Start from scratch again

donny-gal

Hi guys

Well my desktop fell over and would not play at all, under warranty so returned it and it was the hard disk I had suspected for a while (yes I was backed up) :A;) so I am starting again from a clean build. What security software (freebie of course) do you recommend loading. Vista Home Premium PC, running via a router.

Thanks
DG

aliEnRIK

Avira Anti Virus (OR AVAST if you must have email scanning)
Vista firewall is fine but I personally use PC TOOLS firewall

Use Malwarebytes and Superantispyware as secondary scanners

Use Spybots IMMUNISE feature to block a lot of nasties at the source

Use FIREFOX with the NOSCRIPT plugin for the net ~

Download FIREFOX
http://www.mozilla-europe.org/en/firefox/

NOSCRIPT
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/722


NOSCRIPT works by blocking ALL website scripts (Which is how dodgy websites infect your computer ~ the easiest way to catch a virus after downloading). So you need to UNLOCK all websites you use for them to work properly (Like this one for example)
It also prevents 'page hijacking' (clicking to goto a BANK page for example and being redirected to a BOGUS page which would give scammers your login details!)
I personally set it so that it DOESNT show messages about blocked scripts. Then all you need to do is use common sense. Think to yourself 'does the site work ok'? If so it doesnt need touching. But if you wanted to watch a video on youtube say, youd need to unlock parts of it. Look bottom right, If theres ANY red on the 'S' symbol, then something is being blocked.

(You will also need the other addons like FLASH etc)
http://www.google.com/tools/firefox/toolbar/FT5/intl/en-GB/index.html
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/browse/type:7

esuhl

Well... I was going to give you a list, but aliEnRIK has listed the ones I was going to recommend! Oh, hang on - there's one more program not on his list: SpywareBlaster. It just adds a list of domains with malicous content to your IE/Firefox settings and hosts file.

sillygoose

Once you have got it all reinstalled, nice clean system, installed all your regular and favorite software like MS office etc. Installed & updated all your protection, got the desktop how you like it, all your drivers installed and updated, wallpaper changed, all the little things like mouse speed, the default document foldersin Word and Excel and so on and so on.........

I would take a recovery image. I use a free version of Macrium Reflect which is a very effective package. Basically it can make a compressed image of your entire C drive (Windows & all software/data) at that time and store it in one big file. You can keep that archive on a USB external drive. You then make a recovery boot CD disk which will load that image onto your drive. (It has a basic USB driver built in to access the external drive, or you can make a DVD etc)

So should you have a fatal virus infection or a hard drive failure you can in 20 minutes restore hours of setting up and get your basic system back as it was. OK things will have changed since then but all the basics will be there.

Percy1983

I will add that AVAST has spyware scanning in its free version where AVIRA doesn't, so I believe.

I use AVAST myself due to preference, I just leave it at that with the microsoft adware thing in vista and just don't do anything silly.

To me things like the no script add-on are the best for security but also annoying to use so I leave them alone.

Like all things, more safety involves more restrictions. I have found a level I am happy with.

aliEnRIK

Avira DOES have spyware scanning. They changed it in the last version

Noscript example ~

I use it and it wouldnt let me on a site id ordered an amplifier from
I (stupidly) used internet explorer and was instantly attacked by a virus (The site had been hacked)
So without noscript had my av program not recognised the attack id have been infected

Percy1983

aliEnRIK wrote: »

Avira DOES have spyware scanning. They changed it in the last version

Noscript example ~

I use it and it wouldnt let me on a site id ordered an amplifier from
I (stupidly) used internet explorer and was instantly attacked by a virus (The site had been hacked)
So without noscript had my av program not recognised the attack id have been infected

One less thing to worry about then, it was always there just not in the free version last time I looked. My bad.

As mentioned more methods of protection is never a bad thing I personnally don't like them when they start to get intrusive and have to start authorising things, I get enough of that from Vista UAC :rotfl:

Is ad-aware still any good, I remember using that a good while ago.

aliEnRIK

Percy1983 wrote: »

Is ad-aware still any good, I remember using that a good while ago.

I find it next to useless these days. Some people swear by it as it finds things others dont. What they DONT realise is most of them are 'false positives'