Re: ANTIVIRUS PROTECTION
From: Bruce Chambers (bchambers_at_nospam.cableone.net)
Date: 08/28/03
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Date: Wed, 27 Aug 2003 20:33:58 -0600
Greetings --
First of all, please unstick your CapsLock key. Posting in all
caps, as you have done, is the Usenet equivalent of shouting, and is
considered very rude. More importantly, posting in all caps makes the
post very hard to read, further reducing your chances of getting help.
I've been very happy with Symantec's Norton Internet Security,
which includes Norton AntiVirus, Norton Personal Firewall, parental
controls, privacy controls, and ad blocking. (Just the elimination of
many of the pop-up ads on the Internet make the price worth-while.)
Never had an infection or an intrusion, nor any other kind of problems
attributable to Symantec products.
List of Antivirus Software Vendors
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;49500
Does the title bar of these pop-ups read "Messenger Service?"
This particular "sales method" is strikingly similar to the
"protection" rackets offered to small businesses by organized
criminals. Yes, it's a scam; no reputable business would need to
resort to extortion. Particularly since they're trying to sell you a
type of protection that is already available to you free of charge.
This type of spam has become quite common over the past few
months, and unintentionally serves as a valid security "alert." It
demonstrates that you haven't been taking sufficient precautions while
connected to the Internet. Your data probably hasn't been compromised
by these specific advertisements, but if you're open to this exploit,
you may well be open to other threats. Install and use a decent,
properly configured firewall. (Disabling the messenger service, as
some people recommend, only hides the symptom, and does nothing to
secure your machine.) And ignoring or just "putting up with" these
messages and the problem they represent is particularly foolish.
Messenger Service of Windows
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;168893
Messenger Service Window That Contains an Internet Advertisement
Appears
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=330904
Stopping Advertisements with Messenger Service Titles
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/using/howto/communicate/stopspam.asp
Blocking Ads, Parasites, and Hijackers with a Hosts File
http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm
Oh, and be especially wary of people who advise you to do nothing
more than disable the messenger service. Disabling the messenger
service is a "head in the sand" approach to computer security.
The real problem is _not_ the messenger service pop-ups; they're
actually providing a useful service by acting as a security alert. The
true problem is the unsecured computer, and you've been
advised to merely turn off the warnings. How is this helpful?
Equivalent Scenario 1: Somewhere in a house, a small fire starts,
and sets off the smoke alarm. You, not immediately seeing any
fire/smoke, complain about the noise of the smoke detector, and are
advised to remove the smoke detector's battery and go back to sleep.
Equivalent Scenario 2: You over-exert your shoulder at work or
play, causing bursitis. After weeks of annoying and sometimes
excruciating pain whenever you try to reach over your head, you go to
a doctor and say, while demonstrating the motion, "Doc, it hurts when
I do this." The doctor, being as helpful as some of your respondents,
replies, "Well, don't do that."
I'm beginning to think that the people deliberately posting such
bad advice are hacker-wannabes who have no true interest in helping
you secure your system, but would rather give you a false sense of
security while ensuring that your computer is still open to
exploitation.
Bruce Chambers
-- Help us help you: http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on having both at once. -- RAH "SHERRI BURNETT" <burn1303@bellsouth.net> wrote in message news:03d101c36ce6$8ff398d0$a501280a@phx.gbl... > WHAT WOULD BE THE BEST ANTIVIRUS PROTECTION FOR MY > COMPUTER. COULD YOU PLEASE GIVE ME A LIST OF THE ONE'S > YOU WOULD CONSIDER TO BE THE BEST. DO YOU HAVE TO ALWAYS > PURCHASE THEM? WHEN THEY JUST POP UP ON THE SCREEN > ADVERTISING ARE THEY REALLY SAFE? HOW CAN YOU TELL? > I'M NOT VERY SURE, I'M GETTING BETTER ON MY COMPUTER BUT > I STILL HAVE SOME WAYS TO GO. > > THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND HELP > > MRS. BURNETT
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