The subscription of the Sophos anti-virus solution (called Sophos Endpoint Protection) currently provisioned through the coordination of ITS will expire on 1 July 2022.

As this anti-virus solution will reach its end of life in 2023, we have arranged another Sophos product for use by University staff and students.

1. What do I need to do?

If you are using the Sophos anti-virus solution, please install the new product called Sophos Home Commercial Edition.  Please do a one-time registration and follow the procedure here to complete the installation.  The existing Sophos or other anti-virus software must be uninstalled before you install Sophos Home.

2. When do I need to complete the installation?

You are advised to install Sophos Home as soon as possible (no later than 30 July 2022).  To allow more time to complete the installation, we have extended the subscription period of the existing Sophos Endpoint Protection license by 1 month until 30 July 2022 and it will stop working after then.

3. What are the supported platforms and how many copies can I install?

Sophos Home supports both Windows and macOS.  Each staff and student can register for one Sophos Home account and install the software on up to ten PCs for work and study-related purposes.

4. How long can I keep using Sophos Home?

The use of Sophos Home will expire when staff and students leave or graduate from the University and they have to uninstall the software from their PCs.

5. What is the arrangement for managed staff PCs, public PCs and lab PCs in departments?

Department can use the following options:

Option 1: Install Sophos Intercept X with XDR (Extended Detection and Response) (Details here)

Requests can be submitted by filling out the online form here.  Note that this option is not applicable for non-managed standalone PCs.

Option 2: Install Sophos Home using a departmental account with email service

Departments can follow the same registration and installation procedure mentioned in point 1 above to register and install Sophos Home through departmental account(s).  Each account allows installation on up to 10 PCs.

To find out more information, please visit our FAQs.

In case you have any questions on the above, please feel free to contact our Service Desk at ithelp@hku.hk or 3917 0123.