Quote:
Originally Posted by Xanthe
Personally-speaking, on my computer I'm currently running real-time:
Norton Internet Security
SuperAntiSpyware Pro
Mamutu
Zemana AntiLogger
Ad Muncher
Spyware Blaster
WinPatrol Pro
with Spybot Search & Destroy and Malwarebyte's AntiMalware as on-demand scanner. I've hardened my browsers as much as is reasonable and still allow usable functioning of them. I do this not because I go on the Dark Net, but just for my everyday protection. And most important of all, I pay attention to what I am doing and where I am going on the Net.
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You are going through far more trouble than I do.
I use Symantec Corporate for A/V. (I won't touch the Norton consumer version - too many "Does not play well with others" issues.) It never finds anything. (The only things it has found recently have been false positives in some ancient MS-DOS apps I've had sine the 80's.)
I use the last freeware version of the old Sygate Personal Firewall, with Windows Firewall also enabled since it doesn't conflict, and there's a hardware firewall in my router.
While I have things like MalwareBytes anti-malware installed, I do
not run resident anti-spyware/malware/intrusions detection/etc. applications. I do occasional on demand scans using MalwareBytes, Spybot Search and Destroy and the like. The worst they find are tracking cookies, which are at worst a nuisance.
I
do sometimes poke around on the seamier parts of the net. And if I do, it's from behind an anonymous proxy. I have
never had a problem from doing so.
I treat viruses, spyware, malware, Trojans and the like as diseases. Diseases all have vectors they use to invade the host body. Ward the vectors and many problems go away. A lot of security programs assume you will be compromised and provide tools to deal with it. I find it easier to just not get compromised in the first place.
What do I do?
I keep Windows fully patched with auto-update enabled.
I
don't use IE as my browser. Most exploits target holes in IE to get on the machine. If IE isn't in use, they bounce. I prefer Firefox, but Google Chrome, Opera, and Safari are safe choices too.
I use the
NoScript add-on for Firefox, which blocks all scripting activity if the site isn't in a whitelist. By default, it disables JavaScript, but can block Java, Flash, and Silverlight too.
I also run the
Stylish extension, which allows me to run arbitrary CSS ("UserScripts") based on the page I'm viewing. Stylish enables
Ad Blocking Filterset P. Filterset P is a lengthy CSS stylesheet that defines a number of ad server sites and simply doesn't render content fetched from them. It doesn't block them from being downloaded like AdBlock Plus, but I don't care. I'm not fanatical about blocking ads. I just want to clean up ad heavy sites and make them readable. It works a treat for that.
I use GMail as my primary mail account, and it polls the others. Email attachments are favorite vectors for infections. Attachments all stay on Google's servers, and only get downloaded and opened if I
know what they are and who they are from. (And GMail's spam and phish detection is very good indeed. Suspect attachments are unlikely to ever appear in my Inbox.
I download only from known good sites that scan on their end.
I avoid warez and crack sites, as pirated software is another favorite vector for exploits. Likewise, I avoid porn sites, as they tend to be "Most likely to be compromised and try to send you something nasty", like the "special codec" you need to view the videos...
I've been following a variant of the above polices for as long as I've been on line. I've never been infected by something from the Internet. About the only exploit that
might have bitten me was the infamous Sony rootkit, save that I seldom buy CDs.
______
Dennis