The following is regurgitated from another thread, but ended up being general knowledge not entirely related to the original thread. Other may find it useful so here it is in its own posting with its own title so hopefully it may be searched easier in the future.
This post deals with people that have switched to true alternative browsers not JUST the Mozilla/Firefox listed in this original post:
</font><font color="blue" class="small">( If you are still getting spyware on your machine after going to firefox, then below I have listed pretty much every way that Spyware can get on your machine. If you guard against these couple of things, you should have ZERO spyware on your PC.
1) You didn't get your computer 100% clean before switching to Mozilla/Firefox. Spyware makers have gotten smart to spyware removal tools and they commonly utilize "sleeper" programs that do not get caught by the spyware removal tools. The sleeper routines nowadays are updated ***DAILY***. They go out and get a slightly modified but new copy of themselves every day. Therefore the definitions for spyware removal tools never detect the loader/sleeper routine. So in effect, as soon as you clean your machine, the next day the sleeper routing has fired up and re-downloaded all the junk to your machine again. Many true viruses are downloaders/sleepers/entry points for spyware. Only 2 ways to clean these: Leave the machine OFF the internet for about 2 weeks (long enough for spyware definitions to catch up), using another PC, download the spyware updates and put them on the infected machine with a floppy disk. The loader/sleeper program will be detected and removed. Either that or just reformat. Use antivirus to clean the true viruses from your machine.
2) You are still using IE on questionable sites. This does not NECESSARILY mean that the top level site you are going is not legit. It can also mean that the operators of that site (such as TBN for example) may inadvertently let an unsrupulous advertiser advertise. Their advertisement may link back to somewhere else that carries a spyware payload. So in effect, you can still be infected using IE on even credible, respected internet sites. All it takes is the marketing person to mess up and let one single ad slip through and be advertised on their credible site.
3) You may not be using IE, but may still be using other software that uses IE as the rendering engine. For example, some alternate browsers such as the Avant browser mentioned in this thread is just a pretty face for IE. It has all the same security issues. Or you may still be using outlook or outlook express as your email client. Web enabled email received in those browsers will still use IE as the rendering engine. So the same issues apply.
4) You have a rootkit. That involves more than I am willing to type. Google for windows rootkit and do some research.
5) You are running a very old version of Mozilla/Firefox that has a security problem. New versions have no issues that allow spyware to install themselves in a manner that the user would not know about.
6) This is the worst one and can only be protected against with user education. Some spyware is USER initiated. In other words users are TRICKED into installing software that is either directly a spyware package, or carries a spyware package with it. It uses no security hole to install itself. It simply asks the unknowing user if they want to install X or Y software package and the unknowing user allows it to happen. Many so called FREE software packages fund themselves using this tactic. You want the software, so you also unknowingly agree to allow this other package to install itself as part of the deal... but you may not know exactly what you are agreeing to.
Hopefully I havn't rambled too much, and MOST hopefully I have helped someone out by typing all this. If anyone thinks this information is helpful enough to warrant placement in its own thread, let me know and I'll post it. This is kind of general internet information that is hidden in a Netscape specific thread.
PS: Marketers ***HATE*** seeing software that enables users to eliminate advertisements from web pages. But this is fact: The internet is like a sex partner. When you trust a web site to do no harm to your computer, then you are trusting everyone that they trust as advertisers. Good security requires that you take matters into your own hands and YOU decide what displays on your own computer.
Be strong. For some sites it isn't a coincidence that they won't work well on browsers other than IE. Some sites are just coded for IE (no malicious intent), but some other big name sites don't allow anything other than IE BECAUSE they don't want you having a say in how data/images/ads/cookies are handled in alternative browsers.
Take for example.. Some web sites require cookies for their use (no REAL reason.. they just want to be able to track you). Firefox has a feature that "allows" the site to set a cookie, but firefox automatically deletes the cookie on close. Some sites actually check for this feature and make you disable it because they don't "like" it. Be strong and stay away from those types of sites no matter how compelling their content is.
I also forgot to mention one other big piece of software that uses IE as the rendering engine. It is Windows Media Player. This software is BAD, BAD, BAD. Because it uses IE as the rendering engine, it has all the flaws as IE, plus PLENTY of its own. Disable windows media player and download or purchase an alternative. I would recommend this excellent package as the replacement. I would go as far as setting a policy that disables Windows Media Player entirely. )</font>
Links relevent to the above:
Original thread of the above quote
Firefox tweaking thread
Windows Media Player replacement
Firefox itself
Adblock plugin
Pre-made filter list for adblock plugin
If anyone on TBN has the desire to get their machine more secure but needs help, I would be glad to help out. Just PM me and we'll set something up.
This post deals with people that have switched to true alternative browsers not JUST the Mozilla/Firefox listed in this original post:
</font><font color="blue" class="small">( If you are still getting spyware on your machine after going to firefox, then below I have listed pretty much every way that Spyware can get on your machine. If you guard against these couple of things, you should have ZERO spyware on your PC.
1) You didn't get your computer 100% clean before switching to Mozilla/Firefox. Spyware makers have gotten smart to spyware removal tools and they commonly utilize "sleeper" programs that do not get caught by the spyware removal tools. The sleeper routines nowadays are updated ***DAILY***. They go out and get a slightly modified but new copy of themselves every day. Therefore the definitions for spyware removal tools never detect the loader/sleeper routine. So in effect, as soon as you clean your machine, the next day the sleeper routing has fired up and re-downloaded all the junk to your machine again. Many true viruses are downloaders/sleepers/entry points for spyware. Only 2 ways to clean these: Leave the machine OFF the internet for about 2 weeks (long enough for spyware definitions to catch up), using another PC, download the spyware updates and put them on the infected machine with a floppy disk. The loader/sleeper program will be detected and removed. Either that or just reformat. Use antivirus to clean the true viruses from your machine.
2) You are still using IE on questionable sites. This does not NECESSARILY mean that the top level site you are going is not legit. It can also mean that the operators of that site (such as TBN for example) may inadvertently let an unsrupulous advertiser advertise. Their advertisement may link back to somewhere else that carries a spyware payload. So in effect, you can still be infected using IE on even credible, respected internet sites. All it takes is the marketing person to mess up and let one single ad slip through and be advertised on their credible site.
3) You may not be using IE, but may still be using other software that uses IE as the rendering engine. For example, some alternate browsers such as the Avant browser mentioned in this thread is just a pretty face for IE. It has all the same security issues. Or you may still be using outlook or outlook express as your email client. Web enabled email received in those browsers will still use IE as the rendering engine. So the same issues apply.
4) You have a rootkit. That involves more than I am willing to type. Google for windows rootkit and do some research.
5) You are running a very old version of Mozilla/Firefox that has a security problem. New versions have no issues that allow spyware to install themselves in a manner that the user would not know about.
6) This is the worst one and can only be protected against with user education. Some spyware is USER initiated. In other words users are TRICKED into installing software that is either directly a spyware package, or carries a spyware package with it. It uses no security hole to install itself. It simply asks the unknowing user if they want to install X or Y software package and the unknowing user allows it to happen. Many so called FREE software packages fund themselves using this tactic. You want the software, so you also unknowingly agree to allow this other package to install itself as part of the deal... but you may not know exactly what you are agreeing to.
Hopefully I havn't rambled too much, and MOST hopefully I have helped someone out by typing all this. If anyone thinks this information is helpful enough to warrant placement in its own thread, let me know and I'll post it. This is kind of general internet information that is hidden in a Netscape specific thread.
PS: Marketers ***HATE*** seeing software that enables users to eliminate advertisements from web pages. But this is fact: The internet is like a sex partner. When you trust a web site to do no harm to your computer, then you are trusting everyone that they trust as advertisers. Good security requires that you take matters into your own hands and YOU decide what displays on your own computer.
Be strong. For some sites it isn't a coincidence that they won't work well on browsers other than IE. Some sites are just coded for IE (no malicious intent), but some other big name sites don't allow anything other than IE BECAUSE they don't want you having a say in how data/images/ads/cookies are handled in alternative browsers.
Take for example.. Some web sites require cookies for their use (no REAL reason.. they just want to be able to track you). Firefox has a feature that "allows" the site to set a cookie, but firefox automatically deletes the cookie on close. Some sites actually check for this feature and make you disable it because they don't "like" it. Be strong and stay away from those types of sites no matter how compelling their content is.
I also forgot to mention one other big piece of software that uses IE as the rendering engine. It is Windows Media Player. This software is BAD, BAD, BAD. Because it uses IE as the rendering engine, it has all the flaws as IE, plus PLENTY of its own. Disable windows media player and download or purchase an alternative. I would recommend this excellent package as the replacement. I would go as far as setting a policy that disables Windows Media Player entirely. )</font>
Links relevent to the above:
Original thread of the above quote
Firefox tweaking thread
Windows Media Player replacement
Firefox itself
Adblock plugin
Pre-made filter list for adblock plugin
If anyone on TBN has the desire to get their machine more secure but needs help, I would be glad to help out. Just PM me and we'll set something up.