Real-time protection monitors your computer in real-time and alerts you when malware (viruses, spyware, or other potentially unwanted software) attempts to install itself or run on your computer.

Configure MSE Real-time Protection

1. Open Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) by going to Start, All Programs, Microsoft Security Essentials, and then select Microsoft Security Essentials.

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2. Select the Settings tab.
3. Select Real-time protection in the left column of the Settings tab.

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4. Decide if you need file and program activity monitoring. File and program activity monitoring watches files and programs for virus-like activity. It does slow down your computer slightly but I highly recommend this feature to keep your computer clean between scans.
5. Decide if you need to scan all downloaded files and attachments. This feature basically scans all files as they are downloaded. This is another highly recommended feature to keep malware from being downloaded.
6. Click the Save changes button.

Disable Microsoft Security Essential Real-time Protection

Simply uncheck Turn on real-time protection (recommended) in the Real-time protection section of MSE’s Settings tab.