guards against viruses, but these are not the only security threat. The Microsoft Windows operating systems have been shown to be vulnerable to attacks across the network, and you must keep your Windows operating system up-to-date with the latest security patches. The web-page referred to above contains a link to information about the Windows security problems.

We recognise that this imposes a burden on users, but it is essential. A vulnerable PC can cause problems for everyone else on the network. You can make it easier by checking frequently for new updates and installing them at once, so that they don't build up into a mountainous backlog. Also, you should install only those updates which Microsoft says are critical; there are many other updates offered on the Microsoft web site which are less important for most of us.