Protecting Vista...

Discussion in 'Software' started by Wayne82, Jun 1, 2007.

  1. Wayne82

    Wayne82 Sergeant Major

    Hey Guys! :)

    I just got Vista. But to be honest, im a bit lost :(

    Nice eye candy, but its a hell of a lot different than XP...

    My question is, what security do I need on this OS? The same as I have on XP?

    I a in the proccess of installing ZoneAlarm, AVG Free AntiVirus and A2 Antimalware. Is this too much? Or is it correct for vista the same as XP.

    Im just curious as I heard vista is more secure than XP was.

    Thanks Very Much :)

    Wayne ;)
     
    Wayne82, Jun 1, 2007
    #1
  2. Wayne82

    Wayne82 Sergeant Major

    Please help ZoneAlarm wont install, it says `this checkpoint software is not compatible with---` :cry
     
    Wayne82, Jun 1, 2007
    #2
  3. Wayne82

    Wayne82 Sergeant Major

    No, It still wont install, Is Zone Alarm not compatible with vista? confused
     
    Wayne82, Jun 1, 2007
    #3
  4. theefool

    theefool Geekified

    theefool, Jun 1, 2007
    #4
  5. Wayne82

    Wayne82 Sergeant Major

    Zone Alarm will still not install :( Last night it was saying this product is not compatible, now its just crashing during the installation process.

    Please can someone with Vista advise me of what security measures I should be taking?

    Do I need the same protection as XP?

    Also does this have MSJava which I need to remove?

    Ive got AVG Free Antivirus, A2 Antimalware, Im just having real troble with ZoneAlarm.

    Thanks :)
     
    Wayne82, Jun 2, 2007
    #5
  6. DavidGP

    DavidGP MajorGeeks Forum Administrator - Grand Pooh-Bah Staff Member

    DO not install Zone Alarm!! It will not work, there is a beta but its not ready for the general public yet, Vista Firewall Control is your best option at present http://www.majorgeeks.com/Vista_Firewall_Control_32-bit_d5578.html until Comodo release their Vista firewall.

    NO It doesnt have JSJava


    Just as a guide I have or I know these are fine.

    Spywareblaster
    Avast ( you can have AVG also as both are compatible )
    Defender
    Spybot S&D ( this is fine in Vista )
    A2
    Ad-Aware

    and if your brave then here is ZoneAlarm Beta for Vista32b
    http://download.zonelabs.com/bin/free/beta/index.html
     
    DavidGP, Jun 2, 2007
    #6
  7. Wayne82

    Wayne82 Sergeant Major

    Thanks Halo, I just installed the one you reccomended, but it blocked all internet access? I dont suppose you know how to use it do you? I couldnt get my browser or mail to work, can you not just train it like ZA? Ive had to uninstall it to ome back online! :eek:

    I may download ZoneAlarm Beta, how long has it been in testing do you know? Is it full of bugs still?

    Is Windows firewall not very good still as it was not in XP?

    I have AVG as my AntiVirus, Defender as standard, A2 AntiMalware as Spyware protection. Just this with the firewall to sort out now.

    Its going to take me a while to get used to this new OS. Its nice eye candy and all, but theyve changed a lot of stuff around havent they! Half the software I like isnt compatible either soi will have to find some new stuff.

    Overall though, its pretty sweet :)

    A2 Antimalware keeps closing itself also, it says `a2 has encountered an error and needs to close. :( Which of the above provides realtime Spyware protection? Thanks :)
     
    Last edited: Jun 2, 2007
    Wayne82, Jun 2, 2007
    #7
  8. DavidGP

    DavidGP MajorGeeks Forum Administrator - Grand Pooh-Bah Staff Member

    Personally I'm not using a 3rd party firewall as yet and just use the Vista one, it is better than the XP one, but still isnt good enough, but if your behind a router then incoming is blocked via NAT/SPI

    In Vista Firewall control yes you have to train most of the apps like ZA, in the menu you can double click to edit and for items you wish like IE, set the Zones to Enable All.

    ZA has bugs and is one of those betas that works for many and doesnt work for many too, its been testing for near 6months IIRC... sadly for me its an app I will no longer suggest as its way too bundled now with AV, AS, popup blockers etc, the free version should IMHO just stick to basic FW options, yes you can disable all the above but when I last used it, it didnt work well, but that was 3 months ago.. so it may have changed ( so if you decide to use it create a restore point first )

    Install Spywareblaster too http://majorgeeks.com/download2859.html for ActiveX and its blockage of known malware urls and domains, I would never have a PC without this app.

    Yes you may have to find new alternatives or see if the maker has updates, also a tip is if an app doesnt install correctly, either run its installer as Admin ( right click the installer and choose Run as Admin ) or choose compatabilty for say XP Sp2 from the installer/setup properties.



    Edit for the edit:

    Defender is realtime ( yes I know what folk say about it but dont care as its better than nothing )

    As for A2 Antimalware, is it the paid full app you have? if so uninstall, run ccleaner and its registry cleaner, then re-install A2 but make sure you have latest version, and right click the installer and choose Run as Admin, see if that helps, but I not used the full app but do believe its Vista compat.
     
    DavidGP, Jun 2, 2007
    #8
  9. Wayne82

    Wayne82 Sergeant Major

    It is the full version, but the 3 month trial offered here a few weeks back, i had it on my notebook but decided to put it on here for the time being instead. Funny enough it kept closing on my notebook too for no reason :(

    So now halo I have Defender, AVG, Spywareblaster, now I have just gotta reinstall this firewall and figure the darn thing out! Is tis sufficient do you reckon matey?

    I just want to make sure I am secure before I start downloading stuff and messing with settings etc.

    Thanks :)
     
    Wayne82, Jun 2, 2007
    #9
  10. DavidGP

    DavidGP MajorGeeks Forum Administrator - Grand Pooh-Bah Staff Member

    Yes wayne that lot should be ok.

    If it was causing errors in XP then suspect the app.

    But also I have the normal A2 installed as it tends to pick up the more obscure malwares ( not that I have ever had any malware suprisingly ) http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=4281 this one works fine in Vista but is not resident scanning but on demand.

    With IE7 in Vista, your pretty safe to surf ( never going to be 100% ) as with protected mode on, the temp internet folder where stuff while surfing is stored has no admin rights and is set to low Privilege rights, to install anything, you will get UAC prompt if something from there is wanting to install itself.


    Downloading stuff well that all depends on where your downloading from, so onus is on you with that one.
     
    DavidGP, Jun 2, 2007
    #10
  11. augiedoggie

    augiedoggie The Canadian Loon - LocoAugie (R.I.P. 2012)

    Vista's FW is quite good really, the thing that kills it is outbound control and would need an IT admin (IMO) to set everything up properly. That's why I love Vista FW Control. I consider it a ZA clone and perfectly able to replace it AFAIK. One thing I'm worried about ZA is that in the beta they bundle their anti-malware with it and it installs even if you say no it will install on next update. I hope this is just for ease of beta testing and does not mean that ZA will be bundled in the future.
     
    augiedoggie, Jun 2, 2007
    #11
  12. Wayne82

    Wayne82 Sergeant Major

    I just did a scan at sheilds up, with no firewall (except windows) and I was fully stealthed, therefore is there really any need for a firewall?
     
    Wayne82, Jun 2, 2007
    #12
  13. augiedoggie

    augiedoggie The Canadian Loon - LocoAugie (R.I.P. 2012)

    As Halo said, your router takes care of inbound junk, A FW would be necessary to catch outbound stuff that's not started by you. Vista is much more secure than XP, right now I only have Avast and the default defender on and feel quite secure.
     
    augiedoggie, Jun 2, 2007
    #13
  14. DavidGP

    DavidGP MajorGeeks Forum Administrator - Grand Pooh-Bah Staff Member

    Well yes and no, no as nothing will know your around as in port scans etc, but if by some strange chance you are malware infestated then it can have outbound access.

    For things to become an issue you'd have to have malware first, so outbound is peace of mind and allows you to give access to the net to apps of your choice and is an 1st alert to unknowns wanting to access the net.

    I like Augie feel very secure with Vista and have done for ages, not had any firewalls on here apart from ones to trail, and no malware at all, but having malware or being infected is more due to surfing habbits than random/intentional chance.
     
    DavidGP, Jun 2, 2007
    #14
  15. Wayne82

    Wayne82 Sergeant Major

    I havent got a router yet! :(

    I didnt think of outbound access. I will give that first firewall you reccomended another go to see if I can figure it out.

    Did you guys have any problems installing Sun Java? confused

    Sorry to be a pest :eek:
     
    Wayne82, Jun 2, 2007
    #15
  16. BILLMCC66

    BILLMCC66 Bionic Belgian

    i can not say first hand but my son inlaw has Vista and for surfing he runs A Aware Pro with Ad Watch monitoring he says it takes care of most problems but does slow the upload a bit.
     
    BILLMCC66, Jun 2, 2007
    #16
  17. DavidGP

    DavidGP MajorGeeks Forum Administrator - Grand Pooh-Bah Staff Member

    DavidGP, Jun 2, 2007
    #17
  18. Wayne82

    Wayne82 Sergeant Major

    That link for SUN Java works great. I went to the homepage and got some `error 203` thing over and over!
     
    Wayne82, Jun 2, 2007
    #18
  19. Wayne82

    Wayne82 Sergeant Major

    I cant get this Vista Firewall Control to work in the sligtest :( Please help!

    I install it, then when I try to use firefox it cant connect, I try to use thunderbird and it wont connect. Ive tried rightclicking on these programs to see if there is an allow option, there isnt. I tried opening the program itself and it has uTorrent with permission and nothing else! How do I give permissions? Or how do i train this firewall up?

    Please help as I dont like being online without a firewall, Thanks :)
     
    Wayne82, Jun 2, 2007
    #19

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