Am i Protected enough????

pcmagic

Member
What do uz think ??

Do you think im protected enough from spyware, adware, viruses and other bad sources.

(I have just uninstalled all my norton programes because there crap really and drag the system down ive changed norton for nod32)

I have ....

Nod32 Anti Virus
Ad-Aware
SpyBot
Spyware Blaster


What eles do i need or am i ok .. Do i need a firewall .. ?
 
What operating system are you running...obviously some kinda windows

XP has a built in firewall...I suggest you use it.

Also make sure you get all your updates...from all your software...regularly

I also like to use a router firewall....keeps most of the noise out...frees up resources on the computer

MHO...of course
 
So my belief has always been that if you have to ask if it's enough protection... You really don't know enough about your PC to properly protect it... Now trying to be insulting but that's usually the truth... That sort of question is reminiscent of the home user talking to their local tech company who's come out to fix their PC... generally it means pay someone else to take care of your computer.. Offer your neighbours kid $50 bucks to secure your computer... He'll have to come over after dark because "the sun is trying to kill him" (that's gotta be why he hides in their basement all the time right?)... but he'd prolly do a better job...

However, when you think about it... most of what you've asked us about isn't really protection... A lot of it is reactive... AdAware... Spybot... That's reactive software, not proactive.. Even AV is usually reactive (as it relies on known signatures for the most part)... mind you NOD32 did just recieve kudos for being able to detect blackworm using heuristics.

If you're thinking true protection... you have to be proactive.... so what is out there that's proactive...

Firewall software... (depending on which one you use)... One that will allow you to create custom rules, etc... that can be proactive... speaking of which I've heard good things about Core Securities latest release of Force (http://force.coresecurity.com/)... Mind you even with a good firewall, you still can't be a mind reader and predict the future... anything could happen.

Registry Protection Software... MS Defender (AntiSpyware) offers some registry protection... RegProt from DiamondCS offers Registry Protectin... they notify you of every change... thus being proactive instead of reactive and removing the links afterwards...

Hardening your system... Remove unneeded services... and unnecessary startup applications. there are plenty of "Windows Hardening programs out there" that will adjust registry values so you don't have to play yourself.. HardenIT is one of them...

Do you have a router in front of your PC??? That will provide protection against incoming threats...

The possibilities are damn near endless.... However... think a bit... use your mind... Ever heard if you don't use it you lose it? It explains a lot of our members I think but there is some truth in it... Do some research... come back with a formulated plan not just I run this what else do I need... There are some vital questions you have to answer and factor into the equation..

What do I do with my computer?
What sort of websites do I browse?
How comfortable am I with PCs?
How many people use my computer?
etc...

You could also take some protactive measures like locking down the user accounts... never running as admin... things like that...

Go... Live, Love and Learn.. and play around.... back up your important data and then if you screw up it's no big deal....
 
Jeckgo said it well. There's no software available that will completely secure you. A computer's biggest vulnerability is the user. What good is having a locked down system with minimal services, an expensive hardware firewall filtering traffic, and the top of the line software if the user downloads some porn with a nice juicy virus binded to it? Of course if you have a good AV it will most likely detect it, but that's not my point. You can never be secured, which is why it's all about layers and educating yourself.

It's almost like learning your first programming language. It's best not to focus on the specifics (Syntax), as oppose to truely comprehending the concepts. Then when you switch to a different language (With completely different syntax [IE: Going from perl to C]) you will remember the concepts, and mainly just have to learn the syntax. This relates to security in that the threat is always changing, yet the core concepts remain the same.

On a less deep note, use zonealarm or another excellent free firewall, as oppose to the windows firewall.
 
I tried out the newest version of Zonealarm firewall and found a few problems with it.For curiousity sake, i like to keep an eye on what's sniffing around just outside my computer and i just couldn't get zonealarm to show that.Also i had to keep resetting the web blocking features everytime i went on line.I googled and there definitely seems to be alot of others users experiencing similiar.How bout you?.Any problems?.The one i settled on and am glad i did was Kerio 4.It's awesome and gives me everything i wanted.If you want, you can try the full version free for 30 days.After that, it converts to the free version with some of the latest features disabled.
 
In order to be protected get the KAV (Kaspersky Anti-Virus) 5.0 personal
Buy the windows xp professional service pack 2 build 2600 version (latest version) only cost $299.99 FULL VERSION
and buy the Spy Sweeper 4.5 only cost $27.50

And Dont forget the Lavasoft Ad-Aware SE Pro cost around 29.99 now.

AND YOUR SECURED!;)
 
Pr0 said:
AND YOUR SECURED!;)
Secured, no, more secure then nothing, yes. Vulnerable, very much so.

With me i use freeware and a router. AVG free edition, zonealarm free edition, AdWare SE, Spybot, and SpyWare Blaster. It does alright but about once every 6 months i get a virus that completly destroys my computer.
 
Motoxrdude said:
With me i use freeware and a router. AVG free edition, zonealarm free edition, AdWare SE, Spybot, and SpyWare Blaster. It does alright but about once every 6 months i get a virus that completly destroys my computer.

There's your problem right there.
1- your using a weak AV
2-Its free so you dont really get that much updates from a free version.

Try using KAV and Adware SE Pro version it updates more often and protects from Virus and spyware and i sure your pc wont be infect by the nasty virus.
 
AVG Free is fine, and there's a new update everytime I boot windows ;\ .

I haven't paid for any security software, and I never get any serious malware.
 
And you should ditch IE and get Firefox instead, a much more secure browser. And if you enjoy privacy like i do, turn off those god damn cookies. They are set as default by some reason. There is no good reason to accept cookies at all! If you have specific web pages that requires cookies you can always manually set Firefox to accept cookies from that url.
 
There's many sites out there which require cookies, unfortunately. Also, many people value convience more than security :o .
 
Do you wanna know how to be completely secured? Here's all you have to do:

1. Unplug your ethernet cord/router
2. Unplug your computer

This is the best way to be completely secured. Better yet it's free!
 
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