Stickied thread: Safe internet browsing habits

[steve2470]

I'm going to keep this thread open and stickied at the top of CHaS for the aid of our members. Feel free to post helpful advice about safe internet browsing habits here.

[steve2470]

1. I'll kick us off: Use a anti-virus and anti-malware program

Last edited Thu Jun 5, 2014, 10:24 AM - Edit history (1)

For Linux (very little known malware, afaik): http://www.linux.org/threads/malware-and-antivirus-systems-for-linux.4455/

For MacOs X: http://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/best-free-antivirus-software-for-mac/#!z0wir

For Windows: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2388652,00.asp

There's several good programs for Windows, which are listed at the article above. Two good free ones are Malwarebytes and Microsoft Security Essentials. There are several others, of course.

It's a good idea to update the antivirus definitions regularly to maintain its effectiveness.

ETA: Be sure to use an anti-virus program, in addition to a program similar to Malwarebytes.

[butterfly77]

6. I had microsoft essentials on another computer for a few years on another computer

no problem,I tried it on this one recently and virus occurred..

[steve2470]

7. ok try Malwarebytes and Spybot Search and Destroy nt

[butterfly77]

8. Will do..

then what?

[steve2470]

9. I would run them once a week to be safe or keep them running all the time nt

[truedelphi]

17. Thank you for the mention of Spybot Search. Will try it. n/t

[Paper Roses]

2. For those like me, this is great. Keep up the good work and thank you. n/t

[TygrBright]

3. A few of my safety practices.

Never save passwords in my browser.
I configure all of the browsers I use, to NOT save passwords. I use dozens of passwords, so I have a vault program to manage them. KeePass is free and suits my simple needs, but there are plenty more. Here's a recent review/comparison from PCMag.

I use secure passwords.
That is, they are more than 8 digits long, they use numbers, upper and lowercase letters, and non-alphanumeric characters where permitted.

I use a script blocker.
Most browsers have an add-on or plug-in that you can install to prevent your browser from automatically executing scripts when you land on a new page. This is incredibly tedious at first because virtually every website uses some scripts, so the first time you go there after installing the blocker, you have to whitelist or make temporary exceptions for all the scripts on the page. That's the bad news. The good news is that in addition to whitelisting, which allows you to specify trusted sites and scripts where the blocker will permit them to run when encountered, there are an AWFUL lot of scripts out there that are totally unnecessary to do what you want to do on any given page. Leaving them blocked can speed your browsing experience and keep annoying advertising trackers, etc., from snooping you or throwing garbage at you.

I have additional download scanning enabled on my security programs.
I get the occasional false positive, but mostly things run smoothly. I'm also careful what I download. Most of what I download are .pdf documents, or images from well-managed stock sites, etc. If I want to view an image or video online I generally try to find a site where I can view it within my browser, without having to download, unless I'm getting it from a trusted source. I download some executables--freeware, etc., but I do so only from reasonably secure sites or trusted sources.

I manage my download settings carefully.
That is, nothing executable is allowed to download and run automatically. I *always* select "save" file rather than "run" file, and scan the saved file before running it. I also READ what pops up when I do run something I've downloaded: This has saved me from enabling PUPs any number of times. For example, never run Ye Olde Java updater without carefully unchecking the "enable crapware" offers that come with it.

Beyond that, safe browsing is mostly a matter of being careful, and having a little common sense. Most malware, crapware, etc., rides in on "cool" stuff-- fancy "free" screen savers, pr0n images, etc. Before you click a download link on something "cool," especially on a site you don't know well, back out, open another browser tab, and run a search on the name of whatever it is, the supplier, etc. Amazing how many times the first page of the search results will include articles from AV/malware libraries, pegging the culprit.

helpfully,
Bright

[truedelphi]

18. Where do you get a script blocker?

You say:

I use a script blocker.
Most browsers have an add-on or plug-in that you can install to prevent your browser from automatically executing scripts when you land on a new page. This is incredibly tedious at first because virtually every website uses some scripts, so the first time you go there after installing the blocker, you have to whitelist or make temporary exceptions for all the scripts on the page. That's the bad news. The good news is that in addition to whitelisting, which allows you to specify trusted sites and scripts where the blocker will permit them to run when encountered, there are an AWFUL lot of scripts out there that are totally unnecessary to do what you want to do on any given page. Leaving them blocked can speed your browsing experience and keep annoying advertising trackers, etc., from snooping you or throwing garbage at you.
####
And that sounds great. Which one do you use, and are there othr you would rec?

[TygrBright]

20. Depends on what browser you use. With Firefox, I use NoScript.

Aviator comes with a script blocker embedded, and it's my go-to browser. But for some things I still use Firefox, and NoScript works find. It's an add-on, you can get it by clicking the "get add-ons" feature in the Firefox control panel and searching for NoScript.

helpfully,
Bright

[steve2470]

4. This looks like a good cyber-security site

http://us.norton.com/security_response/browsewebsafely.jsp

Any inaccuracies on this page (besides the hype for Norton), please correct in this thread. Thanks.

Steve

[steve2470]

5. 2 more sites

http://www.wikihow.com/Sample/Internet-Safety-Rules

http://www.wikihow.com/Be-Safe-on-the-Internet

[CountAllVotes]

10. I have several old computers

Last edited Wed Mar 26, 2014, 10:29 AM - Edit history (1)

Most the "free" antivirus programs don't run well on any of them.

Hence, I tried SUPERAntiSpyware which can be downloaded for free at download.com.

You have to update it daily on your own and I run it every day when I shut down.

I also use DuckDuckGo as my search engine.

So far, so good (SUPERAntiSpyware seems to find and get rid of any that show up).

[truedelphi]

19. Thanking you for offering up help for my older computers.

I still occasionally have my Windows 95 up and running.

And of course, windows XP is getting older by the minute.

[CountAllVotes]

21. XP Pro

It is the best OS that Microsoft ever came up with. I guess they never heard the old saying, "If is ain't broke, don't fix it" as far as I can tell.

I finally bit the bullet and bought an HP EliteBook from Tiger Direct. It has Windows 7 Professional on it. So far so good I think ...

However, my desktop works still and my printer does not work with Windows 7 Professional so I guess I'll be needing a new printer soon as well. It seems that Lexmark (the maker of my printer) does not support Windows 7 Professional.

This whole thing angers me as I really could not afford a new computer. However, this HP EliteBook seems good so far and the price was about $800.00. It came with very few instructions which makes it frustrating. Oh well ...

Glad I have been of some help!

[truedelphi]

22. Does the Windows Seven have a desk-top look like XP does?

I think there was discussion on this very forum, three months back, about how you can get yr newer laptop to emulate the desk top look. So that might be one thing to consider.

[CountAllVotes]

23. Yes, it looks very similar

There is also virtual XP Pro that you can download and run on a Windows 7 Professional computer (as well as the Windows 7 Ultimate and Enterprise versions but not the plain Windows 7 version) that it will work on.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/install-and-use-windows-xp-mode-in-windows-7

A friend downloaded it and is running it but said it was sluggish. However, if you could manage to get it to work, you wouldn't need a new printer, etc. I don't know for sure but it could be worth a try.

[Baobab]

25. Many Linux distros run well on older PCs

You can find links and reviews to a great many on distrowatch.com

[truedelphi]

26. Thanks for the link to distrowatch.com Very appreciated. n/t

[steve2470]

11. Download.com: how to use it and not get crappy adware in your downloads

http://www.democraticunderground.com/109510672

[steve2470]

12. Symptoms of (Malware/Virus) Infection

http://sync.democraticunderground.com/109510712

[steve2470]

13. Rootkits: another kind of nasty malware

http://www.democraticunderground.com/109510740

[chrisa]

14. Strong password guide by Microsoft

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-vista/tips-for-creating-a-strong-password

- Also true for everywhere.

[steve2470]

15. Should I run a software firewall behind my NAT router? (pretty technical discussion)

NAT router = D-Link, Linksys, Cisco, Netgear, other "consumer grade" routers

http://www.dslreports.com/faq/4629

Summary

Whilst NAT discards all unsolicited traffic received from the Internet, it does not restrict conversations initiated by the computers behind it. A software firewall (and it's user) would theoretically prevent malicious programs from initiating these 'outbound' conversations. It is worth noting that the most common type of malicious, network-aware program, the Remote Access Trojan (RAT), almost always depends upon an inbound connection from the attacker and is therefore defeated by NAT alone.

Although the threat reduction provided a software firewall employed in this scenario may be relatively small they do provide another layer of defense against certain types of malicious program and may be useful in alerting you to the presence of such.

As detailed previously, NAT discards all unsolicited traffic received from the Internet. Therefore, a software firewall watching inbound traffic would only ever see return traffic - traffic that is part of a conversation initiated by the host computer. Besides the occasional false positive (see here for an example), the software firewall will never produce any 'alerts' on inbound traffic.

So, why do people run them? Well, the advantage that a software firewall holds over hardware devices is that it can associate conversations with the program involved. A standalone NAT or firewall device has no way of determining which program is responsible for the packets it filters - it can only filter on the fields in packet headers such as ports and addresses. If an administrator were to filter all outbound connections except those destined for port 80 (http) they could not assume that the only conversations passing through the device were indeed http. Indeed, some legitimate programs (IM and P2P clients, etc) allow users to set a "firewall mode" whereby they use destination port 80 for all conversations, bypassing "pesky admins and their firewalling" (and often their security policies).

more at link above

[steve2470]

16. Best Antivirus, dead tree Maximum PC magazine, July 2014

9-Kick Ass (their best rating): BitDefender Internet Security, Norton Internet Security

9: WebRoot SecureAnywhere Internet Security Plus, ESET Smart Security,

8: Kaspersky Internet Security 2014, McAfee Internet Security 2014, Avira Free Antivirus, Avast Free Antivirus

7: Panda Internet Security 2014

6: AVG Antivirus Free 2014

[vpiperis]

24. Best antivirus?

Take a look at BullGuard. http://www.bullguard.com/ Ive been using it for several years now on all my computers with no problems. It tracks your pc's "habits" and when it notices something unusual it stops that particular process and prompts you for action amongst other things.

[borisdavenport]

27. I am following these 10 steps before doing an online shopping

Last edited Wed Aug 17, 2016, 03:52 AM - Edit history (1)

Once My account was hacked by some people from Rumania. I know that was a big loot for them. They called my wife and told that they were from Microsoft and they convinced her very much by speaking about different viruses and hackers. They then installed some keyloggers by taking the remote from my home computer and got my details.
[link: http://nci.ca/10-safest-methods-to-shop-online/|]
We are now following these steps as suggested by a technician from AT&T ConnecTech. Hope this one will also help you guys.