SlimBrower

[wiltrot]

For anyone who might be interested. Here's (http://www.flashpeak.com/sbrowser/sbrowser.htm) (in my opinion) a really nice browser.

[mjc]

Yes, it is a nice frontend for IE, and provides many features not found in the standard MS builds, it is still based on and uses the IE engine so in the maker's own words....SlimBrowser is based on Internet Explorer rendering engine. So it has the same level of security as IE. Thus SlimBrowser is as secure as IE although the PADLock icon is not displayed.

Whereas Mozilla and its kin (Firebird and Kmeleon) and Opera are based on entirely different engines they are much more secure. There is even development on another one for the Windows platform...Konqueror, which is yet another engine, when it is released it will be the fourth engine available.

[wiltrot]

Speaking of security. I have firewall & antivirus (avg-full-pro/norton-inter security) on both systems and I'm very thorough about keeping up with the updates. We access the internet via a router and it also has its own firewall. Is it still possible for someone to hack little oh me.

[Budfred]

The easy answer: yes it is still possible. However, the only way it would not be possible is if you disconnected from the internet and locked the computer in a sealed room which will only open in response to you retina and finger print and will self-destruct at the slightest evidence of tampering. Too much security you say???:D

The truth is that as soon as someone comes out with another layer of security, someone else begins working on ways to crack it. You use safe practices and you make lots of backups and you hope you don't have to use them....:rolleyes: ;)

[wiltrot]

Ya I figured all I'm really doing is keeping out the roaches. I say bring it on, it's all backed up. If they mess with me I'll reformat in a heart beat. Gosh! that was easy.:cool:

[mjc]

Actually, right now, the most prevalent threat is not "hacking", but holes in IE and unsecure ActiveX settings.

The number of drive-by downloads of spyware/adware/crapware has increased dramatically in the last couple of months. Some of that stuff is now downright nasty...there is one that on XP sets a "security" registry key permission to try to prevent its removal (yes it tries to mimic the behavior of system files). Others are entwining themselves deeply into the registry and going with random file names and ClassIDs on install ( algorithm is based on a certain number of miliseconds and certain system details on the "victim" machine so it is nearly truly random). Many are exhibiting more and more trojan like behavior. Also there is a large upswing in "dialer" downloads. These, most often for porn, are nasty little pieces of code that will automatically dial your modem and give you a phone charge of up to several hundred dollars.

As for the router/broadband being safe from dialers...maybe, because there have been reports of dialers being installed on machines without modems and still getting the charges placed on the phone bill (most likely finding the home phone number on the host machine and back charging).

For the most part firewalls and antivirus software are totally ineffective against these threats.

Also, many of these items are now in the mainstream popup ad rotations, and not exclusively being picked up on the seemier side of the internet.

There are some things to do, one is to set all ActiveX to at least prompt if not outright disable it (when disabled there is a hard-coded IE warning box that constantly popsup reminding you that you have ActiveX disabled...:rolleyes: ). Another, and my favorite, is to install SpywareBlaster (http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/spywareblaster.html) , as it sets the kill bit for several hundred of these malicious ActiveX items. This prevents them from running, installing etc..

Also needed, in addition to a firewall and antivirus, is a good spyware scanner...either Spybot Search and Destroy or AdAware, and a good antiTrojan. (links in my sig)

[wiltrot]

I'm on a cable moden and have and use Lavasoft Ad-aware 6. I have some learning to do with all that other stuff you mention.:confused:

[mjc]

Spywareblaster is nice, run it once and then every so often to check for updates....it currently blocks over 200 ActiveX and 100 "bad" cookies (IE6 for cookie blocking).

[wiltrot]

Okay I did it.:p

[jeeza]

I am not sure I understand all this talk about IE's insecurity.
I know in the past a lot of security bugs have been uncovered for earlier versions of IE, but if you look now at all the security options available on IE, it looks to me like you couldn't really ask for more.
What browser offers all these options which are available to someoen who wants to customize his security settings ?
The one real issue I see here is the fact that the usual pc user who is surfing on internet, chatting, etc. doesn't want to be bothered too much with learning all he should know to be able to use IE.
Am I correct ?

[Budfred]

I use Netscape 7.1 which blocks unwanted popups and lets me select who leaves cookies and actively manage that while I am online. I am pretty sure that IE doesn't do these things. I would like my browser to go even further in providing some firewall functions and particularly having an alarm built in for things like hijackers and redialers. I am pretty sure that IE doesn't do those things either. I have dabbled a bit with Mozilla and Opera which also seem to provide more security options than IE.

I use IE at work and won't even visit some sites because I can't take the popups, flashing ads and so on... It is possible the limitations on what I can do with IE are partly becuase it is on a network with limited options for customizing, but I suspect even if it weren't I wouldn't be able to manage these things as well as I do at home...

[jeeza]

Agreed, IE doesn't offer the popups and cookie options, but this doesn't change the fact that it offers a lot of security options, as I remarked about in my earlier post. And as I see it, these shortcomings don't result in anything a pop-up blocker and making a habit of deleting your cookies does not remedy.
But relating to your other aspirations, I would say that of course, you could wish for a lot more for a browser to be able to handle, but how far can and should one go in this ?
I could go a bit further and ask : why shouldn't my browser be able to do everything my firewall does, and everything Spybot S&D does ?
Yes, why not indeed ? It would be interesting. No need for lots of separate programs anymore.
Just one big program which handles about anything you could find while surfing.
But then, wouldn't this start to encroach on the domain of the OS ?
I wonder if, eventually, this might not be the state of the internet some time from now.
And I must add that one of the reasons for my using other browsers besides IE is because I like tabbed browsing which I find a definite lack in IE.
And moreover, I am still of the opinion that security problems with IE usually result from users not bothering with getting on intimate terms with their computers and their software (something which Bill Gates et al. have foreseen years ago, consequently developed software and systems "for the masses").
Sorry for my late reply, I must have forgotten about this.