Firefox - the most reliable version? Plus a question re PC protection

MBN

Hi all

I'm a no-no techie, absolutely useless:o, and I've learnt a lot from you guys. Thanks for your very useful posts!:beer:

I've got two questions - your help is greatly appreciated.:)

1) I've recently read on another forum (where I don't post) about possible security issues affecting Firefox. People over there were saying that it's important to have the 'right' version of Firefox, otherwise your PC may be exposed to those security issues. I've checked the version we have on our computer, and it doesn't resemble the 'right' versions those people were talking about at all. Our version is 1.0.7. Is this a reliable version, or do we need to download another one?

2) It seems that our PC has recently come under trojans' attack - AVG has spotted (and destroyed) two different trojans in the last two days.:( I really don't know why this happens (could this be because hubby plays online games?). Following your advice, we currently run AVG, Spybot, Ad Aware and Zone Alarm on our PC (all free versions). Do we need to install anything else? And how come Zone Alarm hasn't prevented the trojans from getting on our PC?

Sorry for all these (more than two ) questions. Like I said, I am awful with computers - but willing to learn.;)

Thank you:)

shopbot

The reason that ZoneAlarm hasn't prevented the Trojans getting onto your PC is that it isn't designed to do that. It is a firewall and it's job is to prevent unauthorised communications between your PC and the internet.

I use Windows Defender to prevent Trojans as it montors in realtime what's happening as I browse the internet. It's free and available from the Microsoft website. http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spyware/software/default.mspx

Be very careful about what you download even if it appears harmless. 'Funny' e-mail attachments from friends can contain nasties as can websites offering free ringtones and screensavers.

I also do daily scans with AVG, and Ewido. I also use Adaware and Spybot.

Keep your Firefox updated to the latest version. You can check your version by clicking Help then About Mozilla Firefox.
http://www.mozilla.com/

orainsear

Download and install the latest stable version of Firefox 1.5 (1.5.0.6) from here:

http://www.mozilla.com/products/download.html?product=firefox-1.5.0.6&os=win〈=en-US


Firefox 2.0 is currently in the beta testing stage and I think that the final version will be released sometime in October.

Also Opera is a very good browser, and I'm actually quite impressed with Internet Explorer 7 which is also in the beta test stage (I believe upon release it can be automatically installed as an auto-update if you use Windows XP etc).

Having said all that I still prefer Firefox!

MBN

Thanks for your quick replies, and apologies for my silly question re Zone Alarm.:o

These latest virus attacks have really upset me, and now I'm more scared than ever (I've run AVG three times today - the first time when it spotted the virus, and two more times afterwards, 'just to make sure everything's fine now':eek: I am over-reacting, I know ).

I'll get hubby to download the latest version of Firefox ASAP.

shopbot

No such thing as a silly question on here!

To test how secure your PC is when surfing visit this page:
http://www.jasons-toolbox.com/BrowserSecurity/

I would also download the following extensions for Firefox:
NoScript:
https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/722/

Adblock:
https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/10/

Both will improve your Firefox security.

pchelpman

Our own anti-malware guide will help you stay clear of infections. The first 4 posts of this thread ...

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=133269

This little guide will take you through the steps of installing additional free programs to beef up your protection ...

http://www.help2go.com/Tutorials/Protect_Your_PC/Avoid_Web_Browser_Hijackers.html

Best of luck.

PCH

albertross_2

If AVG caught these trojans at the time of infection, then it is doing it's job, and you shouldn't be over worried. (Resident scanners don't stop you hitting the bad file in the first place, they just stop it doing any damage).

As always, be careful what you click on, and make sure windowsupdate is set to automatic in control panel, security center. If you have broadband with a modem, consider a router for added protection. Also consider running https://www.ccleaner.com to clean out the rubbish that get's downloaded into your internet cache.

You can also check for rootkit's with these:

http://www.sysinternals.com/Utilities/RootkitRevealer.html

http://www.f-secure.com/blacklight/try_blacklight.html

MBN

Many thanks for your replies.:)

Since my last post, we have installed the latest version of Firefox, and we have also run CCleaner. I was amazed to see how much 'crap' we had got on our PC: almost 100 mega (sp?).:eek:

wazza

shopbot wrote:

I use Windows Defender to prevent Trojans as it montors in realtime what's happening as I browse the internet. It's free and available from the Microsoft website. http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spyware/software/default.mspx

i have zonealarm, avg, spyguard, spybot, adaware,spyblaster installed. if i install the above from microsoft will it conflict with what i have already installed?

pchelpman

No..............