UAC. Have you turned your's off?

[brother]

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?

 

[blackroseMD1]

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. :sarc:

 

[zx81]

I left it default.

Would also like to know what is best practice.

zx81

 

[Dzomlija]

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.

 

[blackroseMD1]

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.

 

[Dzomlija]

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.

 

[blackroseMD1]

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.

 

[Dzomlija]

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...

 

[smarteyeball]

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.

 

[H2SO4]

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?

It depends on your definition of "best".

If you mean "most convenient in the short term", then:
- Log on as an admin
- Use a blank password
- Heck, use autologon with a blank password
- Disable the UAC
- Enable the guest account
- Propagate "Everyone: FULL CONTROL" ACLs throughout your disk and registry.

On the other hand, if you think "best" means "most secure and convenient in the long term because I won't have to spend time de-poxing my machine":
- Log on as a non-admin for daily use
- Absolutely make sure the UAC is enabled.
- Use a strong "passphrase".
- Don't mess with the system ACLs.

Whether to UAC or not is a decision which only makes sense when some of those other factors are considered, in particular the question of whether the account you use for daily tasks is an admin.

 

[H2SO4]

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 not a placebo. Using AV is good but it works on another level which is complimentary. Whether a particular machine gets pwned or not has nothing to do with whether the user "feels comfortable" with their security practices

 

[yanks0826]

That is one of the first things I do. It's too annoying for me.

 

[noyb]

That is one of the first things I do. It's too annoying for me.

Ditto.
I think this is a con from M$ to make me think they did something to make it more secure.

 

[Barman58]

The weakest link in any security on a PC is the user.

UAC informs the user that something they did not initiate or that may have potentially dangerous consequences is in process.

This is an improvement in security as was found in XP

If the user ignores the warning and clicks through the UAC without thinking then the UAC is useless. This is not the fault of the UAC but the user.

 

[Teerex]

Mine is set at default level.

I find that to be both comfortable and secure - with autoelevation all my Windows 'tuning' gets done easily, and I know when something is asking for 'surrender your system 2 me' privilege.

+ all browsers are safer to use with UAC on.

 

[logicearth]

A lot of people just do not understand what UAC is or does. I already mentioned this in another thread, but clearly it needs to be repeated a thousand times before it sinks in. UAC IS NOT a security boundary. UAC is a convenience so you can run as a standard low privileged user. The reason for this is because application run within the context of the users privileges. The user has admin privileges, the application has admin privileges, and the application security holes has admin privileges. Anti-viruses, anti-malware, anti-whatever does not protect you from security holes in applications. Browsers are the most vulnerable along with any internet connecting application. Running with UAC on prevents any exploit from compromising the whole machine because the application is not running with super powers!

The job of UAC is to run with administrative power only when the time is needed.

BTW, I put UAC to the max possible setting.

 

[tw33k]

I turn it off on my laptop but leave it on the pc the kids and wife use

 

[pparks1]

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.

That's because that article made to sense at all. UAC does not, nor has it ever protected against viruses. It's simply a tool to let you run with a non admin level account, but escalate to an admin when it's required to run something. Obviously, if you get something with a virus, click on it and UAC asks if you would like to install it...when you click on Yes...it's going to install.

I do NOT turn UAC off and I don't see why people feel like they need to. After getting the machine setup, it's rare for me to see any UAC prompts. I mean the people who complain about UAC make it sound like they have to click through 1,000 prompts a day and it takes nearly 3 hours for them to wade through them all.

Remember, when you see the UAC prompts in the default settings, it's ONLY letting you know when an APPLICATION tries to get admin level access. I cannot see why people wouldn't want to know when their apps are becoming admin. That's usually a really good indication that something fishy could be going on...and it could be noticed in advance of your antivirus or antimalware application needing to get involved.

 

[Zidane24]

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.

That's because that article made to sense at all. UAC does not, nor has it ever protected against viruses. It's simply a tool to let you run with a non admin level account, but escalate to an admin when it's required to run something. Obviously, if you get something with a virus, click on it and UAC asks if you would like to install it...when you click on Yes...it's going to install.

I do NOT turn UAC off and I don't see why people feel like they need to. After getting the machine setup, it's rare for me to see any UAC prompts. I mean the people who complain about UAC make it sound like they have to click through 1,000 prompts a day and it takes nearly 3 hours for them to wade through them all.

Remember, when you see the UAC prompts in the default settings, it's ONLY letting you know when an APPLICATION tries to get admin level access. I cannot see why people wouldn't want to know when their apps are becoming admin. That's usually a really good indication that something fishy could be going on...and it could be noticed in advance of your antivirus or antimalware application needing to get involved.

I used to turn it off until I relealized that it isn't such a big deal to use...

The only time I have to turn it off is before installing UxStyle Core BETA which is a little bugged when you are messing with it and UAC...after it gets installed I turn it back off


It is not a for peace of mind...it prevents an app from running in full admin mode which may make the difference between pwned computers and computers still running

MACs prevent you from running a program in full admin rights, linux prevents you from running as root without a password...Windows finally caught up to them

 

[H2SO4]

That is one of the first things I do. It's too annoying for me.

Ditto.
I think this is a con from M$ to make me think they did something to make it more secure.

Let me guess - not a "security" MVP?