I installed VirtualBox...do i need virus protection for windows?

[hopelessone]

Hi,

im installing windows in VirtualBox...

do i need to install anti virus? for the virtual windows?

thanks

[gfg]

It wouldn't hurt, but if you download all the updates, it really isn't necessary. If you stay away from dangerous websites, and don't download suspicous stuff, you should be okay. And if you happen to get a virus, it will only hurt your virtual windows install, and not your Ubuntu system. I myself have been running windows without anti-virus and so far I've had no problems at all.

[anaconda]

yes you do. Windows in a virtual box is just as vulnerable as a "real" windows. Actually virtual windows machines are often used for testing windows viruses..

Unless you do the same than I.. my virtual windows doesn't have a network connection (by default)! So it is pretty safe.

Another solution is to use restore points, so that even if you get a virus you can restore your virtual machine to a previous state.. preferably a virus free state.

[bvanaerde]

For example: if a keylogger gets installed on your "virtual Windows installation", it's still possible that your passwords and other protected data will be revealed.
So you can't just think you're safe when using VirtualBox...

[LarryJ2]

I've been listening to the podcast Security Now with Steve Gibson. Based on that, it seems to me that you would want to do a snap shot of your updated WinXP SP2+ with Anti Spam and Anti Virus programs installed. Get this snapshot before you troll the internet and by all means install firefox with the NoScript extension so it's included in your snapshot.

Then each time you fire up WinXP in your virtual machine using VirtualBox, start from the "virgin" snapshot. That should give you an uncontaminated machine for a little while. :-}

[nowshining]

it depends, if u just want to have fun and don't input any personal info in thru the virtualbox, then no, if other then yes.

[viking777]

Do you really need to connect to the internet with windows?

I never let windows connect to the internet nowadays I just do everything online in Linux. If I am ever unfortunate enough to have to boot windows for real I unplug the phone line from the router beforehand and my virtualbox copy is configured to not have internet access.

You probably have a good reason for wanting to do this, but I would make absolutely sure that whatever it is cant be done with Linux first. Connecting to the internet with Windows is too dangerous without a battery of anti-this,that and everything else tools even in a virtual machine.

[rickycodie]

i don't have any anti virus and haven't had any problems, but i don't use the internet except for gspace.

[bodhi.zazen]

Unless you disable internet access to the virtual machine, which is what I would advise, you need to take the same precautions with virtual machines as you would with physical machines.

[derby007]

Myself & a co-worker had an argument/discussion about how SAFE are these virtual OS's. He was convinced that the host could get infected (via MEMORY, ie. both OS's are using same physical memory) by a virus thru the guest OS.
Is this possible, do ye think ?