Kaspersky Internet Security 2010

Kaspersky has been a top rated Anti Malware product for many years now. The current version of Kaspersky Internet Security has done very well in independent tests, receiving the Advanced plus designation from AV Comparatives.

http://www.av-comparatives.org/comparativesreviews/main-tests

http://www.av-comparatives.org/images/stories/test/ondret/avc_report26.pdf

http://www.av-comparatives.org/images/stories/test/ondret/avc_report25.pdf

The interface is very clean and easy to use in its default setup. Advanced users will love the ability to tweak and micro manage settings to their heart’s content. I have used KIS 2010 for the past 2 weeks in Windows XP and Windows 7 without any issues. The new ability to only scan files that have changed, greatly decreases both the quick and full scan times. My initial full scan took 109 Minutes, the next full scan only took 23 Minutes. The quick scan times went from minutes to seconds. The parental control software seemed to work well but did include a few false positives. The ability to right click Internet Explorer or any other shortcut and then run in “Safe Run” mode is another very nice new feature. You get a green halo around the Safe Running application and it’s sandboxed from the rest of the OS during its Safe Run. Check out the link below for more details.

http://support.kasperskyamericas.com/knowledge-base-article/2113

Overall this is a vey good product that should be included on any short list of great Anti- Malware products.

Amazon has a good price right now for the 3 PC 1 year version.

Windows releases updates every month on Patch Tuesday which is the 2nd Tuesday of the month. We always post a complete list of the current updates and link to other sites with Patch Tuesday info.

Rogue Antispyware at http://rogueantispyware.blogspot.com/ is an excellent source for info about the latest Rogue applications.

The main thing to keep in mind about these new breed of Rogue AV programs is there ability to download more viruses. I have found Trojan Down-loaders on all the Rogue infected PCs that have come in lately. The best thing to do after infection is to disconnect from the network immediately and use another PC to download  virus removal tools.  The longer your infected PC stays running and connected to the network, the worse the infection will become.

The following steps will help prevent infection.

Make sure you do all your updates, both Windows and Third Party updates.

Run a current updated Anti Virus/Anti Spy-ware application like Sunbelt Vipre

Use a browser like Firefox instead of  Microsoft Internet Explorer. I only use Internet Explorer to access sites that still require it.

If you get infected, unplug the network cable immediately and use another PC to download your removal tools. Keep in mind that if you get in over your head, you should call your local computer repair specialist . Sometimes going it alone and trying to repair your PC can actually make it harder for the repair shop to fix the problem later.

So before you head on over to your favorite website, do your updates.

Don’t be an update slacker… oh yeah and have a great day

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Use the following link to get an extra 250MB of storage when you sign up for Dropbox. https://www.getdropbox.com/referrals/NTEyODQxMjE5

The ESET Blog had this post

http://www.eset.com/threat-center/blog/2009/09/30/microsoft-security-essential

Symantec post from Sept 29th read:  Microsoft Security Essentials: “Reruns” Aren’t Just for TV Anymore

http://bit.ly/uCQb6

Stress Testing Microsoft’s Free Anti-virus Offering from the Washington Post Security Fix

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/securityfix/2009/09/stress_testing_microsofts_free.html

Thoughts on MSE from the Sunbelt blog

http://sunbeltblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/thoughts-on-mse.html

OK so my 2 cents…I personally will not recommend Microsoft Security Essentials  to my clients. As long as other companies continue to provide quality free alternatives to Microsoft products I will continue to recommend them. Putting all your eggs in the “Microsoft security” basket might just end up costing you far more than you thought.

There are currently many high quality free applications available online from Avira, Comodo, AVG  and Panda.

As always, don’t forget to do your updates and have a nice day

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The Conficker Working Group at http://www.confickerworkinggroup.org have created the Conficker Eye Chart. I found this to be a simple yet useful tool to test for the Conficker worm.

Click the following link to see the clever Conficker Eye Chart.

http://www.confickerworkinggroup.org/infection_test/cfeyechart.html

http://www.foundstone.com/us/resources/proddesc/confickerdetectiontool.htm Conficker Detection Tool 1.0.8

http://www.sunbeltsecurity.com/DownLoads.aspx Download the Sunbelt Conficker/Downadup Removal Tool

http://download.eset.com/special/EConfickerRemover.exe ESET conficker removal tool

http://www.bdtools.net/how-to-remove-downadup.php Remove Downadup (aka Conficker or Kido)

http://vil.nai.com/vil/stinger/default.aspx Stinger Conficker removal tool

http://www.sophos.com/products/free-tools/conficker-removal-tool.html Sophos Conficker clean-up tools

http://www.shadowserver.org/wiki/pmwiki.php/Stats/Conficker#toc5 ShadowServer Conficker Remediation and Stats

Wikipedia defines a computer worm as…A self-replicating computer program. It uses a network to send copies of itself to other nodes (computers on the network) and it may do so without any user intervention. Unlike a virus, it does not need to attach itself to an existing program. Worms almost always cause at least some harm to the network, if only by consuming bandwidth, whereas viruses almost always corrupt or modify files on a targeted computer.

OK so is the world going to end on April 1st? Probably not. Is someone in your office going to do something really stupid and say April fools? Probably. Is the entire Internet going to crash and then turn your laptop into a toaster or turn your Mac into a PC? Probably not. Should you actually care about this new nasty worm? Well…if you have not run your Windows updates and you do not have a currently updated Antivirus program running then yes you need to worry.

There are a few very simple things that you can do that will actually keep your computer clean and safe. Drumroll please…and the 5 PC safety steps to not get infected are….

1.Do your Windows updates. Do not ignore the Windows updates. Take the time off your busy schedule to actually click the annoying yellow shield at the bottom right side of your screen and install the current set of updates. You will find it takes far less time to keep your system updated than it takes to recover your data that has been destroyed by a virus.

2. Update Adobe Flash and Adobe Reader frequently from the Adobe site and not from some web-page that says your Flash player is outdated. Always go to the official website to get the most current version of Flash and frequently check Acrobat for updates by using the update menu in Acrobat.

3. Keep your Internet Security Software updated. If your Personal Computer AV software is expired then uninstall it and install the freely available  Avira Antivirus instead. If your office PC has expired Anti-virus software you really need to get an updated license ASAP. My current favorite Anti-virus is Vipre from Sunbelt http://rootaid.com/2009/03/19/vipre-antivirus-takes-a-bite-out-of-malware/

4. Use Firefox as your main browser instead of Internet Explorer. Only use Internet Explorer on sites that require Internet Explorer.

5. Do not open links or attachments in email. Do not plug your flash drive in someone else’s computer or let them plug their flash drive into your computer. Flash drives have become the modern floppy disk which was the original way of spreading viruses back in the day. http://www.eset.eu/press-threatsense-report-february-2009

F-Secure has an excellent Q and A on Conficker at the following link.  http://tinyurl.com/cdlqlp

Using a modern updated AntiMalware product will prevent infection from Conficker and other similar malware. I recommend Vipre Antivirus for home or small-business use. http://rootaid.com/2009/03/19/vipre-antivirus-takes-a-bite-out-of-malware/

So before the clock rolls to 12:00 AM on the April 1st  you have some homework to do. Install your windows updates and update Adobe Flash and Adobe Acrobat from the Adobe website http://www.adobe.com/. Make sure you have an updated AntiVirus application running on your computer.

So now it’s time to go and do your homework. Don’t be an update slacker…go already. Update, this means you. Why are you still here.

Have a good day and come back soon for more rootaid.com ramblings

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