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Hello,
I just wanted to hear your input for this one. What are some steps to keeping my computer safe from viruses, trojans, worms, or even being vonerable to anything. I have Nortan 05', Adaware SE, and Hijack this, which I run all of them once a week. Any other suggestions?
Good Morning,
We have many great tutorials on hardening your computer. Here's one by Moxnix that will get you going:
http://www.antionline.com/showthread...uring+Computer
cheers
Thank you Relyt that tutorial was very helpfull, ill make sure i look into it.
I see that you don't have a firewall. Download one and setup one to protect yourself from lamers n crackers. Sygate Personal firewall is my favourite.
Download it from here : http://www.simtel.net/product.downlo...s.php?id=53687
The security of your box will greatly depend on how you configure all these tools. Antionline
has some really good tutorials to help you out !
PaCketThirst
I think i do, i believe my router has one, and i know the SP2 firewall isent good, but i have that as well. (Nortan 05' said to turn it off and use somthing it has instead)
people can get by norton... just givin ya a heads up. :]
Disconnect it from the internet.
Disconnect what from the internet?
Maybe the computer in question?
All jokes aside.
1. Make sure and update your operating system. If windows always check for new updates.
2. Use anti-virus software. Keep it up-to-date. I use AVG,but there are many choices.
3. Run a software/hardware firewall.
4. Be smart about emails. View them as text.
5. Use Anti spyware software. Keep it up-to-date.
6. Take alittle time and read/search through these forums.
7. Last but not least. Understand and master the operating system that you are using.
Thats a start i guess. Not much help i know,but you get the idea.
Ignore that last one ;)
If you think you have a firewall, then that probably means you saw it on the router's box when you bought it. Look up the router's documentation, login to the router, and configure the firewall yourself.
The SP2 firewall is fine to protect yourself from worms, however if you don't trust yourself on the internet you may want a firewall that monitors software accessing the internet and also blocks outgoing connections. Check out the firewall threads on the site for suggestions.
Most importantly, update your OS very frequently at Windows update.
Ok so i downloaded they Sygate firewall, installed it and rebooted. Seems to be working fine.
So am i set, or is there somting im missing now.
Thanks for all your input guys, its really helped me out.
Now learn how the firewall works. Learn how to read the logs.
Search google and find a website that will test your firewall. Search this site or the internet and learn about ports and what it means to have them open/closed/stealthed. Then learn about what to look for in your logs,etc...
I`m not really good at explaining things but you get the idea right? If you have questions then search for the answeres...you will learn a great deal that way. Then if you are lost ask a question.
Actually the guy who said to disconnect it from the internet was onto something - an old idea that works wonderfully here at the |ce household...
drive swapping.
I've recently added to my box a quick swap bay and purchased another hdd. One hdd is for internet and general usage, the other is for confidential information (our taxes, and other personal records) that Mrs. |ce and I don't want to be visible to the net, ever. If for whatever reason we need to migrate a file from one drive to the other it's as simple as burning it to cd, after appropriate scans have taken place of course.
The swap bay on this box cost me a whopping 10 bucks at a legacy shop. It's IDE.
This might be something to consider for the concerned home users out there...
That sounds like a very good idea, i would consider it, but i dont really have valuable information to give out. I use my computer for music, talk to people on AIM, learning to programm and messing around with my website. So i guess now ill go mess with the new firewall. Thanks.
Keep in mind that you do infact have something to give out. Your computer's resources are valuable to some, you may be exploited and used as a zombie, used for processing, used as a server for kiddie porn, or even have your identity stolen. Even something as simple as your email password can be used to steal your entire identity. Your email addy and password is the foot in the door for any criminal on the internet.Quote:
That sounds like a very good idea, i would consider it, but i dont really have valuable information to give out.
Protect your network as if you have something to lose. ;)
Ill keep that in mind, thanks.
To add something....
I would suggest to checkout the Personal Firewall Scoreboard from grc
check it here
it could help you in choosing a good Personal Firewall.
Yo!