With all the insecurity in IE browser at the moment, a new step in security might help: running the browser in a virtual machine. Especially when some infections demand re-installing to get back from a compromised system.
Increasingly, one should be exploring the idea of browsing via virtual machine technology. If the Virtual Machine gets spyware or other malware, you just shut it down and start over again. After all, Microsoft experts have said that the ultimate solution for machines with spyware or a rootkit is a rebuild, anyway. This type of solution is feasible in an enterprise environment as well, but faces the same sort of inertia of switching the browser. But, if you are going to make the effort to break the IE habit, this may be the way to go. Putting your users ‘in a box’ might cause some issues, but then security never is convenient
People stay on the trodden paths, because they are “sheople”. And convention, how about that? A printers’ firm is full of Macs, an office full of Windhozes. And to go and switch to Linux is not for the avarage user to impliment. Think it is just a bridge too far for many for the mo, and where the pivoting point lies, is hard to say. Even steering away from the “as default” status is hard for some to achieve
Well things can be made more secure, but it needs a change of attitude, some education, and the will of some parties to change the situation for the better.
If I can have a Windows 98SE system hanging onto the Net for three years without even a minor tracking cookie, it is a question of developing the right attitudes. Avast and the avast webforum learned me to do this, and I am grateful to the avast community that educated me (well I had to do the additional look-ups as well, but anyway it was an on-going process). But some fundamental things have to change to make the Internet a better place for all, and we cannot loose out against the dark side (malware).
You could use a different browser, simpler than running a virtual machine.
Recovery from a serious infection can be achieved but, first you need to have a back-up/recovery strategy by using backup image software take a weekly image of your disk and save it to a different partition, or second HDD, or external disk, or DVD, it only takes a few minutes to make an image of your primary disk or partition. Then if you have a problem, simply restore the last image, time taken a few minutes.
There is also another solution. I use PocketFlock on and from a mem stick, and run it on Windows XP SP2, with Clear Private Data at the end of every session, I can say that this is a lot more secure then browsing from the start menu on the local C: drive.
The only time that you interfere here is when you download or upload to another partition than the mem stick. Even if I was using Torpark for security reasons I would launch it from inside a mem stick. And when I want to save links I use the old LinkRipper program. Making incremental back-ups every Friday for instance is always a good policy to go (DVD as a grandfather-father-son system).
Ok agree, one day we fly away to the Swan mountains, and all our worries will subside. But I am not ready for that now…
Now I agree a computer must be a fun thing too, ask them to make it a fun thing again and do away with all the malware and the creators of it.
Have a nice day, Bob
Linux is great thing in my opinion, but the biggest problem it will never live long to become something as wide spread OS. Maybe that’s sad…
I just spoke to one of my friends who is Apple addict (no, not our Kyle, although I believe they all think pretty much the same) and he told me that Linusx is nothing but a joke created by bunch of Hippies, lol. I peed my pants on that one, lol…
No really, OSX is something that needs to come to PCs as a legal installation, just like XP or Vista or any other OS out there. In my books, Vista is still something that gives me so much joy to work with, and I believe after it goes gold, many people will realize how good it really is.
Interesting statement since more people use Linux than OS X … Not to mention Linux distro’s are heavily used for servers(some goverments here in EU are completely switching to Linux also) … No no Linux isn’t going anywhere Sasha trust me.
The reality of my work envorinment is I must use Windows, I must allow ActiveX, I must have Java enabled, must use IE5 or higher for two critical web sites to function at all and for a couple others to function fully. I cannot operate in a virtual environment or all users work will be lost at the end of the day.
Those boxes are far more critical, and far less secure, than anything I have at home and there’s no way for me to change that reality.
I know that Miha, and I am sure he knows that very well, but I guess all he wanted to say is, OSX is well recognized OS and somehow became “legal” and accepted OS, real competitor to the Windows. Software support for Linux will never be even close to the support provided for Windows platforms or OSX platforms. That’s the main reason why not so many people consider complete switch to Linux (from Windows).
VMWare is better than Microsoft Virtual PC and both are freeware now.
Not that much emotion ;D
I think that dropping the rights when you’re doing ‘dangerous’ things could be another solution.
I have Kubuntu in a local installation (dual boot) and have already tried it on a VMWare virtual environment.
Quite good indeed 8)
Sasha, maybe it’s just enough that we ourselves are happy with using it and not all the world ;D
Well, indeed, if an OS is not popular, less applications, less features…
Like Culpeper says: Linux, talking about security, is a boring system: you have to do very little to be happy! 8)
This is not true… I mean, VMWare or MS Virtual PC works like a ‘full’ operational system, not only a live CD. You can save, upgrade, install, do whatever you need or want…
But I agree that we can’t go further so much in security… we want to live 8)
