Tristor wrote:If you're running Windows, oddly one of the best AV software packages currently available is also completely free. Microsoft Security Essentials catches most of the common and really nasty stuff, and for the more malware (less virus/trojan) type items, you can use Malwarebytes Anti-Malware which is also free. Both are also fairly lightweight compared to other packages available, so won't impact system performance as much. As far as software firewalls go, just don't even bother. If you have any sort of always-on broadband connectivity like cable, DSL, or FiOS, you should be using a hardware firewall.
You can get a relatively inexpensive hardware firewall meant for consumer-grade use for around $50 at Wal-mart or any big-box store from Linksys, D-Link, or Netgear (I wouldn't buy Belkin). If you want something more stout, you can hit up E-bay and find high-quality used equipment between $50-$100 that is enterprise grade or at least SOHO-grade from Cisco, Juniper, and similar manufacturers. I personally use Cisco Pix 506s and Juniper Netscreen 5-GT Elites for several of my clients, and at my folks, grandparents, and my house. Each one set me back less than $100, and includes more advanced features than you get in a consumer-grade product (like being capable of IPv6/Toredo, support for VLANing, Port Security, and QoS tagging) and each one is also capable of handling many more sessions at a higher rate of speed. For most home users with a single computer or two computers, the difference between the average Linksys vs using something heftier won't be noticed, but if you're like me with 20+ systems on your home network, I'd recommend getting something more substantial.
Software firewalls, on the other hand, are completely and totally useless. In many ways, I wouldn't even consider them better than nothing. If you have to use one, the best you're probably going to do as far as protection vs performance-loss of running the software is actually the built-in firewall in Windows or Mac OS X. If you're on Linux, this isn't exactly the same case, but I expect people who use Linux already know about more advance lightweight software firewalls like pf and iptables.
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Act justly, love mercy, walk humbly with God - Micah 6:8
PBratton wrote:The very BEST and Bulletproof virus protection out there is to disconnect all the external ports and drives and disconnect the network cable.
thats my favorite response to the "manager" " director" or " president" that will only spend $$ on solutions that block "everything"
Ive stayed away from Norton 360 and Mcafee full product for many years due to the resources they take, the fact that they have the disturbing likely hood of blocking access to local resources with no alerts. And finally Norton for years has released a stand alone Uninstaller for their products to be used when the standard uninstaller fails. ANY product that takes a series of manual separate uninstallers to remove is a problem. That just proves the initial software wasnt written well.
10Shooter wrote:I am an IT Manager for a Law Firm and I just switched us to Kaspersky Internet Suite, which is what I recommend now to my friends and side-job clients and am running myself.
Been using Kasperski for years, Doent seem to slow the machine down and Seem to have more control over it compared to other programs. Amazon has a good price on the disc version (3 license)
I love the sound smell of jet fuel in the morning.
Fat thumbs + IPhone = errors, please forgive.
I used McAffee and Norton in the past and got rid of both.
At this point I run Linux on my main machine and Windows 8.1 on my business and daily use PC.
Both systems are hardened, I use good passwords with 10+ character length. On the Linux machine I store my backups and private data. On my Windows workstation I use the MS security programs with automatic updates and protection enabled.
The browser settings are hardened and for online banking, ordering and other transactions I use "private browsing" or my Linux box.
My internet connection is secured with a CISCO ASA 5505 just to make sure I actually see and intrusion attempt and log files for one week if history are collected as well.
The security level on my internet connection would be over kill for most standard users but I have NAT configured to get to my cameras and I use ftp from remote.
In any case, the most important criteria is the virus definition update, real time protection and a regular scan.
Browser security is another topic and can be a challenge depending on your browsing habbits and what you actually do with it.
The most secure manner to isolate a browser session from the OS on your PC is a virtual browser. In other terms you would install a virtual OS and use the browser within the virtual OS. Configure the network settings within the virtual OS in an isolated mode and you are secure. In case something happens your host OS and private data is protected. A virtual machine (VM) can be built with minimum effort at no cost and you can actually install your basic applications within the VM as well.
For details on the OS hardening part I suggest you consult instructions provided by the OS manufacturer, MS in most cases.
If you want to test your level of security you'd need to perform penetration tests or know a good buddy with serious hacking skills.
Two things you need to keep in mind. 1. About 80% of currently known issues come from the inside of a network caused by users and/or malicious software. 2. The level of security you really need depends on your network configuration and the OS and applications you run including the configuration.
If you want to access your network from the outside get a decent firewall with logging facilities, configure it and review the log files on a regular base.
If you are a standard user and use the internet for browsing and e-mail only make sure remote connections are NOT possible, secure your OS and applications as mentioned and be good.
If you travel with your laptop make sure you get yourself up to date with common issues. A free internet connection is controlled by the entity providing it and they have the ability to monitor and record every bit you send across the network including encrypted traffic. If you use banking or other applications where you potentially transmit private information make sure the certificate on the service provider side is valid.
Long story short, evaluate what you actually have and need to do over the internet and then take the proper security measure!
I scarified political correctness to preserve honesty ︻╦̵̵͇̿̿̿̿══╤─
