Phone: 250.764.7043
Email: help@computercarekelowna.com

_____________________________________

Getting  Along With Your Computer Column Archive

How to Avoid Dangerous Websites and Downloads
by Cate Eales

Appeared March 17, 2011 on castanet.net

If you spend more than about twelve seconds on the internet, you will find yourself bombarded with ads for products purporting to clean your computer, protect your computer, and speed up your computer. Some of these products are actually trying to harm your computer, but how do you know which ones? Your antivirus + antispyware program offers some protection, but you can easily improve on that.

Things are not always what they seem
Lots of malicious software (“malware”) is distributed from really professional-looking sites, and some excellent software is available from sites that look home made. So that's no way to tell.

Searching for a particular program in Google or Yahoo! might help, but really clever bad guys write glowing reviews of their malicious software. So that's not always a good indicator either.


You already have some built-in protection
Your browser can actually help you with this. Internet Explorer 8, Firefox, and Chrome are all capable of checking any website you want to visit against a database of known bad sites, and warning you.

According to Microsoft, Internet Explorer 8 uses SmartScreen Filtering to check every site you request against frequently updated lists. One list is stored on your computer and updated via Windows Update. If a website address isn’t found there, it’s compared against a (larger!) remote database maintained by Microsoft. If you type in or click on the URL of a known unsafe site, or if you try to download a known unsafe file, IE8 will warn you.

But…you have to turn it on!

(click to enlarge graphic)

I have never gotten this to work. I don’t know why. Maybe I’m not visiting bad enough sites. The Microsoft site provides more information about SmartScreen Filtering. See this page and this one. Internet Explorer 9 was officially released this week, and includes security features. More on that when I’ve had a chance to try it out.

Firefox handles site filtering a little differently. It uses (as does Chrome) a Google-provided list stored in your browser profile. That list is updated every 30 minutes when your browser has the setting turned on.

(click to enlarge graphic)

Learn more about Firefox’s safety features here . You can download Firefox here.


You can add more protection
Some antivirus programs include a browser toolbar. Those toolbars can enhance or replace the browser’s filtering features, but they can also really slow you down.

I have been using a similar tool called Web of Trust, or WOT. This thing really works. You simply install an add-on for your browser, and when you search with Google or Yahoo! WOT displays status icons beside the search results. When you type in a URL or click on a website link that is not safe, WOT warns you. If you try to download a known unsafe file, WOT warns you.

Web of Trust works great on Firefox, Internet Explorer, Safari, Opera, and Chrome. To download the add-on, visit this page. I have noticed absolutely no decrease in performance, and I regularly receive warnings when researching malware and other suspicious sites. I highly recommend WOT.


But wait. There’s more!
The browser tweaks I’ve described here are meant to enhance security. They don’t provide adequate protection on their own. You should have a good antivirus + antispyware program, and it should be running all the time. You should supplement that with an on-demand scan from another antimalware product, like Malwarebytes or SuperAntiSpyware. You should have a firewall turned on. Once you’ve done that, you can use Web of Trust or your built-in settings, along with your common sense, to enjoy a safer browsing experience.
 

Links
SmartScreen Filter FAQ http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-vista/SmartScreen-Filter-frequently-asked-questions
What is SmartScreen Filter? http://www.microsoft.com/security/online-privacy/smartscreen.aspx
Firefox Safety http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/features/
Download Firefox http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/
Web of Trust http://www.mywot.com/en/download
Malwarebytes http://malwarebytes.org/
SuperAntiSpyware http://www.superantispyware.com/index.html
Computer Care Kelowna http://computercarekelowna.com/
Getting Along With Your Computer Column Archives http://rlis.com/column.htm
Get Cate's column by email http://www.feedblitz.com/f/f.fbz?Sub=20618
RSS Feed: http://rlis.com/rlis.xml

--
Do you need help with your computer? I'm here to help you and your home or business computer get along!

Cate Eales runs Computer Care Kelowna, a mobile service helping home users and businesses get along with their computers. To arrange an appointment phone her at 250-764-7043. Cate also welcomes your comments and suggestions. Send email to help@computercarekelowna.com.

You can read previous columns here. If you'd like to subscribe to this column by email, please visit this link It's easy, and free. If you'd prefer the RSS Feed, click here.

© Cate Eales 2011 – All Rights Reserved

-30-