Diary of a Network Geek

Is it even possible?

Well, frankly, I don’t know that there really is such a thing as computer security at all any more in these days of ubiquitous network access. I mean, it used to be that you could install a simple anti-virus program and sit behind a firewall and be fairly safe, but not any more. Now, with botnets and phishing scams and junk e-mail, well, frankly, you just can’t get away from it any more. In fact, now, the “hackers” are becoming so dumbed down that they’re using Do-It-Yourself “kits” that build some of the attacks for them! Just the other day, I read an article on ZDNet about something floating around the shadowier corners of the Internet that the nasties are calling a “DIY Phishing Kit“. So, now, it’s not bad enough that these scum-sucking bottom-feeders are out there trying to rip me off from the safety of their own home, or country, but now they’re making it even easier for no-talent, mouth-breathing, inbred miscreants to scam people out of their hard-earned cash! (Of course, long-time readers will know that I’ve made things harder for at least one phisher.) Man, that pisses me off!

There are so many people out there both creating these hazards to our digital lives and fighting them, that someone has suggested a uniform naming convention for all the security vendors to use when they refer to this “malware“. That’s all well and good, but all I really care about is keeping my systems secure. And, I’m sure you all worry about that, too. The problem is, in this tight economy, not many of us have much money to fight against these invisible baddies, not even me. Don’t let the advertising fool you, what I take in from the ads on this site aren’t even enough to pay for it, much less anything else. So, what’s a poor computer geek to do? Use free software, naturally.

PC Magazine has an article reviewing their “Top Five” picks for free security software. Personally, I can recommend AVG and Spybot Search and Destroy, even though they say Spybot is out of date. Also, I’ll add in Lavasoft’s AdAware, which is also free and quite good. I generally use both Spybot and AdAware to get rid of spyware. What one misses, the other catches. And, AVG has been around for quite a long time. They’re amazingly good, especially for free software.
Naturally, there are no guaranties when you use free software, but, then again, most of the paid software has outs in their EULA (end user license agreement), too, so why pay all that money? Keep in mind, these are free for personal use only. So, home businesses should technically use the paid software. We’ve all got to do our part to fight against these dirty spammers, scammers and thieves. The best place to start is a clean system. If you don’t have an antivirus program installed, get one. Fast.

Advice from your Uncle Jim:
"All our dreams can come true - if we have the courage to pursue them."
   --Walt Disney