False Sense of Security
I was recently with a client who wanted to give their old software to other people or organizations. In general, giving to those less fortunate is a kind thing to do. However, there are circumstances when this generosity is not kind or legal.
The most obvious problem is that most software allows for people to install it only on 1 computer. This is where we run into the legal issue. You can’t give your old software to another person or organization to use on a different computer. You may be allowed to do this if you give them the entire PC, but on the whole, regiving software is frowned upon.
The second and less obvious issue is security. Some of the software that my client wanted to pass on was antivirus software. These are a security nightmare. The recipients of the software will believe that their computers are safe and secure but they aren’t. When people believe they are safe online, they take risks that they wouldn’t if they knew that they were unprotected. Therefore, this false sense of security is more dangerous than going without security software.
I don’t believe that people should go without security software so I would like to point out some excellent and FREE (to home users, not businesses) security software.
- Avira Antivir: Download it HERE.
- MalwareBytes: Download it HERE.
- SuperAntiSpyware: Download it HERE.
Tim
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