WE NEED TO GET RID OF SPYWARE FOR EVER

I am sick of it.

Published on May 1, 2005 By dcihon In Personal Computing

I am sick of spyware infecting computers. It seems all I do these days is clean spyware from computers to get them working. Education of the user community is one step to help but it is not enough. I don't like having to set up a computer with Antivirus, Spam filter, software firewall, hardware firewall , oh and don't let me forget the Windows Update. It is just rediculous that all this has to be done just to insure safe computing. It would be like before you go outside you have to put yourself into a bubble just to protect yourself from being attacked from things you cannot see.

Comments (Page 2)

JiffyPopstar

on May 02, 2005

*cough* buy a mac or run linux *cough*

That seriously will take care of most of your security issues right there. In the last couple of months I've been seeing a good deal of my friends doing just that. Even I'm trying to learn Linux, and it is much easier than I thought it would be (I am an old MS-Dos hacker though). Installing a dual-boot was quite easy too thanks to the vast amounts of support doccumentation that's out there (not willing to give up my games I found this to be a great option, giving me the best of both worlds).

Number one reason I'm trying to migrate to Linux as much as possible: tired of the weekly updates for my firewall (ZoneAlarm is getting to be a pain, and it's too easy to disable anyways) and anti-virus (yes, I realise this will never really go away unless I buy a Mac), and sick to death of the constant need to be on top of the anti-spyware updates (I don't believe in auto-updates on principle, seems like a silly thing to do to me, to turn your security over to an automatic process that could be easily hijacked), and don't eveb let get me started on the constant vigilance required when it comes to Windows updates! Someone already mentioned the cpu/memory load required for all this security, and I agree it's really too much.

I'd reccomend looking at Mandriva (ex-Mandrake), SuSe, or Ubuntu linux if you're interested, good distros. Ubuntu will even mail you CDs for free, which is nice if you're on limited bandwidth ([url]http://www.ubuntulinux.org/[/url]).

JoeKnowledge: A good guide on the functional differences between software and hardware firewalls can be found here: [url]http://www.firewallguide.com/[/url]

craeonics

on May 02, 2005

Spammers and spyware 'promoters/users' should be chemically castrated.

But Jafo, that would mean the end of all entrepreneurs!

craeonics installed some spyware on purpose the other day, so he could a) see what it did; and

feel less left out for he never gets "infected"

And quite an interesting experiment it was. Stuff multiplied like crazy.

roadrunnerm

on May 02, 2005

I hate how I have to run so many programs a day to keep my comp running smoothly. In the end, it gets slow and choppy anyways. So, my question is, would you rather run a computer that is slow but virus/spyware/etc. free, or run a computer that had virus's/spyware/etc. and is fast for a little while and then slows down? It takes to much effort to find the perfect balance, so if anyone knows it, let me know.

Currently Using- SpySweeper, Spybot Search & Destroy, Windows, Ad-Aware. My comp is running faster now since I got rid of Norton, and I havn't had anything recently, but any major attacts will put me out of business.

Jafo

on May 02, 2005

But Jafo, that would mean the end of all entrepreneurs!

Like we're gonna miss them....

tehStealth

on May 02, 2005

They've gotten ridden of spyware and all that stuff, its as simple as getting Linux or a Mac

starkers

on May 02, 2005

"Bring back capital punishment in scools"? Hey Jafo, didn't know they ever had the rope/chair in schools, LoL But your other solution is an interesting concept. I recently had trouble with browser hijackers and a trojan attack myself, and quite frankly, the viruses who put this stuff out there should definitely lose something precious to them.

End user awareness is essential, but with so many of these obnoxious parasites being developed so frequently, surely an education on the issue would be a full-time course, taking far more time than most could afford. I have to agree with the idea of boycotting all businesses who trade in this manner - send 'em the clear message we do not approve in the stongest of terms.

As for government controls, well all too often they become a necessary evil, but instead of just fining these parasites so they recoup their losses from the consumer, their ability to trade should be removed or severely restricted, in addition to huge financial penalties. Maybe boomerang software could be developed to sling it all back at them

Jafo

on May 02, 2005

"Bring back capital punishment in scools"?

Jafo was being obtuse....but it'd be 'better' than corporal...

Yarlen

on May 02, 2005

Chime in again... I find it laughable that AOL is running ads on TV promoting their "safe" network and are what I term the most computer intrusive internet firm that I deal with.

These commercials are at best misleading. AOL is telling people that if they don't specifically use AOL, they'll be open to all sorts of spam, viruses, spyware, etc. That is a load of bull. Any PC user can avoid this stuff with common sense use of their software or free 3rd party programs (for the spam).

Essencay

on May 02, 2005

They've gotten ridden of spyware and all that stuff, its as simple as getting Linux or a Mac

If everybody ran Linux or Mac, then all the spyware crap would be written for Linux and Mac

Off-Topic...
Long before all this stuff about violence in American schools started to emerge, I went to a middle school in El Paso, Texas in the 70's where they had bars on the windows and armed security walking the halls....who knows they may very well have had capital punishment there. Either that or my mother was sending me off to a juvenile detention center everyday

Double Zero

on May 02, 2005

If everybody ran Linux or Mac, then all the spyware crap would be written for Linux and Mac

**Exactly**

And in reality..who would really want to..*YuK...LoL

Weaksid

on May 02, 2005

You know, I haven't had a problem with spyware for a while now. I might get one here and there. I've gone months without scanning and when I do scan sometimes I find one or none.

I run all the time a anti-virus, Firewall, and Peer Gaurdian.

Peer Gaurdian is a awesome program, it blocks soo much crap from the net that could hurt your computer. It's located here -> http://methlabs.org/

Jafo

on May 02, 2005

'Guardian' .... Spell checker

Weaksid

on May 02, 2005

Oops

starkers

on May 02, 2005

Just as well they didn't have corporal punishment in schools when I was a lad - I'd NEVER have made into adulthood otherwise. Tis a sad thing when a school environment has bars and security guards to keep the peace, etc. When I was going to school, guns and true violence were never heard of, just rotten egg gas bombs and the occasional "golden flush" (toilet dunking) for a few non-conformists. Sometimes we might even sneak in a smoke behind the bike sheds, but what's the world coming to when kids have access to firearms and take them into schools - sad, sad sad!

However, this does not address the issue of spyware/malware. Like Weaksid, I rarely had a problem with it and hardly ever had to run programs to clean my computer, but I recently had an attack, most likely via an executable file to install a (bundled) theme to port, and now I scan daily in my vigilance to protect my investment. It seems every entreprenuer and his dog is trying to infiltrate our lives one way or another for a fast buck, so what's to say that the anti-spyware progammers aren't also dabbling on the other side of the fence to create employment for themseves

Weaksid

on May 03, 2005

How do you think alot of the viruses are created

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