Securing your business computer with antivirus software

We all know that protecting your personal computer from viruses and spyware is a necessity – you don’t want anyone spying on your online activity or getting their hands on sensitive data. But what about business computers? Truth be told, they’re actually under greater risk than personal ones.

Sure, a personal computer might be exposed to risks from more sources, but a business computer and its owner stand to lose that much more in the case of a security breach. Depending on the intruder and type of malware, your business computer becoming compromised might not mean much or could end up causing you to lose tens of thousands of dollars.

Why it’s so important to protect business computers

Computers and networks becoming widespread and more accessible has made running a business easier, but it’s also provided another security risk, and a high one at that.

For starters, you could lose everything stored on your business computer if a malware makes you reformat it – catalogues, schedules, product launch plans and so much more. If this data isn’t backed up(and it so often isn’t in the case of smaller businesses), you stand to lose a lot of money and time getting your business in order again. In some cases, the losses might not even be recoverable and could cause serious hardships.

Another type of threat comes from someone spying on your business computer’s activity just as they would in the case of a personal computer. Without you even knowing, someone could be privy to in-depth details regarding your business and how you run it. Perhaps worse, they could get a hold of your financial transactions and possibly even your credit card info and such. Depending on the banking security you use, they could end up having more-or-less direct access to your account.

Antivirus Software options to protect

Clearly, any of the above scenarios would make for a bad day at the office. But what can you do, especially if you aren’t tech-savvy? For starters, you’ll need a good suite of antivirus (and anti-spyware) software.

If you choose right, your protection software will do much of the job for you and minimize computer-related threats for your business. With working antivirus software, you’ll find that most of the security threats will come from your employees and (potentially) clients rather than anyone else. Here are 3 great examples of antivirus software that every business owner should consider.

Norton Security Suite: Perhaps the best-known antivirus software out there, many other forms of protection use Norton’s advanced library of malware to identify threats. It comes with everything necessary for good protection, from a strong firewall to an extensive antivirus check, although you’ll have to keep paying for updates on a semi-regular basis.

AVG: If you’re not all that willing to cash out for antivirus software, AVG might be the best free alternative on the market. Its searches are fairly extensive and its firewall is decent even in the freeware version, plus there’s a premium upgrade if you’d like more security.

Spybot: Not quite antivirus software, Spybot Search & Destroy deals with another type of security threat that is no less malicious: spyware. It’s free and offers an extremely detailed search that is best used in conjuction with antivirus software.

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