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brianlovin / security-checklist

A checklist for staying safe on the internet
https://brianlovin.com/security
MIT License
925 stars 76 forks source link

Add check for the antivirus software (desktop/mobile) #5

Open strayiker opened 5 years ago

strayiker commented 5 years ago

This is the most important part of security! popular software

brianlovin commented 5 years ago

I'm insanely skeptical of antivirus software; can we pull together some really trustworthy sources on this topic to determine the value? Also we should probably have resources broken down by platform (eg. macos needs may be different from windows)

strayiker commented 5 years ago

It's first line of defense against wide range of attacks for most users (mostly non-IT users). It can:

Most of popular software are cross-platform. E.g:

For me antivirus it's in 99.9% cases useless too. But it obviously can save others. Idk any trustworthy sources about it, sorry.

brandonweeks commented 5 years ago

It is essentially impossible for AV software to add value on mobile platforms, since the APIs to introspect the system meaningfully don't exist for security reasons.

Windows Defender is arguably the best option for Windows.

macOS has Gatekeeper, which when enabled should be far more effective than AV.

I doubt Linux AV software is detecting anything other than Windows viruses, alas I don't have any data to back that up.

llahnoraa commented 5 years ago

I agreed it's skeptical because you know virus writer works for antivirus ;) This will be interesting topic. I'm curious about which antivirus is good.

dmleong commented 5 years ago

I would be curious to see the benefits of an antivirus software versus browser extensions like Privacy Badger and UBlock. Does anyone have any resources comparing these?

strayiker commented 5 years ago

Here are some of the features that my AV provides (windows):

dmleong commented 5 years ago

Thanks @strayiker. I think this is an interesting case of less technical users versus more technical users! Seems like having all of these benefits in one spot is useful for folks who just want to install one thing instead of a multitude of browser extensions. I'm in favor of making it easy for people to be safer 👍

brandonweeks commented 5 years ago

Less technical users should be steered towards platforms that have secure defaults, such as:

Using Windows with third party antivirus software has been common advice for decades and it isn't working. The app store model pioneered by Apple has proven to be a far better alternative for most users.

daniel-vera-g commented 5 years ago

It's first line of defense against wide range of attacks for most users (mostly non-IT users). It can:

  • prevent opening/installation of malicious software/file/web site e.t.c.
  • protect against spy actions (typing, web cam, plugged devices and others.)
  • block ad
  • protect or notify about OS vulnerabilities
  • protect your money operations
  • e.t.c

Most of popular software are cross-platform. E.g:

  • nod32: win, mac, linux, mobile
  • kaspersky: win, mac, linux, mobile
  • avg: win, mac, linux?, mobile
  • avast: win, mac, linux, mobile
  • avira: win, mac, mobile

For me antivirus it's in 99.9% cases useless too. But it obviously can save others. Idk any trustworthy sources about it, sorry.

I don't use any of this antivirus sofware, but could help a lot of people get rid of nasty things with malwarebytes. I think it's worth naming in the context of windows.

daniel-vera-g commented 5 years ago

I would be curious to see the benefits of an antivirus software versus browser extensions like Privacy Badger and UBlock. Does anyone have any resources comparing these?

Antivirus software sometimes(sometimes just spam) keep your OS safe. Browser Extensions help you mostly with unwanted javascript, cookies, ads... In a nutshell:

  1. Antivirus -> OS(OS Scurity)
  2. Browser Extensions -> Keeping your data safe from websites on the net.

You can live without an Antivirus if you don't do stupid things. But nowadays surfing the web without some basic extensions gets really nasty.

daniel-vera-g commented 5 years ago

Less technical users should be steered towards platforms that have secure defaults, such as:

  • Chrome OS
  • iOS
  • macOS with Gatekeeper
  • Windows 10 in S mode

Using Windows with third-party antivirus software has been common advice for decades and it isn't working. The app store model pioneered by Apple has proven to be a far better alternative for most users.

If you don't need software like Photoshop or Office, you can also try some User-friendly Linux distros. I've been having fewer problems with Linux than with windows for all this time. And in comparison to the past, there is a lot of good software also available for Linux.

jgallias commented 5 years ago

I have to agree with @brandonweeks here, the biggest issue people have on Windows/macOS is just not doing their updates. There are viable alternative platforms now that won't let people shoot themselves in the foot.