Whenever a new trojan appears for Linux, Mac OS X, or (now) Android, inevitably you get a crowd of ignorant panic-mongers up in arms saying “See? [fill in the blank] gets viruses, too! Ah ha! Better install that antivirus now.” Now, apart from the fact that so-called “antivirus” software is for all practical purposes useless… Continue reading Virus v. Trojan: not just about semantics
Tag: antivirus
The 6 Best Ways to Secure Windows
Introduction Step 1. Install Windows updates automatically Step 2. Make your primary account a limited user account Step 3. Use Firefox with the NoScript extension Step 4. Read up on social engineering and how to avoid being the victim of it Step 5. Do not pirate software, music, or movies Step 6. Avoid all “antivirus”… Continue reading The 6 Best Ways to Secure Windows
Tech “journalism” strikes again: of course Apple will recommend antivirus eventually
A self-proclaimed analyst at CNET has predicted that Apple will recommend antivirus. Apart from the fact that Apple already did recommend antivirus a few months ago (but has since removed that page), isn’t that quite obvious? Some prediction. Unfortunately, the reasoning for that recommendation makes me wonder what Jon Oltsik is analyzing. Here are the… Continue reading Tech “journalism” strikes again: of course Apple will recommend antivirus eventually
The antivirus paranoia culture
Recently, I’ve spent some time looking at the computer section of Yahoo! Answers, and it’s a fascinating place from a sociological perspective. If the questions and answers popular there are indicative of what common attitudes and practices are among Windows and Mac users, then this is how a typical user operates: Install free antivirus software… Continue reading The antivirus paranoia culture
Does Ubuntu need antivirus?
This is a very common question that comes up on the Ubuntu Forums from new users migrating from Windows. The answer, of course, is “No, Ubuntu doesn’t need antivirus.” Linux (and sometimes Mac) users often get accused of being smug or complacent for saying they don’t need antivirus, so I think I have to clarify… Continue reading Does Ubuntu need antivirus?