Haute Secure - Blocking drive-by malware downloads
by Ryan Naraine | July 18, 2007 8:09am PDT | Image 1 of 13
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Installation
The idea is to fit behavior-based profiling algorithms into an Internet Explorer toolbar to identify and intercept malicious files in real-time.
The tool is currently available as a free beta download from the Haute Secure Web site.
In this gallery, we take a look at the installation and use of Haute Secure on IE 7 (Windows Vista).
Just In
"Huh? What? But I don't have Internet Explorer!!! How did I get 438 malware packages on my PC?"
That said, unless Safari makes inroads on Windows, nobody will waste time exploiting its security holes. As it stands, the market share is to small to bother for anyone but security guys doing proof of concept, and i suspect they get more for finding holes in Firefox and IE.
Well, good luck to them. If they think there's money out there for them to make off this, well, go for it.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/07/18/microsoft_advertising_pc_patent/
Either As it is, one of two things will happen - Microsoft will simply steal this idea and "innovate" it into Windows as an original Microsoft idea, or, the start-up will collect a massive amount of cash from their former employer when they sell out to them.
Microsoft's approach to security has always been analagous to selling mouldy pies with integrated stomach medicine. It's an approach that only a monopoly can profit from.
Choose stomach ache - choose Windows.
I tried this on a couple of other systems that had not been infected with anything, but were getting slow any way, inspite of running the usual defrag etc. Sure enough, they got their speed back!
Then the wonderus "Genuine Advantage" came out. Can't back that one out, so you can't back out anything else that came before!!!
I turn off Automatic Updates by default. Most of the malware problems that are actually encountered during day to day operations, are stopped by Trend or AVG. Whether the patches are there or not. Should a patch be required for them to function, then all current updates are then downloaded and installed. But in one rare shot, not weekly. This has helped considerably to keep the system's speed up. Speed needed for WORK.
I think MS is using Genuine (Dis)Advantage and patch Tuesday to slowly reduce existing installation to a crawl in order to generate sales of "Newer, Better, Faster" versions.
Hosed again, by design.
Never mind......
32bit on my G40 Thinkpad. I like it more and more each
day. The only doze-apps I use anymore are Quickbooks
(Switching to GnuCash) and BetZip. I almost have
BetZip figured out in Crossover/Wine.
One thing you can also do is remove all the patch backups. The less you have on an HD the better it performs.
defrag tools and file cleanup etc. But nothing like
removing the accumulated patches.
Turning off Automatic updates was the biggest performance gain of all; but then I always check for more on patch Tuesdays(manually)..I also reinstall applications as this solves the problem 9 times out of ten. Keep in mind this is not a difficult process as I don't have to do it all the time!
The Securia utility mentioned first in this article can help with this.. It is especially nice to find out which installs are at end of life, so you can trash them.
Getting rid of updates just leaves your butt flying in the breeze. Leaves you open to every vulnerablity known to man. Not good advice. I would keep that one to yourself!
Patch the vulnerabilities anyway.
What antivirus won't show you are the new variants designed to elude antivirus software. Same old vulnerability, new cloak.
Patch the vulnerabilities. Any vendor will tell you; patch the vulnerabilities.
Geez ...
By the way, I'm on XP SP1 still and I no longer do patches. How many "drive-by" installs or malware have I encountered in my 10 years using the internet? Zero. And that's with IE6. ;-p
Using Windows since 3.11. I have Vista and XP2 now. Always kept up to date and Zero landed attacks.
It's so easy to lock down a Windows PC cause there's so many free apps out there to help.
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