What do i choose? - BoundGirlie Setup

[BoundGirlie]

Security Awareness: Beginner
Exposure to Malware: Medium
Operating System: Vista Home Premium ~everything is up to date auto update is on and updates daily~
Architecture: 64 bit
User Account: No
Real-time Protection: Antivirus: Norton Anti-Virus
Anti spyware: Just installed Malwarebytes free edition
HIPS/Behavior-blocker: Norton Firewall *included in NIS*
Sandboxing/Virtualization: not sure/none
Full Security Suites: Norton Internet Security
On-Demand Tools: Malware bytes free
Web Browser: FireFox version:9
Ok, i surf pornography, i also spend a great deal of time on SecondLife and playing City of Heroes. i have a computer configuration of: AMD athlon 64 x2 Dual core processor 5200+ 2.70 GHz...4 gigs of RAM...with a video card is the nvidia 9700gt if that matters

Basically i've always sworn by Norton, the few times i've veered from Norton wasn't pretty, but i'm finding that maybe i should try something new mainly due to the tech types in my life have told me that Norton is a notorious resource hog and i can get the same if not better protection done without that kind of hogging. However, i've never had issues with Norton. I try looking it up on line and get nowhere, Norton's site says they're better than everyone, everyone else's site says they're better than Norton. So please, can someone tell me where to start and what to look for in regards to what fits my needs please and Thank You

Also if anyone sees holes in my security that i could plug up without hogging up MORE resources that would be nice....Thank You

[bo.elam]

NIS is great, just add something like Sandboxie and you are done. Check this 3 part video. The poster explains it real well even though he was not familiar with the program. What he says in the video, its right on the money and "listening" to him, will give you a pretty good idea of how Sandboxie works.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GueXMq-Vy...ggv47breSu

http://www.sandboxie.com/

Bo

[McLovin]

Hello and welcome to MalwareTips.

Have you got any backup options?

If not here are a few backup options.

• Acronis True Image Home 2012
• Paragon Drive Backup 10 Professional
• Norton Ghost 15
• O&O DiskImage 5 Professional Edition
• Image for Windows 2.58
  

[BoundGirlie]

i do not have a sandbox nor do i have backup but i just finished the sandboxie part 2 video and so far i like what i see So you all are saying that NIS is a good choice in itself?

[McLovin]

NIS is great but if you are using a trial what are you going to use once that runs out? Plus having a backup is really handy.

[BoundGirlie]

I'm not using a trail, i don't think it's a trial, Malware bytes i thought is free unless you want to buy the full version, i am checking that the moment i get done typing this. But typically when i do a trial if i like it i just buy it before it runs out.

[bo.elam]

(01-18-2012 03:26 AM)BoundGirlie wrote:  i do not have a sandbox nor do i have backup but i just finished the sandboxie part 2 video and so far i like what i see So you all are saying that NIS is a good choice in itself?

Its good but as with any other security application, you need to learn how to use it properly so it can help you prevent getting infected. You can have the best security program available but if you don't know what to do when something gets detected or how to prevent getting infected, the program means nothing.

Bo

[BoundGirlie]

i am now using sandboxie, i watched the youtube tutorial as well as went through the step by step through the program and it all seems pretty str8 forward. i like the idea of everything running in a protected area that doesn't affect anything else so if i go to a website i like to go to and it tries to download something it's all in the sandbox and doesn't count i love it

[Jack]

Real-time protection
NIS 2012 is a solid product with a lot of useful features...... Before buying it I would suggest that you take full advantage of the 90 days trial promo that Symantec is giving away and then search on Amazon some deals.You'll be able to find this software as low as 15$ with no real headaches.
Kaspersky Internet Security 2012 is also a very good suite so you should give it a try before buying Norton IS 2012.
What other security solutions have you tried in the past?

As good as suite is , you should always remember that YOU, the user , are the first line of defense against malware.
Microsoft recently released a report Microsoft Security Intelligence Report) in which stated the fact that most infection occur due to the fact that PC user run unknown downloaded programs from the internet which are infected.The first lesson in malware prevention is easy : DON'T RUN AN UNKNOWN FILE.......When you see the Windows pop-up 'Do you really want to run this file' .. don't just click like a robot YES, ask yourself from where did you got that file and then scan it with your av, on-demand scanners and on virustotal.




You can read our How to avoid malware guide to learn how to prevent malware with smart online behavior.If you understand and follow this simple steps then I don't see why you'll ever need to spend money on security.

Additional on-demand scanner:
Hitman Pro (Trial) - link
An on-demand scanner using multiple anti-malware engines and cloud technology. It offers unlimited free scanning but once you use it to remove detected malware it switches to a 30-day trial version. I recommend using it after you've scanned your hard-drive with the other products you have installed.


Additional browser plugins
Install on Firefox this adblocker..which will stop the ads... Porn will be much more fun without the annoying ads.
Adblock Plus (Free) - link
Adblock is a content-filtering extension for Mozilla Firefox- and Mozilla Application Suite-based web browsers. Adblock allows users to prevent page elements, such as advertisements, from being downloaded and displayed.

This add-on will prompt you to scan you download at virustotal.com , a website which has bundled 43 AV Engines so that you can scan your files.
VTzilla (Free) - link
VTzilla is a Mozilla Firefox browser plugin that simplifies the process of scanning Internet resources with VirusTotal. It allows you to download files directly with VirusTotal's web application prior to storing them in your PC. Moreover, it will not only scan files, but also URLs.

With this free password manager you'll make your life a lot easier, you will be able to start using UNIQUE and COMPLEX password for each site.....
LastPass (Free) - link
LastPass is an online password manager and form filler that makes web browsing easier and more secure.
The scanning options are embedded in Firefox's context menu and download dialog, making the analysis process as easy as clicking a single button.

Virtualization:
You've already heard about sandboxie...so now it's time to start using it.... When you surf to porn,warez or unknow sites , your browser should always be sandbox ,also when you want to run unknown files that might be suspicious.This will give you a new level of protection and safety.
If you have any problems understanding how it works , please ask!
Sandboxie (Free/Paid) - link
Sandboxie runs your programs in an isolated space which prevents them from making permanent changes to other programs and data in your computer.







With that in mind Welcome! and I hope you'll stay around.

[BoundGirlie]

But good point i'm still learning and i try and learn all i can b4 putting it on....i think with the combo of malware bytes free edition, and NIS for my main protection is a good combo; in fact malwarebytes just finished its scan and it found 3 things that NIS didn't detect, it's anyone's guess how long they'd been there but it got rid of them, everything seems smoother; i'm very happy