IE7 will prevent IDN spoofing

[movil]

Personally I would never use again IE. It gived me a lot of problems in the past and every time you need to install a good antivirus in order to keep on using your Windows installation without troyans and advertising pop-ups.
I switched to Firefox, that I use in my laptop with XP, and also in my Ubuntu Linux distribution.

[Rubber Duck]

If you are using the Internet without Norton Internet Security, you are living on borrowed time, irrespective of which browser you are using.

Best Regards
Dave Wrixon

[Domagon]

Guess you didn't hear about the latest WMF exploit ... Norton was of zero help to many people who got infected.

And most all people using Windows, regardless of browser, is vulnerable ... merely browsing files in file manager is enough ... more ominious, there are confirmed reports that people can be infected via Google Desktop. Filtering the extension is of no help because WMF can be easily disguised / legitimately embedded within in some other types of files; Windows often ignores extensions anyways and relies on the file header for local files and the content type header for remotely downloaded files, such as by web browser.

Virus scanners, etc are useful for sure, but are no where near 100% ... many people tend to place more confidence in technology, in particular consumer based products, then they should...

Ie. Firefox ... it's had its share of nasty exploits, and still has numerous security issues. Not sure what the solution is for most computer users who want to run Windows-like apps beyond encouraging them to switch to using a Mac.

What an IDN API is expected is complex and prone to error ... heck, if MS can't get rendering of a graphics format right (heck, this is the second WMF flaw in the past month [some suspect the last patch made this exploit even worse]), then it's a stretch to believe MS, and other manufactures for that matter, to get IDNs even close to 100%; IDN resolution will be "best guess" for quite awhile, like it or not.

Yes, there is a need for IDNs and they will continue to become more popular / widespread, but as with any tool, there are shortcomings one needs to be aware of; being honest about the various limitations/flaws will be more beneficial in the longrun than blind trust where it's not warranted.

Ron

[ctc]

Get AVG..its free and is better than any paid antivirus (mcafee/norton) i have used

[touchring]

I would suggest installing the free ZoneAlarm - it's irritating for the first few weeks (and most people uninstall after a few days), each time you run a new app, it will prompt authorization request, but by blocking every new application, it helps prevent spyware or trojan from installing itself.

[none]

I use both AVG and the free Zonealarm suggested by ctc and touchring.

You'll have to dig a little to find the free ZA and some of the upselling is a little annoying, but it's worth it.

[mole]

Guess you didn't hear about the latest WMF exploit ... Norton was of zero help to many people who got infected.

Agree, you need NIS as well as regular installation of all the security patches Microsoft dishes out.

Having said that, NIS is a solid worker, so long as you update it regularly.

[Rubber Duck]

I agree with you on this. I have only had two problems with NIS in 3 years.

The problem is that if you have a new threat, it takes Norton a while to identify and combat that threat. If you are unlucky enough to be in the first wave of an emerging threat, doesn't matter what you use, you are on your own.

Best Regards
Dave Wrixon

[cooljeba]

As FF is an open source project everytime a bug is detected they update it immediately which can never happen with Microsoft I.E you have to wait for months sometimes wait for the SP.
Also most of the spyware are written to work with I.E for eg browser jacking etc so in that way FF is much safe. Also FF has a zillion extenstions and themes ...

..:: peace ::..
Jeba