Viruses on your computer from surfing the net?

[irishcream]

can viruses get onto your computer just by surfing the net, without downloading anything? I look things up quite often, and i get quite a few pop ups, and am just wondering if i am putting my computer in danger. I have an up to date virus checker, but i'm still concerned about it. Any correct information on this topic would be greatly appreciated.

[Hate]

It's not very likely if you have a good antivirus program, don't surf in bad sites and don't use IE. Anyway, a friend of mine got a virus once from a bad site, even though he had up-to-date Norton Antivirus. There's always the risk, but if you stay smart, it should be minimal.

[nerve]

YES, YES, YES. the bastards are everywhere. you can get ALL KINDS of unwanted crap on your computer, just by surfing the net. stuff will download into your computer without you even being aware of it. and sometimes, you can't remove it. someone I know was working on one computer and it was so bad, he tried to re-format the hard-drive and it wouldn't let him. several of the computers here at the office where I work are screwed up because they didn't get the proper virus spyware etc protection. if you don't have the proper stuff, they WILL get you. they will kill your computer. it's wrong. it's so wrong. the people responsible should be thrown in jail.

[CT]

[Kaniaz]

Firefox will stop the nasties. What it won't stop, ever, are people that click and download viruses like idiots...the end

[Gwendolyn]

Yeah, Firefox will do it...Or you can always go with the wisest alternative and stop using windows. Use Linux or FreeBSD or Mac OS.....Something non-microsoft affiliated. I have a Mac with OS X and Umbuntu Linux on it. I also have a PC with Suse 9.2, and Windows, but I use Windows strictly for games. Once there are enough game platforms for Linux, I can cut Windows forever. It's just a virus whore.

[Stalker]

Strange (not really) how I find it funny everytime people brings up IE vs. Mozilla/Firefox and proclaims that Firefox is the end of all browsing insecurities (like that will ever happen), problems and so on and so forth. And to answer the question: No, viruses can't get into your computer just by you browsing some random pages. A security hole in your browser, a plugin to the browser, and active application or your OS however can be detected and a virus inplanted or a worm spread to your computer. For protection against that I'd recommend a good firewall.

[Stalker]

Originally posted by Gwendolyn It's just a virus whore. And you do know why right? Right? No, it's not because it's crap software, try again.

[Kaniaz]

I don't see "firefox is the end of all browser insecurities" written by anyone here. I wrote "Firefox will stop the nasties", which could imply the former, but it isn't. I would of been more specific if I was some sort of security consultant, though. I don't think anybody is that naive to think that, almighty Stalker of going-off-on-one-completely-unlike-himself. As for your "not really" link: Firefox: 389 results. IE: 4370 results. I guess that means Firefox is better.

[Truthbearer]

Originally posted by Kaniaz Firefox will stop the nasties. What it won't stop, ever, are people that click and download viruses like idiots...the end gee thanks... (I am battling a virus as we speak, with the help of dear old kaniaz)

[Stalker]

Originally posted by Kaniaz I don't see \"firefox is the end of all browser insecurities\" written by anyone here. Hence the lack of \"\" in my post. Originally posted by Kaniaz I wrote \"Firefox will stop the nasties\", which could imply the former, but it isn't. I would of been more specific if I was some sort of security consultant, though. I don't think anybody is that naive to think that You'd be surprised... Originally posted by Kaniaz+--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Kaniaz)</div> , almighty Stalker of going-off-on-one-completely-unlike-himself. [/b] Not sure what you mean by that <!--QuoteBegin-Kaniaz As for your \"not really\" link: Firefox: 389 results. IE: 4370 results. I guess that means Firefox is better. Didn't check the whole link, did you?

[jacobo]

internet explorer is fine. i use it and run virus scans every week with no infections... just don't go clicking on those links that say "18 inches can be yours if you click here now!"

[Truthbearer]

I got infected in an official incubus fan site that got infected with it..... DAMN IT!!!!!

[Kaniaz]

Hence the lack of \"\" in my post.[/b] Don't care if you had quotation marks or not. You say somebody here, in this \"IE vs. Mozilla/Firefox\" thread \"proclaims\" that \"Firefox is the end of all browser vunleblwhatevers*\", or at least something along those lines. Explain that, please, not the grammar. Don't care about the grammar. Unless you are talking in an aside. You'd be surprised...[/b] I suppose I would. Not sure what you mean by that[/b] Mean it's unlike you to get all mad and stuff over this and use the self narrative rhetoircal-question technique. Didn't check the whole link, did you? [/b] Yep, my bad. Mozilla: 19083 results. Internet Explorer: 4370 results. Internet Explorer wins the number game. (Didn't search IE and plus them together to get the sameish number though, I am too lazy (9000 extra)). Yet, IE gives us all the viruses. Hmm. * can't spell that word.

[Stalker]

[quote] I suppose I would. No. 1 reason of virus infections: Incompetent user. (Not saying it's always that, just usually) Mean it's unlike you to get all mad and stuff over this and use the self narrative rhetoircal-question technique. Well that would be unlike me (not sure though how you can say that with any certainty from my very limited postcount. Unlike people with several thousand posts where you often can get their whole psychological profile ), if that was the case. I didn't get mad or upset though, if it came out as that then it wasn't my intention. As for the rhetorical question, it just seemed fitting. Yep, my bad. Mozilla: 19083 results. Internet Explorer: 4370 results. Internet Explorer wins the number game. (Didn't search IE and plus them together to get the sameish number though, I am too lazy (9000 extra)). Yet, IE gives us all the viruses. Hmm. Would have searched for IE myself but such a short term will often get a lot of false positives so I would have to go through a few pages and get the general frequency of those to get an accurate number. Didn't think it was worth it. As for the viruses/worms/trojan it's probably mostly the same as the reason for windows-users getting them. Disclaimer: Any lack of coherency in this post is mostly due to the fact that I'm tired.

[Kaniaz]

oh well, that's sorted. i hoped this debate would end so i could have nothing to care about again

[irishcream]

thanks for all the information guys, but i have another question regarding someone saying that if you stay smart it will be okay. most of the pages i look at are to do with medicine, diseases, medical procedures, all stuff for my course, and hotmail of course to check my emails, which comes with a virus scan built in to it, so that if anyone sends me an attachment, it scans it and informs me if it's infected so that i know not to open it. i have another, homebased email account with outlook express, and i never respond to spam, and i only open attachments that i know are from people i trust, and norton scans incoming and outgoing messages, as does hotmail. so my question is, how do you stay smart? what's the best thing to do? i mean, it's a pain going up town to the library every time i want to use the net, when it's on my computer here...duh... and what would be considered a 'security hole?' and what's a 'plug in'? what does that consist of? I don't do any serious gaming, so don't need any add on for that, i just use it for course work, and keeping in touch with my friends and family.

[Stalker]

Keep that AV up to date and if you don't already have one then get a FW as well. And don't forget to keep windows up to date, not just rely on the the FW. Other than that you seem to be doing it right.

[irishcream]

my virus checker does an automatic system scan once a week, and it has something called 'liveupdate' which pops up to inform me that my computer is protected against new viruses. I hate pop ups though. I know they say with broadband, which i have, it means that i am more open to hackers, but i don't leave my connection on all day every day, just when i want to use it, i've got it mainly so that i can use the telephone line at the same time. when i'm not using it, my computer is disconnected from the net, and turned off. so i should be okay?

[CT]

you seem to be able to keep your computer safe from what I can tell you've got good habits in keeping it clean. If you want you could install thunderbird, the email program from mozilla which is less vunerable to exploits then outlook express, but ofcourse if you randomly go and open every attatchment thunderbird wont help ya there.

[irishcream]

hell, i never open attachments, unless i know who they're from, and the people that i do know, always tell me that they've forwarded me something, and they tell me what it is!! sounds like i'm okay, maybe i was just being a little paranoid, but this is my lifeline, it's how i keep in contact with people at the end of the day, email is so much more cheaper and easier than a phone call!!

[Stalker]

"Better safe than sorry" definately applies to the web as well. You shouldn't have anything to worry about.

[irishcream]

you just hear so much stuff about viruses invading computers, a friend of mine lost her whole hard drive to a worm, and she had a virus checker!! guess it made me a bit paranoid, i have to admit, i hate popups, but then they are only like adverts. And the main risk of viruses comes when you download things and open attachments, or respond to spam, because then the hackers KNOW you have an active email, and they can attach viruses to these spams without you realising. although i think if there was a virus on an outgoing message, norton wouldn't let it go. and then somehow i'd have to fix it. it's doing a scan now, saying there is one file infected, but when i come to quarantine it, it lets me delete it, which according to that, permanently removes the file from my computer.

[Stalker]

A scan of my computer would show: 16 infected files.

[irishcream]

tut tut. mine has just had two, one i managed to quarantine and delete, the other one insisted it wouldn't be got rid of, so i did some research, and there's this thing you can do on xp called 'system restore' which basically restores all your files to a time when it wasn't infected. it doesn't affected your saved files or settings. what i found out was this: When i log off, my computer automatically does a back up. Now sometimes my computer has been infected with viruses even after the scan, in files i can't gain access to. so by my system doing the automatic back up, it means that the virus is backed up along with it!! hopefully if i do the system restore everytime i run a virus check, i should eventually kick it. mum had this computer before me, she did the scans, but i don't think she did the system restore, so it might take me a while.