Does Anything Work?

[hello people]

I think if you are smart and keep things very simple, problems can be avoided. On my old XP Home PC I ran with no anti virus for 5 years and never had my PC crippled. I don't advise or promote that way of running a PC...but yeah...it seems that a lot of problems are a combination of devious attacking and user error...a terrible mix.

 

[Solarstarshines]

It's not just user error or not knowing better now days the internet suggest you can go here and there and it is safe sites to browse but alot of those sites are contaminated by adds that contain bad java scripts and malware most people get on a new music site to download unknowing half the stuff there getting will infect thiere system but not the mp3 player

anyway my point is this as long as web browsing and multiple sites are options for consumers AV compainies will be beyond super rich just because people will pay for anything when they don't know any better

you really think the machanic fixing you're car is going to be truthfull just like the web you never know what you'll get even pro users as ourselves can catch a mean one once in a while

 

[hello people]

But I ran an XP Home PC for 5 years with no AV installed...and never got a virus. That goes a little beyond luck and more into the territory of smart internet use. AV software companies are a shameful scam preying upon the idiocy of Johnny P.C. Punchclock.

 

[mooreted]

But I ran an XP Home PC for 5 years with no AV installed...and never got a virus. That goes a little beyond luck and more into the territory of smart internet use. AV software companies are a shameful scam preying upon the idiocy of Johnny P.C. Punchclock.

If you don't scan for malware, how do you know you don't have any?

Anyway, I use MSE and not going to sites likely to host malware and not downloading anything I don't really need. I try to keep my system lean and mean. I really don't need screen savers and free music.

 

[hello people]

I admit periodically I used to scan for malware...but nothing serious was ever detected.

 

[mooreted]

I admit periodically I used to scan for malware...but nothing serious was ever detected.

Well, if you don't go to sites with malware and don't install a bunch of crap, you can do it. I like to feel I'll get some warning in case I go to a site that looks legit but isn't or something tries to install in the background without letting me know.

 

[hello people]

Yeah that's pretty much why I'm running MSE these days....the last month or whatever since my W7 install

 

[EzioAuditore]

Since one cant force the users to practice safe browsing habits and seeing that some users will continue clicking blindly here and there and getting infected, the disc imaging technique could be our best bet..

 

[hello people]

I've never really understood disc imaging. Maybe it's for another thread...but how does a few gig of disc image account for scores of gig on an OS drive? I don't get how it all compresses to a fraction of the actual size.

 

[Solarstarshines]

You start out using a compression tool to compress massive gigs

then you burn the image as a iso the iso is the image you burn for it to work

 

[mooreted]

I've never really understood disc imaging. Maybe it's for another thread...but how does a few gig of disc image account for scores of gig on an OS drive? I don't get how it all compresses to a fraction of the actual size.

There are all kinds of compression algorithms: mpg, zip, tar, iso, etc. The basic idea is that when a series of bit is repeated over and over, you can predict those bits and remove them so you can replace those bits when you decompress them. You can also represent a bunch of bits with a smaller set of bits and use mathematical equations to recompile the longer set of bits.

 

[malexous]

Plus, OS auxiliary files aren't backed up.

shameful scam preying upon the idiocy of Johnny P.C. Punchclock.

Leave out 'scam' and I agree. So many people I meet have no AV or PC safety concept ... - Security | DSLReports Forums.

In this day and age, as long as you use a computer, you'd be silly not to have some sort of security.

Websites are being hacked all the time (often, not for malicious reasons) and malicious ads appear on otherwise good websites.

Malicious websites are being pushed to the top of search results through Black Hat Search Engine Optimization techniques.

If you are careful, you can minimize the risk greatly but it is worse for the uninformed with social engineering taking place on social networking sites probably everyday and the other well known techniques (emails, USBs, etc).

 

[hello people]

For sure...I agree that the uninformed will be the first and maybe only to get burnt. As I said...I ran no AV for 5 years and never got crippled. That's a little more than dumb luck. And stats like that fly in the face of 'you'd be silly not to have some sort of security'. The reason I never ran an AV was because they were all so intrusive and with such an annoying footprint. What it means to me is that a PC can run without an AV as long as the user knows what he's doing. But if a user doesn't know what he's doing then no AV in the world will protect him. This is pretty much why I think AV's are scamola...still I use MSE just for a tiny bit of peace of mind. The rest of my peace of mind comes from my knowledge that I can surf the net without shooting myself repeatedly in the foot.

 

[malexous]

I don't know what the situation was like five years ago.

I'd be running without a real-time anti-virus right now but I currently have to share a laptop with my parents.

I wouldn't run without multiple on-demand scanners or other protection measures such as Applocker, though.

You never know which website is going to be hacked next or whether or not you will stumble upon it.

People, also, make mistakes.

 

[Barman58]

In the last fifteen years the main aim of Malware has changed, What started as a set of "hackers" writing code to prove something to their peers, to today's multi-million dollar industry.

Whereas the payload of the early Malware was an annoyance, (screen melting, and the rest),which did escelate to software damaging payloads

The payload of the current crop of Malware is designed to create Botnets, steal identities, and properties / money. There is no user visible payload, and as has often been the case, only the errors in the code will make the average user aware that something is wrong.

Whereas it was possible to run a carefully managed system without AV in the past I would not recommend it in today's world, too much is at stake to chance the "perfect" Malware attack doing it's damage before even the most advanced user in the field can notice it.

 

[hello people]

I ran my PC without AV from 2005 - Oct 2010...just for the record

 

[bigcitycat]

I really like win7 and I can protect it but I find myself using Ubuntu because of all these security issues.

 

[JMH]

I really like win7 and I can protect it but I find myself using Ubuntu because of all these security issues.

If you use the recommended precautions and practise safe surfing... Win 7 is fine to use.

 

[mooreted]

I really like win7 and I can protect it but I find myself using Ubuntu because of all these security issues.

I use Ubuntu on most of my machines, but this is my gaming machine. If you set up Windows 7 properly, you shouldn't have any problems. It is a pretty secure OS. Ubuntu is not impervious to malware either. You still have to be careful.

 

[EzioAuditore]

No matter what OS you use, your best defence lies between your ears...