"Chuck Walbourn [MSFT]" <chuckw@xxxxxx> wrote in
news:C0FABFD2-A03F-40C3-AE9B-B99A14ED1D7D@xxxxxx:
Quote:
Quote:
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>>> Windows would operate alot smoother if UAC is disabled. If you have
>>> an adequate security solution installed on your comp, then you don't
>>> need UAC on....or Windows Defender for that matter.
>
> Most security professionals would disagree.
>
> Firewalls help, but lots of applications list themselves as an
> exception which opens up the application to unsoliticed traffic. Virus
> scanners on average find less than 20% of currently active viruses the
> first few days of release, and is only up to about 50% by the time the
> virus is a month old. Now, you really should use a personal firewall,
> virus scanner, and e-mail protection, but it's like a flu shot, it
> often works but not 100% of the time.
>
> There are things built into Windows Vista that are not part of UAC
> that helps, particularly around the security permissions for the
> background services. There's also been tons of automatic code review
> done and thousands of fixes made. Again, this all helps.
>
> Computer security is about 'defense in depth'. If someone gets past
> the Firewall (easy for say a peer-to-peer game that lists itself as an
> exception on the Firewall), gets past your virus & spyware scanner
> (easy by just targeting a well-known network-facing application, like
> say a multiplayer game), and finds a vulnerability, if that
> application is running with full administrator rights your machine can
> be owned. In fact, if you ever do find a virus or rootkit, the only
> way you can be sure you have removed it is to flatten your machine and
> not move any of the data over.
>
> If on the other hand, you have UAC enabled and the application that is
> hacked was running as Standard User, you can know that it won't have
> infected the system files. It's much harder to create a rootkit
> without admin rights.
> Well, i'm not a security professional, though I know a bit about
security. Like how not to keep personal data on a computer that has
Internet access.
Everything else, feel free to take, I could care less if you end up with
a HD full of porn you can download from anywhere.
What do security professionals say when asked, "Which OS do you trust
the most with data security?"
I'd wager Vista isn't at the top of that list.
Also how many users, when presented with a UAC, just click continue,
even if they don't know why they are getting that message? It's nice to
get a heads-up, but that doesn't stop people from clicking through all
the time.
I forget if UAC says anything other than "Soandso app is trying to
access system files".
Considering how many times I see that message you'd think I'd have it
memorized.
--
-A.