security for people using WINDOWS XP.

[themickster]

I guess that if someone has enough knowledge and wants to pwn a computer badly enough, they will do so whatever security it has.

Businesses have more to fear than the personal user.

[mickthefish]

i'm not on the NET-if i require the NET for any registered software such as AV1 file converter etc,
I always take my laptop/s to my
local well respected computer shop.. I get
some good malware protection programmes & other tit bits free (apart from the main software & time)which they download.
If I need the NET i use My HOTMAIL account at the libraries.you're not safe even off line.mickthefish.

[steve]

In the long run it would probably be less trouble to upgrade to Linux rather than all that to and fro to the library and back.

[kozikowski]

i'm not on the NET

So you're recommending an air-gap firewall. Good idea. I have several computers with no active network connection.

Koz

[cyrano]

i'm not on the NET

So you're recommending an air-gap firewall. Good idea. I have several computers with no active network connection.

Koz

Until you plug in a USB device...

Seen recently: a targeted virus on police bodycams in the USA. Also on "security oriented" USB card readers, of course on USB sticks and on USB LED lights. You'd expect these USB LED lights to be safe. It's only a LED, right?

[kozikowski]

You'd expect these USB LED lights to be safe.

No engineer has ever been able to resist adding "features."

When the engineers were running Apple for a while there, they brought out an iPod with the traditional scroll-wheel, tilt functions and the button in the middle.....and four function keys along the top.

Quick, how many control decisions does that give you? What's nine factorial.....

It's amazing the iPod developed after that.

Koz

[themickster]

Have you had a virus from a USB LED light, Cyrano? Or from a new flash drive/card?

[cyrano]

Have you had a virus from a USB LED light, Cyrano? Or from a new flash drive/card?

I have never had a virus. But I collect malware and some of my clients did get viruses. Then I get to clean up the computer...

I don't remember where the infected LED light showed up. It seems that the LED was remotely dimmed and the control program contained some "extra's", trying to steal pasword wallets. The LED light was a gift from a business relation. Several dozens were given to the employees.

The latest year or so things are getting hairy. But that's whit businesses. Not with average people. The worst that can happen, is a crypto virus that encrypts most of your files and demands a ransom to decrypt them. The last one of that kind, was kind of bad. The hosting provider deleted the control server. No keys left to decrypt the files and paying the ransom was useless.

In businesses targeted attacks, looking for information are getting worse. A bank here lost about 70 million € with a "mail from the boss" attack. That's not a virus, but social engineering, of course. Still a lot of money, even for a bank.

The strangest case 'till now is still Dragos Rui's lab. He's a professional malware researcher and in the end he had airgapped machines that got infected over audio. Seems that particular malware communicated very slowly with ultrasound from speaker to microphone. Nobody would believe him at first, but now we know that the NSA, fi has such an approach. Nobody's laughing today. The malware in question hasn't been isolated, as far as I know.

[cyrano]

You'd expect these USB LED lights to be safe.

No engineer has ever been able to resist adding "features."

When the engineers were running Apple for a while there, they brought out an iPod with the traditional scroll-wheel, tilt functions and the button in the middle.....and four function keys along the top.

Quick, how many control decisions does that give you? What's nine factorial.....

It's amazing the iPod developed after that.

Koz

The prize for the most creative one still goes to Mongolia, imho. A few years back, they sold 2TB external harddrives there that contained reject 16 GB USB sticks, with a modified FAT system. The "drive" never filled up, but it only kept the latest 16 GB. All the rest was deleted. I saw some pics from these devices and the "engineering" was really good. To add some weight, there was a thick piece of cast iron in the case. When you formatted the drive, everything looked OK and it fooled all drive tools, unless your tried to format it to something exotic, like ZFS or Reiser FS. That's how someone discovered what was really wrong. The origin of the drives was China, of course

[mickthefish]

The sad fact is ,Some of the anti virus software has been hacked even before being released.(TRUE)!!.I cant see Our Data ever being 100% safe.mickthefish.2017.