UAC. Have you turned your's off?

Yep. Turned it off as soon as I got 7 installed. MSE and Windows Firewall are pretty much all you need, unless you go to some really sketchy sites.

brother said:

One of the first things I did after installing Windows 7, was to turn the UAC completely off to stop getting those annoying messages.
I have just read in this months PCPlus magazine that you should alter the default settings in UAC and slide the thing right to the top to give yourself more protection!
I'm not sure what's best now?
Have you turned yours off?

As I've mentioned in a previous thread, the first thing I do after installing Windows 7, is turn UAC up to it's maximum level so that it acts more like it did in Vista.

As it should be.

While I'd like to consider myself an advanced user (better than average maybe), I find that UAC on maximum settings is a useful tool that helps me to identify potential threats that may get past my firewall and antivirus.

Sure, when I install applications and/or drivers, it can be annoying, but what if I'm browsing the web, or use a CD/DVD/FlashDrive from someone else, and the UAC prompt pops up without warning, I'd know to cancel it and not allow access. I'm generally carefull about what I do on Prometheus, but knowing that Windows is helping does make the whole expierence a whole lot easier.

UAC is also great when you have kids at home that use your PC, or perhaps their own. Just setup a password-protected admin account for yourself, and let the kids use a seperate limited account without a password. If they try to install software, or attempt to do anything that could be potentially disastrous to the stability of the system (RegEdit, MSConfig, Drivers, etc...), then they cannot proceed without first entering a password, which only you should know.

When combined with the built-in parental control features, I no longer have any concerns about my niece using Prometheus when she visits, and I don't have to keep an eye on her.

UAC is not the evil big-brother that most make it out to be. It's already saved my neck (figuratively, of course) a few times in the past.

UAC on maximum setting is the only safe way to use it.

Well, best practice is to install a good anti-virus as soon as you get your OS installed. I know there is a thread on here...I think it was ComputerWorld or someone who ran an article that said that even if you have UAC on high you are still vulnerable to 8 out of 10 viruses.

In my opinion, UAC is a placebo...it's just designed to make you feel like your system is more secure. You are just as well off installing an AV like MSE or AVG and leaving UAC on default, or whatever level you feel comfortable with.

blackroseMD1 said:

Well, best practice is to install a good anti-virus as soon as you get your OS installed. I know there is a thread on here...I think it was ComputerWorld or someone who ran an article that said that even if you have UAC on high you are still vulnerable to 8 out of 10 viruses.

In my opinion, UAC is a placebo...it's just designed to make you feel like your system is more secure. You are just as well off installing an AV like MSE or AVG and leaving UAC on default, or whatever level you feel comfortable with.

UAC is designed to help against threats that could get past your firewall and/or antivirus, and it works without requiring potentially out-of-date signature updates used by anti-virus programs.

UAC, even combined with a good antivirus and firewall, does not guarantee a 100% secure computing environment, but it is a step in the right direction.

I agree that it is a good thing to have implemented in the OS...I just think that it's mostly personal preference, along with how much a person knows about computers, that leads to individual levels of UAC.

For me, I feel safe enough in my knowledge of viruses and malware to feel secure without UAC active. Obviously, you prefer having it set on high.

Again, it's just my personal preference. You should always do what you feel most comfortable with.

blackroseMD1 said:

I agree that it is a good thing to have implemented in the OS...I just think that it's mostly personal preference, along with how much a person knows about computers, that leads to individual levels of UAC.

For me, I feel safe enough in my knowledge of viruses and malware to feel secure without UAC active. Obviously, you prefer having it set on high.

Again, it's just my personal preference. You should always do what you feel most comfortable with.

Definitely. This is why Microsoft made UAC adjustable in Windows 7, as opposed to Vista that was either ON or OFF...

I personally have it set to one slider below default (the screen dimming gets irritating)

For me it's not so much about security, but more of a 'heads up'.

When installing apps etc , I just like to know when they try to install extra components and the like.