Internet security and the browsing experience
Security recommendation:
If you don't have a firewall protecting your personal computer, click this link for Zone Labs firewall called ZoneAlarm, the personal (non business) version is still free; be careful to choose the "free" version
A firewall is a must with today's internet browsing experience. Firewall's keep unwelcome visitors or hackers from randomly attaching to your computer. The primary functions of a firewall are to let good traffic pass through while 'bad' traffic gets blocked. The most important part of a firewall is its access control features that distinguish between good and bad traffic. Zone Labs provides a free firewall for non business purpose. A number of companies offer "purchase" firewalls.
Anti virus:
There is a "free" anti virus program called AVG from GriSoft. My experience with this product is limited because I do have a fully licensed version of Symantec anti virus software on my computer. My experience with AVG invokes bad memories of problems but that was with a Windows 98 OS. You are on your own with AVG as I cannot give a good recommendation even from other peoples experiences.
Also, take a look at
Free Avast anti virus software . As far as recommending it, it seemed to be a nicely written piece of software. Also look here at Panda software.
Privacy and the internet:
The web browsing experience has one pitfall and that is you can possibly lose some of your own privacy, and even in some extreme cases theft can occur. Of course, being careful what web sites you chose to visit can be a large factor in preventing theft. Make purchases on web sites you can trust, be leary of web site that is not a big-business name. Even visiting pages you can have some intrusion of your privacy by unwanted computer software unknowingly installing on your computer - spyware, tracking cookies. What I have found to be very beneficial is installing the SpywareBlaster software. This software blocks "determined bad spyware" while you browse the internet. At this time I believe the software remains free but asks for donations (shareware). I also use periodically Spybot-S&D software to scan my computer for spyware. A simple internet search engine finding "Spybot-S&D" will turn up the Spybot search and destroy program but please download from a reputable web site such as Pcworld.
E-mail spam:
You�ve Got Spam: How to "Can" Unwanted Email
U.S. declines to create do-not-spam list Tuesday, June 15, 2004 Posted: 12:40 PM EDT (1640 GMT) WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Bush administration will not immediately create a national do-not-spam registry to discourage unwanted e-mails, saying using current technology to do so might generate even more unsolicited sales pitches across the Internet, according to documents obtained Tuesday.
Web browser pop-up adds:
March 18, 2004 Windows XP SP2 Turns 'On' Pop-up Blocking By Ryan Naraine Microsoft's (Quote, Chart) long awaited Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) now includes some significant tweaks and a change in policy, the company said late Wednesday. The Redmond, Wash.-based software vendor said it is adding a new Windows Security Center to the control panel and switching the default setting for pop-up blocking in Internet Explorer. Microsoft said it is still on track to deliver the final code for SP2 by the end of June.please note above service pack is still not in production yet... for a sneak peak visit here (looks like this solution is targetted for XP Professional) http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/winxppro/maintain/sp2predl.mspx
I'm still waiting to be able to shut pop-ups off! I think this will be a nice improvement to the internet browsing experience, but at the same time why would Microsoft do this and irritate the advertisers? I expect this solution will not be provided any time soon or not be offered to XP Home edition.
Performance measurement and tuning:
This web site is absolutely a nice "must visit" performance and security review for your personal computer. I have tuned my internet download speed and web browser security using this web based software. You can test anonomously or sign up. PcPitStop!
http://www.pcpitstop.com/default.asp
Spyware:
ViewMgr.exe
My zonealarm started alerted me of "ViewMgr" trying to access the internet, but I don't know why and when this software was installed onto my pc!?! Thinking what I did today... I did click to send an empty unsubscribe email regarding AIM spam to Netscape or AOL. To disable this junk, whatever it is, I listed my tasks - press ctrl alt del at the same time - clicked processes tab - then clicked end process - then I went to my uninstall under control panel to remove the viewmgr files. I will hope it is gone after I reboot my machine. To protect yourself from unknowing installations of software set your IE (tools/internet options/advanced list) enable install on demand button OFF! As far as viewmgr goes I did not find it caused me problems when I removed it. Don't you hate it when something installs that you did not know about? Because of this it is crap!
Testing your PC's vulnerability to attacks:
http://security.symantec.com
Test your pc's vulnerability using Symantec's website. Click "Test system security", then complete the security scan. View your results in detail.
Testing your PC's vulnerability to attacks:
Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer V1.2.1
Download this tool and run it to review your overall security system. You can make adjustments to your security as advised by the security analyzer.
Disable automated logins:
Windows XP offers a feature for machines that aren't participating in a security domain where accounts without passwords can automatically log in at a computer's startup without requiring any user intervention. Obviously, this is a huge security hole for machines connected to any kind of network. You'll want to disable this.
To disable automated logins, do the following:
1. Inside Control Panel, open user accounts
2. Select a username.
3. Make sure there is a password set for each user account that's enabled.
Encrypted email address encoder
Encode an ecrypted email address within your html coding using this site!
This page last updated Nov 5, 2005