Living with Microsoft Windows 7 for the next several years

[Welly Wu]

Hold on. I used to be a Help Desk and Support Technician at NJIT. My experience was consistent: our professors, staff, and students were given McAfee anti-virus for free and it kept most of the bad stuff out of their computers most of the time. We only had to take a look at computers that did not have it installed or any other anti-malware software products either. My manager has Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware and Super Anti-Spyware Professional and he had a forensics lab with multiple workstations in his office. When we had a user with a unknown problem, we always had them come into the lab and we performed a bunch of tests starting off with scans for viruses and malware. These customers usually had a laundry list of infections of which some had to perform a system recovery back to the factory default configuration after we backed up their user data. This was my former job. I am being honest and truthful. My work experience taught me to upgrade to Microsoft Windows 7 64 bit Ultimate Edition and to purchase subscriptions to these anti-malware software products.

Yesterday, Norton 360 found 5 infections and cleaned them. Malwarebytes did not find anything. Super Anti-Spyware found 7 threats and it cleaned them. This was for my Microsoft Windows 7 64 bit Ultimate Edition Service Pack 1 guest virtual machine.

On Ubuntu 12.04 64 bit Long Term Support, BitDefender for Unices free found one infection in my encrypted /home folder and it deleted the file yesterday.

I don't visit unknown websites and I don't download and execute unknown software or files. I check every single piece of software that I am about to download, install, and execute especially if I am about to make a purchase to ensure compatibility and safety. I do not pirate anything anymore. I stopped that bad habit. I deleted all of my music, movies, and adult pictures weeks ago. I kept my digital magazines and e-books including Zinio magazines and Amazon Kindle books.

My point is that low risk behavior is not synonymous with a guarantee with total safety, privacy, and security.

I am going to investigate BitDefender Total Security 2013 more closely. It seems to offer new features and capabilities that Symantec Norton 360 version 6 lacks such as USB protection, a hardened Mozilla Firefox web browser to conduct online financial transactions such as online banking and shopping, and anti-theft features for stolen or lost laptops and netbooks including remote secure wipes of user data, remote lock down, and pinpointing geo-location of lost or stolen laptops. There are other features too.

I am willing to make the switch only after I have concluded my research and investigation. I know that Symantec Norton products engender a lot of harsh criticism among security professionals especially for their Norton Utilities, Ghost, and Anti-Virus products in the past. So far, I am satisfied with Norton 360 version 6, but I do realize that there are better alternatives.

If there are other tips and tricks to maintaining Windows 7 that I might have missed, then please let me know.

[forrestcupp]

Either you're the most unlucky person I've ever heard of, you're lying about your internet habits, or your antivirus software is throwing false positives, which happens a lot. There are a lot of apps that are known to be safe that some antivirus software detects as malware.

And for me, when I say Norton and McAfee suck, I'm not talking about their ability to stop malware, but how much they slow down your computer.

[KiwiNZ]

The biggest risk to any system is the ten digits that touch the keyboard irrespective of qualifications and or experience. The best defence if one is overly worried is the box in which the device was packed.

[Welly Wu]

I do not want to get banned for disagreeing with you and I generally do agree with you, but you are not advancing this discussion with your input. That is my honest and truthful opinion. I hope that you do not take this the wrong way as I truly do not mean to offend you.

I read a lot of reviews about BitDefender Total Security 2013. It was released on June 26th, 2012. There are a couple of innovative new security features that set it apart from the competition and the overall performance is nearly negligible on a modern PC that meets the recommended hardware specifications. This is one of the few software security suites with built in file encryption and its own web browser that employs virtualization and sandbox together along with a virtual keyboard to defeat key loggers. It is also the only one of its kind with built-in anti-theft features including IP and geo-location capabilities and remote secure data wipe and lock down of the device from the BitDefender web portal. BitDefender Total Security 2013 requires that owners register an account on their website, but you can use Facebook and Twitter credentials and the OAuth protocol to grant specific permissions which is more secure than the traditional user ID and password credentials that most web sites require. There is also an autopilot mode that makes most of the mundane but important decisions for you automatically. The parental controls are also quite robust. Finally, it will scan USB devices for threats and infections and it will disable the autoplay feature. It also includes traditional PC maintenance features to speed up your PCs. BitDefender Total Security 2013 also integrates with BitDefender TrafficLight and SafeGo for most popular web browsers and Facebook and Twitter accounts so you get your social media protection. There is a rescue mode that boots into a GNU/Linux environment to eradicate infections including root kits.

I am going to continue to do my research, but it looks like I have found an alternative to Symantec Norton 360 version 6.

To be honest and truthful, my Norton 360 version 6 is not working properly in my Oracle Virtualbox VM guest virtual machine. I have had to re-install it a few times and I can not launch the security suite anymore. It keeps prompting me that its firewall, anti-virus, and other features are disabled. I am getting frustrated by Norton 360 version 6. It is not working properly.

[Welly Wu]

Based on reading reviews of BitDefender Total Security 2013, it is a good endpoint security solution that has beneficial features and capabilities for enterprise users as well. It is quite innovative and it represents fresh thinking that is definitely outside of the box compared to other endpoint security solutions currently available on the market. It is expensive at $79.99 USD for three PCs, but it does represent the cutting edge.

I want to take more time to research and investigate this specific software product more closely, but it looks to be a leading contender.

I am waiting for mainstream technology journalists to review BitDefender Total Security 2013 in the near future. I hope that Laptop Magazine, PC Magazine, and PC World along with others will do a formal review and they will render their final verdict.

[KiwiNZ]

I have Windows 7 and Windows 8 running in VM Ware, the best anti viral application that I have used is Microsofts own offering, high success rate and small foot print, I add to that sensible habits and prudence.

I also use MSFT's own offering in stand alone Windows installs.

[sffvba[e0rt]

Thread moved to Other OS/Distro Talk.

... seeing as this has become nothing more than a thread about security (or lack there off) for Windows.


404

[Welly Wu]

I made the switch to BitDefender Total Security 2013 today. BitDefender permits Facebook users to download and install BitDefender Total Security 2013 on their PCs and they can evaluate it for free for up to 90 days. I uninstalled Symantec Norton 360 version 6, rebooted my guest virtual machine, and I installed BitDefender Total Security 2013 today. My guest virtual machine is noticeably faster. The BitDefender Vulnerability Scanner found that I was missing a critical update for Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Redistribute Service Pack 1 and I decided to let it download and install the update. I rebooted my guest virtual machine to let the changes take into effect. I performed another vulnerability scan and it came up clean. I also performed a quick anti-virus scan and it came up clean. My Microsoft Windows 7 64 bit Ultimate Edition Service Pack 1 guest virtual machine is faster and it is more responsive now. So far, so good. I will continue to evaluate BitDefender Total Security 2013 for the next couple of weeks to see how it performs. If everything is good by the third Wednesday in August 2012, then I will purchase it for $79.99 USD. I plan to share the product key and the one year license with my family and friend if they are interested in making the switch.

Symantec Norton 360 version 6 was pretty light weight in terms of its footprint, but BitDefender Total Security 2013 is a featherweight and it is much faster when it comes to scanning for vulnerabilities and doing its anti-virus checks. BitDefender Total Security 2013 earned the highest rating according to AV-Test.org and it can clean up to 90 percent of malware infections and threats.

[Shadius]

Wow! That's a lot of security software! Is all that really necessary? In no way am I trying to offend you, but why do you invest so much in security software? If I may ask. The only thing I've ever had on my Windows XP Home Edition with Service Pack 3 is the avast! Free Antivirus version 7, Windows Firewall, Spybot: Search & Destroy, and CCleaner. I've never had a virus on my Windows XP so I'm very curious about why you choose to have so many security programs?

[Welly Wu]

In late 2007, I was directly targeted and attacked. My Hewlett Packard desktop PC was running Microsoft Windows XP Professional Service Pack 3 and I used Comodo free security suite. As a result, my Ethernet NIC card was destroyed which meant that I could not access the Internet. The US government launched an investigation into me and they monitored my communications at that time. I am being honest and truthful.

Since then, I gained a lot of IT certifications that taught me how to protect my PCs, hardware, software, and especially my data. It is called defense in depth and it is based on multiple layers of security.

Today, the US government has concluded their investigation and they are no longer monitoring me. No one else is targeting me.

All software has flaws. This is why updates are released. Investing in hardware and software security technologies and devices has protected my identity, devices, and my data from intrusions. It is going to be extremely time consuming and expensive to target me and to conduct an attack without my knowledge or intervention to stop or prevent such attacks. It is all about buying myself more time to react appropriately.

Ubuntu can be considered a security focused operating system. It has a very low number of users worldwide and it has a low attack surface. I have read the security stickies and I have followed most of the recommendations and guidelines. A hardened Ubuntu is as secure as FreeBSD or En Garde GNU/Linux.

It is Microsoft Windows and other Microsoft software products that continue to be the prime target for attackers to target worldwide. Thus, it is prudent to purchase and use additional hardware and software security products and services. Microsoft Corporation has done an admirable job to make future versions of Windows safer and more secure than previous versions, but the brand and the product itself is still the most popular target of choice worldwide. The Trustworthy Computing initiative has paid off dividends and it shall continue to do so in the future.

Finally, I do plan to upgrade to Microsoft Windows 8 Pro 64 bit with the free Media Center Add-On Pack in late October 2012. Windows 8 incorporates new security features such as the Secure Boot feature for PCs with UEFI and Microsoft has added features and capabilities to Windows Defender and Security Essentials and the firewall. Microsoft Windows Internet Explorer 10 will be safer and more secure to surf the Internet. The Smart Screen filter will be built into Windows 8 and it will screen downloads for security risks and threats and it will be compatible with all of the major web browsers instead of just Microsoft Windows Internet Explorer 9. There will also be enhanced built-in privacy features in Microsoft Windows Internet Explorer 10 to stop persistent tracking and targeted spyware and malware attacks against users. The reset and restore features will be brand new and they will allow users to roll back Windows 8 to the factory default configuration while preserving their user data or they can elect to get rid of everything and start over from scratch. Finally, Windows 8 will feature much faster cold boots, restarts, and shut downs especially for users with current generation PC hardware such as Intel 3rd Generation "Ivy Bridge" CPUs and SATA-III 6 GB/s Solid State Drives.

I know that Montclair State University has no official plans to offer help and support for Windows 8 users, but it behooves me to upgrade to Microsoft Windows 8 Pro 64 bit just for the new security features alone.