Free Zone Alarm, Free AVG, and Free Ad-Aware

Those are the three free programs I use to keep my computer clean and healthy. What free programs do you use to keep your computer running in good order?

 

SpyBot SD.

FireFox also helps with Extensions like NoScript.

 

Free AVG anti-virus. CCleaner. Spywareblaster. Spybot Search and Destroy. Eraser. A-squared free version. NeWt Security scanner. Active Ports. STAT Antispam for Mercury32. Ad-Aware 6.0 free.

 

From an article on basic security I wrote a year or two ago:

A Basic Computer Security Strategy

First, if you think your system may already have been compromised, start by running Trend Micro's Free online virus scan (this is a good idea even if you have an AV program and fear it may have been compromised). If the online scanner finds anything and can remove it, great - if it finds something it can't remove, make a note of whatever virus-trojan-worm is identified and do a search for a removal tool - the best place to start for finding and downloading one of these is at the Symantec Removal Tools Page.

Once you've ascertained that your system is clean, follow these steps to keep it that way:

1. Install a firewall and have it set to (a) operate in real time and start when your system boots, and (b) autoupdate its signatures. My personal choice is Norton Personal Firewall but there are also a couple of good free ones, ZoneAlarm being the one usually rated as best (or Sygate). Once the firewall is installed, go through any list of "safe" programs it may have created on setup and delete or disable any entires you know nothing about. If they are legitimate programs, you'll later get popup warnings from the firewall informing you that "programname.exe" is trying to connect to the internet and asking you if you want to allow that to happen, so if it's genuine all you have to do is say "yes - it's safe".

2. Install a real-time antivirus scanner - do an initial total system scan and then and have it set to autoscan any files that are created, all files from your diskette and CD-ROM drives as they are copied or installed, and all incoming email (if you've done everything else right, you really don't need to scan outgoing email but you can usually to be extra safe). Again, through trial and error I've become a fan of Norton AntiVirus (I find McAfee gave me two many false alerts) but there are also some good free ones still available, the three most highly recommended being AVAST, AVG, and NOD32. Do a full system scan at least once a month as a safety net.

3. Install and run both Ad-Aware and Spybot Search & Destroy monthly and delete anything it finds unless you can identify it as something you need. Update: The new Microsoft AntiSpyware and SpywareBlaster are valuable additions to this arsenal.

4. Install Mike Lin's free Startup Control Panel 2.8 to easily see what programs are starting up automatically when you boot - disable any you're not sure you want (if they absolutely must run, you'll find out soon enough and the utility allows you to easily re-enable it). While you're at Mike Lin's website, also download and install Startup Monitor: this little program sits in the background of your system and warns you when any program tries to install something to load automatically at system boot, with the option of allowing or disallowing that function.

5. Install HiJackThis! (zip file). Be cautious deleting things detected by this utility unless you know what they are - HiJackThis! detects both harmful and useful/needed add-ons.

6. Get GiPO's freeware MoveOnBoot utility to move/delete any files locked by Windows at the time: see http://www.gibinsoft.com/gipoutils/.

7. Dowload and install ShellExView.

8. Don't install any freeware or shareware or indeed any software at all without reading the fine print to check that they are not installing other things along with whatever it is you actually wanted to try - my personal choice is not to install ANYTHING no matter how good it claims to be if it says it's going to install other stuff along with it and doesn't give me the choice of NOT installing those extras. Once you've installed the new software, run at least one of Ad-Aware and Spybot S&D to double check that it didn't install something by stealth. Also, after installation, check if anything has been added to autostart using Startup Control Panel above.

Addendum

Since writing that, I have become slightly less enthusiastic about Norton (lately getting crashes in some of the firewall components and Norton anti-spam runs like molasses below zero) and more enthusiastic about AVG and ZoneAlarm which I've now got running on three other computers (my sons). I also use Microsoft AntiSpyware program for real time scanning.

 

I use all the softwares you said plus Spybot, Sygate Personal Firewall, DAP, ACDSEE, LIMEWIRE, and all the messengers.

 

I use ad-aware, avg7.01, spybot sd and rgistry mechanic.

Nice post Minstrell ..

 

I use AVG,Windows XP Firewall and Microsofty antispyware.

 

Windows Firewall is pretty limited. You might want to seriously think about installing ZoneAlarm - there is a freeware version that is pretty good.

 

Microsoft Antispyware is very much usless as well. Spybot S&D is a good one

 

Not true. It works very well for me.

 

I installed it when it was just launched, at that time it was still in beta. At that time it did not detected the threads that were detected and removed by Spybot, maybe they've improved now or maybe its just me.

 

In my experience, there is NO anti-spyware utility that gets ALL of the malware. That's why I recommend using more than one. I have the MS one running in real time and it catches most of it. Periodically, I run Ad-Aware and/or Spybot to clean out anything MS doesn't find.

 

hmm
What are limitations in Windows firewall?

 

One of the problem is that you cannot control each TCP and UDP port, although they protect you from port scanning and there logging is not very good.

 

I use all the 3 you mentioned plus spybot S&D

 

It's also only scanning incoming ports, at least last time I looked at it. A good firewall should also be aware of outgoing traffic.

 

I have, I did not like ZoneAlarm. But I use Windows Firewall behind a hardware firewall and turn all sharing off. My Linux boxes use the built in firewalls and close all inbound ports by default, forcing me to open the spcific ports in use.

 

Norton firewall sucks.

 

Eh, I think it's safe to say all Norton products suck. Unless of course you have a super computer with the system resources that can allow Norton to actually run.

No but seriously, Norton's footprint in like godzilla. plus, it's not a very good scanner on top of the resources issue.

 

Is there a way to disable many of the features that you don't need in Norton so that it does work without using too much RAM?