In my previous blog post, I urged you to make sure your friends have Anti-Virus Software installed on their PCs. Well, the saga continues…
I just finished repairing yet another friend’s PC that was infected by a virus. And again, it was preventable. The user’s Anti-Virus software had been popping up warnings for over a month that their AV subscription had expired, but this person just ignored the warnings.
This particular user had unwittingly ignored more than their Anti-Virus subscription. They also ignored Windows Updates. Windows had been prompting to install a Service Pack update for several months, but the user just ignore it. This means that Windows Updates that would normally install automatically were put on hold, waiting in line for the Service Pack to get installed.
This user had other habits that encouraged virus infections. They always stay logged on. Since Windows cannot update files that are in use, Windows Updates would not have finished installing even if the Service Pack update had not been ignored. Folks, you need to reboot your PC periodically, or at least log off so Windows will automatically reboot after it installs updates.
The other virus friendly habit this user exercised was to install Internet Explorer toolbars. And not just the Google and/or Yahoo! Toolbar that other programs frequently install. This person had unwittingly installed numerous toolbars, not realizing they all are spyware and many are malicious. Folks, those ‘free’ toolbars are not free. Don’t be tempted to install them, and use the Uninstall feature in Control Panel to uninstall those that get installed unintentionally.
2 comments:
After cleaning 10-15 machines a week for the past 6 weeks it never ceases to amaze me how careless (say: gullible) many users are for the *free* stuff. That being said, may I add that Adobe Acrobat Reader, Adobe Flash Player and Java represent open attack surfaces on all PCs. These products are constantly offering patches that are also free and easy to update and should not be ignored.
Java is easy enough to do without (very few people use it), but Adobe Reader and Flash Player are both ubiquitous. Unfortunately, that also means they attract a lot of attention from the bad guys. It's getting to the point where Adobe updates, for both products, might be even more important than Microsoft updates for Windows itself! Now that's scary.
I recommend taking a look at Foxit Reader as an (also free) alternative to Adobe Reader. It is extraordinarily fast compared to modern versions of Adobe Reader, and compatibility is rarely a problem. I can't promise the program is coded more securely, but it flies under the radar compared to Adobe Reader. That makes it less of a target, which in turn means safer to use. But do be careful! Unless you go through the hoops to get the "corporate" version, you will probably have to explicitly opt out of third party toolbars or browser "takeovers" during installation...
As for Flash Player, we're stuck with that one for a while. It's going to have a fight on its hands when HTML5 is more prevalent, but that's a long way off.
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