Those who dont use an active AV - what works for you?

[wayliff]

Note: If you do not agree with not having an AV, you're welcome to provide constructive feedback.
If you feel the need to simply flame please move on.

To those who currently do not use an AV...I want to share my practices and see what others do.

Up until Windows XP, I was not able to last too long without an AV before I'd get infected with something that would cause me trouble.
I suspect that had to do with lack of experience and not following better practices.

Starting with Vista SP1, I decided to give it a try again and not use an AV because I always felt I had yet another layer of software installed on my machine consuming some resources.

Since that point I have not experienced an infection and saved some $$$ too.

Here are all, or most, the things I do for my workstations. I currently manage 3 Windows 7 machines. One is a laptop, another is a testbench and the last one is a workstation.

* Patch Windows during Patch Tuesday or latest by next day.
* Scan the machines with Secunia PSI once a month to make sure everything is properly patched and I did not miss anything.
* I recently also started using the FileHippo updater which runs at startup and checks some of my installs against their database and lets me know if something is not up to date. If everything is patched, it shuts down by itself, if not then it lets me know what I need to upgrade.
* All routers have a NAT firewall and all machines use Windows Firewall.
* All my routers are using OpenDNS. I use the medium level as a baseline and remove gambling and alcohol from the categories.
* My main browsers are FF5 and IE9. I mostly use FF and it always runs No-Script and Ad-Block.
* About once every two weeks, and sometimes weekly, I scan the workstations with one malware\av removal application. I rotate with Eset Online Scanner, MBAM, HouseCall and a couple of LiveCDs.
* I don't visit any unusual websites and nor open emails I do not recognize, or expect, even if from relatives. One can easily figure out that an email is a mass forward.

I have yet to encounter an infection on these machines and it has been at least 2 years with 7 and another with Vista or around those time frames.

Well although this has worked out well so far, I am curious to hear from other people that do the same. What works for you?

Thanks!

 

[Nintendesert]

I'd like to know the aversion to using something like Microsoft Security Essentials along with all those other steps you take.

 

[wayliff]

I'd like to know the aversion to using something like Microsoft Security Essentials along with all those other steps you take.

The aversion, to me, is what I mentioned already. It is having another layer of software running on a workstation which actively scans for files that one is using. I'll admit that software is likely much better and the use of resources is kept low.

This was a experiment of mine, I wanted to find out how long it would take me take get infected without an AV. And so far so good...I have kept going.

This has proven to me that the way one uses the computer is one of the reasons one gets attacked\infected regardless of what AV is installed.

I am a full time programmer but I also do computer service on the side. Most infections I have had to clean are from people who had a full AV solution installed. Be it Norton, McAfee, Kaspersky, Symantec Endpoint, BitDefender, etc.
Thankfully after tutoring and education those people do not get infected anymore, or much less.

Again this is not to say one way is better than other. But I like my way so far.

 

[Nintendesert]

Of course the biggest threat has and always will be the idiot sitting in the chair. I never understood the full impact of it until many years ago in college I was sitting in the computer lab doing some work. Well next to me I overhear to guys talking and discussing if he should run an executable from some random email he got.

That was an unforgettable moment that will forever change how I view people and security, it was the full impact of just how stupid people are when it comes to computers.

And yes, I understand your previous aversion to using it, back in the day these things would destroy computers when they ran scans. I hated having it on my gaming machines and you could always tell. I guess I should have phrased it better to ask what still lingers that makes you not want to install it. Granted you wanting to experiment and see just how much is about user practices suffices, and perhaps my question is unfairly directed at you because there seems to be some segment out there that doesn't want to use it at all. (As seen in the other thread.)

The programs are just so lightweight now and I've yet to notice it working in the background. Going bareback simply feels antiquated with how good the new ones are so I guess I feel there's more to it than just experimenting and how it used to be, almost as though it's a rebellious act to not go the norm.

 

[sm625]

I've fixed over 30 computers that were infected with "Sysguard" or one of its many variations. Even the really nasty ones that wont let you run task manager or even boot into safe mode. I still have no idea how this crap gets on people's computers because I have never gotten hit by it. I'm a hardcore web surfer, and I've never had a problem with virii, except when I use a usb flash drive to transfer files to other pcs. I always scan the drive with mbam when I plug it back into my pc. I honestly cant say how all these people screw their machines up so badly. Most of them had somekind of AV program... lot of good it does lol. I dont trust AV programs, almost to the point that I think they are just a scam.

 

[lxskllr]

I run Linux, no A/V :^D

On Windows I always have active A/V installed. It's cheap insurance, and I don't get negative effects from it. I can't be arsed to run NoScript on my browser. I've tried it a few times, but it's more hassle than it's worth. I've gotten one virus, and that was due to cranial/rectal inversion. If I had been thinking, it wouldn't have happened. So anyway, I use it on Windows for insurance purposes. It doesn't hurt, and it might save my ass one day.

 

[stlcardinals]

I've never had a problem with virii, except when I use a usb flash drive to transfer files to other pcs. I always scan the drive with mbam when I plug it back into my pc.

You can save yourself some more time if you get a USB flash drive with a physical read/write switch on it. Well worth it for the little bit extra they cost.

 

[wayliff]

Thanks for sharing! It is good to see it from different angles. And it is also great to see other practices in security.

One I know about but have not tried is using a security template for Windows 7...I need to check it out sometime.

 

[mechBgon]

This is my suggestion: http://www.mechbgon.com/security Antivirus isn't a front-line defense anymore in my opinion, you want to look at proactive steps.

 

[wayliff]

This is my suggestion: http://www.mechbgon.com/security Antivirus isn't a front-line defense anymore in my opinion, you want to look at proactive steps.

yeah your site is great ...I've read it over the years and learned quite a bit from it. Thanks for bringing it up again...I think there are some new things in there.