Almost everyone is now aware of the threats on the internet, and the need for antivirus software. New viruses and malware are always coming into circulation, so there’s always a chance one will get through your antivirus protection. But think how much more annoying it would be if you discover that it wasn’t the software that missed it – it was because an employee disabled your antivirus program. Make sure you don’t end up in this situation!
How Can This Even Happen?
You may be wondering why anyone would disable antivirus program in the first place? Perhaps someone’s working on a project, is frustrated by a slow computer, does some DIY and disables a whole bunch of the programs that take up the most resources – including the antivirus protection. It may be for a couple of hours, or perhaps they forget to enable it again. Even an hour or two could be enough for a virus to take hold. A slow computer can be incredibly annoying (we actually offer help to improve computer speeds), but it’s not a good enough reason to turn off the antivirus program.
Assigning Blame
It’s rare for anyone to intentionally expose their office computer to viruses and malware. In the scenario above, they were just trying to get things done faster. It’s true that antivirus programs use a lot of resources, but the employee might have had a lot of other resource-hungry programs running – a dozen tabs on their web browser, Outlook, Skype and any number of others that they’re using all the time. The antivirus program may seem to be the most dispensable.
Disabling antivirus protection is just not worth it. The boost in speed and performance will probably not be huge, and the consequences for the entire network can be massive. There are serious threats circulating on the internet, and all users need to appreciate that these can be crippling for a business. Sure, a slow computer is annoying, especially when staff are diligently trying to meet deadlines, but disabling antivirus programs is the worst way to deal with it.
Antivirus Programs Never Take Time Out
Users unfamiliar with the way that antivirus software works may not realize that it’s constantly scanning, checking and updating. It may look as if it’s doing nothing, while still using a lot of processing power, but that’s not the case. As you work, checking email, interacting online or downloading material, the antivirus program is running continuously to protect your system. The more active the user, the greater the potential threat. What this means is that any time the antivirus protection is disabled, the risk of contracting viruses and malware escalates. Make sure your staff know that disabling antivirus protection is a risk that’s never worth taking.