Antivirus for faculty and staff Bowdoin-issued devices

What is CrowdStrike?

CrowdStrike Falcon® is a cloud-based security solution that provides advanced antivirus protection, endpoint detection, threat hunting, IT hygiene, and threat intelligence. It uses a lightweight agent to monitor and analyze over 50 billion events per day from sensors worldwide.

How will this benefit me?

CrowdStrike adds an extra layer of protection alongside Bowdoin’s antivirus software. It learns your computer’s normal processes and detects unusual activities, monitoring network traffic for anything suspicious. The lightweight agent runs in the background without affecting your computer’s performance, reporting back to a central console. By comparing data globally and using machine learning, CrowdStrike can quickly identify and stop malicious activities.

Will it slow my system down?

No, CrowdStrike uses a lightweight agent that runs quietly in the background, with minimal impact on your computer’s speed.

What kind of information does it see?

CrowdStrike does not collect personal information. It only monitors machine processes and network activities to detect any unusual behavior.

How will I know if it finds something?

If CrowdStrike blocks or prevents an action, there won’t be a client alert. Alerts are monitored by IT staff through a central console. If there’s an issue, IT will contact you to resolve it.

How is this different from the Antivirus currently on my machine?

CrowdStrike complements your existing antivirus by adding an extra layer of protection. It uses machine learning to understand your computer’s normal processes and detect anything out of the ordinary.

What do I need to do?

Nothing. CrowdStrike operates silently in the background, learning and reporting as needed without requiring any user intervention.