Advice Request If you could pick only one program for protection.

[show-Zi]

I was watching it because I was confused, but I will post it for the purpose of returning the flow to the mainstream.
If it is a condition to narrow down to one, I will choose Comodo. In the worst case scenario, the ability to block all communications and the use of sandboxes will expand the range of countermeasures.

My daughter was in the hospital all weekend so I missed this party...just wanted in on the ‘fun’.

Family is a top priority. Because the fun of the forum happens regularly, there are still opportunities for participation.

 

[blackice]

Family is a top priority. Because the fun of the forum happens regularly, there are still opportunities for participation.

I’ll take a malware infection any day over my baby having an infection.

 

[monkeylove]

I currently don't spend on protection software, so I am using only KSC. I use to have the free version of Windows Firewall Control, but it was too tedious to use for temporarily unblocking some files, so I settled for Firewall App Blocker and manual blocking.

I have free versions of Malwarebytes and Zemana for secondary scanning, but I rarely use them.

Beyond those, I've some addons in the browser, like uBlock Origin and NoScript.

 

[simmerskool]

Yes, I gave up on HMP-A too for the same reasons. Back when I tried it -- it seemed like it was the greatest up-and-coming capability at the time. Once I got it, I lost interest in it pretty quickly.

I too used AppGuard -- but for not nearly as long as you. Why did you quit using it?

Well perhaps not the most logical reason: the longer I've had cruelcomodo installed and bug free, I decided to slowly remove other apps (other layers) to avoid software conflicts, and AppGuard became one I uninstalled, although it was not giving me problems. I have nothing bad to say about AG, but it can be "problematic" with uninstall / reinstall. Since I'm running win7, I stayed with AG v4 lifetime license. then AG moved to v5, then v6 and new owners (IIRC), different billing, I kept v4. AG was set it and forget it assuming to could properly set it up. I always thought the setup config was "advanced" or took a lot of reading to be comfortable I had it tweaked fully, more so than other apps I run.

Most IoT devices are infected out of the box.
HMPA sort of reminds of a thing everyone wants, but most people can't afford it or won't pay for it. I like stuff like that in all aspects of life because the perceived quality is palpable. For example I have a whole house generator and I don't even live near Hurricane Alley. However when the power does go out, I am sitting pretty. Everyone wants one, but most people either can't afford it, or won't pay for it. Feelsgood man.

it's harder to get a whole house generator if your neighborhood does not have natural gas to power generator like mine :emoji_expressionless: and I do live in a hurricane alley. I assume you're not shuffling around gasoline or diesel fuel to keep your generator running.

 

[Cortex]

I've used HMP.A for quite some time however for some time it started to become a pain in the posterior with a fair amount of FP's with good programs vanishing in a flash of light & few if any updates & I vowed not to renew my licence (I deleted it more than one then decided to give it another chance as I paid for it) - Recently though things have improved immensely with several updates (yesterday for example) + keystroke encryption being fixed on ESET among other AV's.

Also additional protection added (though I'm not always sure what some of the items in 'Risk Reduction' actually do lol) - So I renewed my licence in a good deal, but no doubt at some point esp as I've just praised it I will become annoyed immensely with HPM.A - just my take

 

[ebocious]

I've used HMP.A for quite some time however for some time it started to become a pain in the posterior with a fair amount of FP's with good programs vanishing in a flash of light & few if any updates & I vowed not to renew my licence (I deleted it more than one then decided to give it another chance as I paid for it) - Recently though things have improved immensely with several updates (yesterday for example) + keystroke encryption being fixed on ESET among other AV's.

Also additional protection added (though I'm not always sure what some of the items in 'Risk Reduction' actually do lol) - So I renewed my licence in a good deal, but no doubt at some point esp as I've just praised it I will become annoyed immensely with HPM.A - just my take

Oof, I wouldn't be able to live with that. I hate alerts, which is why I stopped using VS. With AG or Cruel Comodo, I can untick all the alerts, and have yet to experience any issues. My systems run smoothly and nimbly, and reliability history is a straight line at 10.0.

If I need to install something or run a portable app, I can lower AG's protection level to allow installs, or allow user space launches. With CC, I just temporarily disable auto containment. Silent default-deny goodness, such that I can practically forget malware even exists. Of course, MBBE/MBBG won't let me forget completely.

 

[Local Host]

it's harder to get a whole house generator if your neighborhood does not have natural gas to power generator like mine :emoji_expressionless: and I do live in a hurricane alley. I assume you're not shuffling around gasoline or diesel fuel to keep your generator running.

I personally rather use a solar panel with some batteries, on the fly is more expensive but on the long run is cheaper and easier to use.

 

[ForgottenSeer 58943]

it's harder to get a whole house generator if your neighborhood does not have natural gas to power generator like mine :emoji_expressionless: and I do live in a hurricane alley. I assume you're not shuffling around gasoline or diesel fuel to keep your generator running.

Propane works wonderfully, stores forever and doesn't decay. Some of the liquid propane in your gas grill tank could be from propane stored in underground reservoirs since the 1950's and it is perfectly fine.

I've used HMP.A for quite some time however for some time it started to become a pain in the posterior with a fair amount of FP's with good programs vanishing in a flash of light & few if any updates & I vowed not to renew my licence (I deleted it more than one then decided to give it another chance as I paid for it) - Recently though things have improved immensely with several updates (yesterday for example) + keystroke encryption being fixed on ESET among other AV's.

Also additional protection added (though I'm not always sure what some of the items in 'Risk Reduction' actually do lol) - So I renewed my licence in a good deal, but no doubt at some point esp as I've just praised it I will become annoyed immensely with HPM.A - just my take

Good to hear. I also noticed they ratcheted up development of HMPA this year with quite a good number of updates. Also I did find some coupons to buy it for what I consider dirt cheap, around $18 a year for 3 PC's.

I find HMPA intriguing. Especially since a guy I know in the biz was telling me how heavily the Talos team was beating up HMPA and the couple things they found were pretty readily patched by HMPA. I know a lot of folks at Fortinet have nothing but good things to say about HMPA and some of the more hardcore protection pros over there like it, especially in situations where something more noisy and restrictive might not be applicable.

 

[Handsome Recluse]

Oof, I wouldn't be able to live with that. I hate alerts, which is why I stopped using VS. With AG or Cruel Comodo, I can untick all the alerts, and have yet to experience any issues. My systems run smoothly and nimbly, and reliability history is a straight line at 10.0.

If I need to install something or run a portable app, I can lower AG's protection level to allow installs, or allow user space launches. With CC, I just temporarily disable auto containment. Silent default-deny goodness, such that I can practically forget malware even exists. Of course, MBBE/MBBG won't let me forget completely.

View attachment 224266

View attachment 224267

Firefox at one computer and Vivaldi at another? Weird...
What media player is that?

 

[ebocious]

Firefox at one computer and Vivaldi at another? Weird...
What media player is that?

The first is actually a VM. Firefox worked better than Chrome or Vivaldi, for some reason. Are you talking about the gray circle with the play symbol? That's PStart.

 

[simmerskool]

I've used HMP.A for quite some time however... Recently though things have improved immensely with several updates (yesterday for example) + keystroke encryption being fixed on ESET among other AV's.
So I renewed my licence in a good deal,

good to know, I may try HMP-A again.

Oof, I wouldn't be able to live with that. I hate alerts, which is why I stopped using VS.

curious (to me) there must be 2 flavors of VS users?? I've heard the "complaint" about VS alerts before, but gee I'm a long time user of VS and I rarely get any popup alerts, and I go all over the place doing this and that.

I personally rather use a solar panel with some batteries, on the fly is more expensive but on the long run is cheaper and easier to use.

been looking into solar cells to help get off the electric grid. my son did it in southern CA. just becoming available in my neck of the woods.

Propane works wonderfully, stores forever and doesn't decay. Some of the liquid propane in your gas grill tank could be from propane stored in underground reservoirs since the 1950's and it is perfectly fine.

Thanks, I'll check out propane fueled generators!

 

[ForgottenSeer 58943]

Honestly, I don't get popups with VS, almost ever... Some people complain about popups, others say they never get them. I wonder if they are tending to their whitelist and/or running VS in learning mode for a bit before locking it down?

 

[show-Zi]

I've installed VS on a pc that doesn't do much software replacement, but it doesn't pop up unless I'm installing the software with a browser open or running a little-known free software.

 

[ebocious]

curious (to me) there must be 2 flavors of VS users?? I've heard the "complaint" about VS alerts before, but gee I'm a long time user of VS and I rarely get any popup alerts, and I go all over the place doing this and that.

Basically, it throws up a series of alerts during installation, and several more at first launch, with the occasional oddball alert for an action it might not have seen the first time.

Basically, it throws up a series of alerts during installation, and several more at first launch, with the occasional oddball alert for an action it might not have seen the first time.

It's nothing like the first-generation HIPS programs, which were totally agnostic and user dependent (e.g. Internet Explorer is attempting to access the Internet). But I'm a little spoiled these days, with my configs of AppGuard and Cruel Comodo. I just flip a switch to temporarily allow installations when necessary, or when running a portable/utility app (or I can add the maintenance folder to exceptions). The number of alerts I get is zero, zip, nada.

 

[outlawxtorn]

@ebocious What are you running with appguard? Just WD? I saw you can get Tech Fortress for like 3.99 and up to 3 devices so I might do that!

 

[simmerskool]

Basically, it throws up a series of alerts during installation, and several more at first launch, with the occasional oddball alert for an action it might not have seen the first time.

well I dunno.... fwiw, me, when I install apps I have prescanned at VT, I almost always use the VS built-in feature "DISABLE / INSTALL" | I assume Dan put it there to use for that specific purpose....??

 

[ebocious]

@ebocious What are you running with appguard? Just WD? I saw you can get Tech Fortress for like 3.99 and up to 3 devices so I might do that!

On my own machines, WD SmartScreen is turned on, but the antivirus itself is disabled. If I'm servicing someone else's computer, I'll usually leave whatever antivirus they have, or turn on WD if they have none. If it's someone who may not be in frequent contact with me, I won't install AG or CC. I'll just install AppCheck anti-ransomware, along with beefing up browser security.

You've made my mouth water. I thought Tech Fortress was for only one machine at a time. I'll have to double-check on that.

 

[outlawxtorn]

On my own machines, WD SmartScreen is turned on, but the antivirus itself is disabled. If I'm servicing someone else's computer, I'll usually leave whatever antivirus they have, or turn on WD if they have none. If it's someone who may not be in frequent contact with me, I'll just install AppCheck anti-ransomware, along with beefing up browser security.

You've made my mouth water. I thought Tech Fortress was for only one machine at a time. I'll have to double-check on that.

Okay, thanks! I have Nod32 on this gaming pc and was either going to do Tech Fortress or Cruel Comodo with it.
According to this it's three. ( fourth question in the faq)

 

[ebocious]

well I dunno.... fwiw, me, when I install apps I have prescanned at VT, I almost always use the VS built-in feature "DISABLE / INSTALL" | I assume Dan put it there to use for that specific purpose....??

Correct. As I recall, I still got alerts after installation, so I didn't even bother with the Disable/Install setting. Anyway, if I recall, VS gave me a hassle with my utility apps, uploading everything to VT every time I wanted to run it. I think the last straw was when it told me to update, refused to work until I updated, and failed to download the update. I had to go to the website to download the latest version. If my memory serves me, I had to uninstall the current version first, but I don't recall.

In short, I see good intentions behind VS, but it's just too rough and crude for me. AG (or TF) is a lot more polished and stable. Of course, I don't have it installed on everything; I mostly use Cruel Comodo. But then, CC defeats VS because I can customize it any way I want to, without shelling out a penny.

Honestly, I don't get popups with VS, almost ever... Some people complain about popups, others say they never get them. I wonder if they are tending to their whitelist and/or running VS in learning mode for a bit before locking it down?

That could be why. But honestly, that's how I got caught in 2006 with my pants down. I tried replacing the firewall in the AOL security suite (I believe it was McAfee for AV & FW, and CA Pest Patrol for AS) with Zone Alarm, and those worms snuck in while I was training it. Of course, I realize Windows is more robust today than it was then, but I prefer to have everything closed when I install a new app, and sometimes even disconnect from the Internet when I can. I don't do learning mode. I need out-of-box lockdown.

 

[simmerskool]

Correct. As I recall, I still got alerts after installation, so I didn't even bother with the Disable/Install setting. Anyway, if I recall, VS gave me a hassle with my utility apps, uploading everything to VT every time I wanted to run it. I think the last straw was when it told me to update, refused to work until I updated, and failed to download the update. I had to go to the website to download the latest version. If my memory serves me, I had to uninstall the current version first, but I don't recall.

In short, I see good intentions behind VS, but it's just too rough and crude for me. AG (or TF) is a lot more polished and stable. Of course, I don't have it installed on everything; I mostly use Cruel Comodo. But then, CC defeats VS because I can customize it any way I want to, without shelling out a penny.

Fair enough! I mostly use cruelcomodo too.