- Dec 5, 2018
- 12
Just reinstalled, bit of a work in progress, I'll gladly accept all suggestions to improve the security of my system.
Jackknif3's new config 2018
- Thread starter Jackknif3
- Start date
- Sep 3, 2017
- 825
I can only comment in security terms.
To be on the safe side replace "WD" with some other Free AV
KAF, Avast, Bit defender.
To be on the safe side replace "WD" with some other Free AV
KAF, Avast, Bit defender.
- Mar 29, 2018
- 7,619
I agree with @Mahesh Sudula. You could add a light AV and an anti-exe. I use Bitdefender Free & VoodooShield Pro right now, but there are many options for you. BTW, have you hardened your OS since you have W10 Pro? There are options there as well.
Nothing wrong with Windows Defender if you like it and it's meeting your needs. It has improved a lot from a security standpoint, but its not perfect. No product is perfect. If you want to increase your security a little more you can use Configure Defender to get the most out of Windows Defender. You can still add the likes of Voodooshield or OSArmor if you wanted to cover some areas that WD may not cover.
If anything my suggestions would be to add a password manager of some sort, as well as a backup solution. Most importantly ensuing that all of your personal data is backed up regularly. You can also add something to make a system image to help you get back up and running quicker in the event you need to reinstall Windows, but if you are comfortable using the standard Windows installer that's good too.
Remember to always practice safe habits regardless of your security programs/setup. As I've already mentioned no product/setup is perfect and will eventually fail you if you practice unsafe habits.
If anything my suggestions would be to add a password manager of some sort, as well as a backup solution. Most importantly ensuing that all of your personal data is backed up regularly. You can also add something to make a system image to help you get back up and running quicker in the event you need to reinstall Windows, but if you are comfortable using the standard Windows installer that's good too.
Remember to always practice safe habits regardless of your security programs/setup. As I've already mentioned no product/setup is perfect and will eventually fail you if you practice unsafe habits.
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- Dec 5, 2018
- 12
Thanks for your input, everyone!
So far WD's been sufficient; it comes with Win 10 and doesn't use too much resources, but I was considering to either replace or complement it with something, will have to see which I'll end up with.
Password manager would be pretty good addition and I'll have to see about that tomorrow.
And lastly, the back ups. So far I've only "backed up" stuff to my external to keep it from bloating my system/when reinstalling/transferring from one machine to another, but then again, there's not much personal stuff on my computer I'd miss in the event of having to nuke it. I mostly use my PC for gaming, which means most of the stuff I "need" can just be re-downloaded and I'm good to go, and a USB stick with Win10 installation media has worked so far; just means having to download the useful apps afterwards. Then there's some personal projects I work on, but those have so far been small scale and everything can be recreated. If anything regarding my computer usage changes though, I'll have to seriously consider adding some sort of back up -program to the list but I've been pretty happy with what I've had so far.
@oldschool No, I don't think I have hardened my OS, even the term doesn't ring a bell.
I won't use admin account as main account, you are safer on SUA, but you will need to be accustomed to certains habits.
Hardening an OS means using some softs or manual tweaks that will reduce the OS vulnerabilities, hence making it hardened.
Hardening an OS means using some softs or manual tweaks that will reduce the OS vulnerabilities, hence making it hardened.
That's very fair!
One thing I'll just mention in regards to back ups, is that since you are using an external device, make sure it's not hooked up to your computer at all times, unless you really need to. For example, if you suddenly got hit with a piece of ransomware, your external device would be hit too if it's hooked up to the computer. I know you said you don't have much personal data on your computer, which is fine, I'm the exact same way
, but you could always add a cloud solution as well (Ie: One Drive, Google Drive, Sync, etc...). That way if your external device dies, house burns down, etc...you still have a copy of everything in the cloud.In terms of WD, there are many great options out there to try, take full advantage of the trial periods of each product you want to try. Every product has their pro's and con's, there is no such thing as a perfect product, or a product that will protect you 100% of the time. One thing I really want to stress is not to get caught up in the I need 20 browser extensions and 10 real-time programs to be safe mentality. More is not always better and can actually make things worse. There are many ways you can harden Windows, so be sure to research and ask a lot of questions if you aren't sure. Sometimes these "hardening techniques" can make some things break/unusable if you're just making changes without any regard as to why and what impact those changes may have on your system.
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- Mar 29, 2018
- 7,619
You have Group Policy in Windows Pro. Or if you are uncomfortable using GP, you might use SysHardener or Hard_Configurator which are pretty user friendly. You may find them on MT sub-forums. I know gamers don't like a lot of security softs unless they are lightweight. OS hardening works well for gamers or anyone because it is a lightweight way to help secure your system. Lots of folks with experience here can help.
- Dec 5, 2018
- 12
@Umbra I was also thinking about switching off from using the admin account, will have to also see tomorrow about that.
@Raiden The external is mostly unplugged, I have the computer in my bedroom so the light on the drive just keeps me up at night Only plug it in when I need it, so got that covered. Also now that I thought about it, I do use Dropbox, but that's mainly for pictures and such. Will have to start giving some serious thought on securing at least the most important data to the cloud with solution.
@Raiden The external is mostly unplugged, I have the computer in my bedroom so the light on the drive just keeps me up at night
Only plug it in when I need it, so got that covered. Also now that I thought about it, I do use Dropbox, but that's mainly for pictures and such. Will have to start giving some serious thought on securing at least the most important data to the cloud with solution.
- Jul 1, 2017
- 1,396
Download a backup program like AOMEI Backupper or Macrium Reflect. Windows Backup is unreliable unfortunately. Backup will help you restore to whatever you want in case something breaks or malware causes too much damage.
So either you have issues or i'm extremely lucky, I used it since years, did hundreds of restores, it never failed me.
Sure it is slow but compatibility overweight it.
- Jul 1, 2017
- 1,396
You are very lucky. Restore usually works but I run into issues with backing up especially scheduled backups. In my experience unless the computer is turned on and you are actively using it, it won't run the scheduled task and for some reason using VSS for backup is not playing along with my setup it just slows my PC down until it freezes completely :/
Maybe why...
I don't schedule Windows' backups. I do a new full backup everytime, previously deleting manually the old one.
- Dec 5, 2018
- 12
Alright, so made some changes today according to suggestions received on this thread.
-ConfigureDefender for OS hardening
-LastPass for password protection
-VoodooShield for internet security
-Changed account type from admin to standard user
Will probably run with this for now, maybe consider ditching WD for some other AV in the future.
And once again, many thanks to everyone for your helpful suggestions!
EDIT 13.12.:
-EEK for Malware scan/removal
-ConfigureDefender for OS hardening
-LastPass for password protection
-VoodooShield for internet security
-Changed account type from admin to standard user
Will probably run with this for now, maybe consider ditching WD for some other AV in the future.
And once again, many thanks to everyone for your helpful suggestions!
EDIT 13.12.:
-EEK for Malware scan/removal
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Add ZAM Free or EEK or NPE.
WD is enough on Windows 10.
VoodooShield is a really good software, don't remove WD if you like it. It has improved a lot with the latest versions and it is very light
- Dec 5, 2018
- 12
Yeah, WD has improved a lot, but since I have no "special relationship" with it, thought about giving other AV's a shot at some point, just to see if there's one I like.VoodooShield is a really good software, don't remove WD if you like it. It has improved a lot with the latest versions and it is very light
Have to see about that though.
So I suggest you Kaspersky Free with KSN enabled or Avast Free.
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