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My compter was infected- is Adobe Flash Player a problem

Discussion in 'Technology' started by Mark(study), May 15, 2009.

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  1. Mark(study)

    Mark(study) F1 Veteran

    Oct 13, 2001
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    #1 Mark(study), May 15, 2009
    I see that Adobe Flash Player plug-ins seem to be required for most modern web sites to run correctly.

    After just fighting off a computer virus and trying to harden my computer against future attacks.... can anyone tell me about Adobe Flash Player? Is it the industry standard? Is it a weakness?

    I'm just a novice but it seems to be a security weakness? Anything to worry about? Any other options?

    Thanks
     
  2. Etcetera

    Etcetera Two Time F1 World Champ
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    #2 Etcetera, May 15, 2009
    What OS? What browser? Hardware and software firewall?
     
  3. Etcetera

    Etcetera Two Time F1 World Champ
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    #3 Etcetera, May 15, 2009
    Going to assume XP/Vista and IE.

    Answer is yes, trojans and viruses can be delivered via flash.

    Some tips. Don't use IE. Use firefox. Make sure your flash player is fully up to date, as well as your OS. Don't use IE. Also, don't use IE. Use both a hardware and software firewall. Don't use IE.

    Adding a HOSTS file can help. Here's one that's updated regularly:http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm

    Finally, don't use IE.
     
  4. Mark(study)

    Mark(study) F1 Veteran

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    #4 Mark(study), May 15, 2009
    I'm just using a standard HP home computer that's 4 years old. Windows XP, running with standard Norton anti virus, and browsing with Firefox.

    Sorry, I'm not much of a computer guy.... but I just noticed that the Flash Player seems to cut through everything so fast... seems like a potential security risk? But its everywhere?
     
  5. Etcetera

    Etcetera Two Time F1 World Champ
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    #5 Etcetera, May 15, 2009
    Last edited: May 15, 2009
    It's everywhere and the security risk isn't a big deal with Firefox since 99% of the flash trojans need IE to work. My VM install of XP with Firefox has Firefox's cache full of trojans, but they cannot do anything.
     
  6. Mark(study)

    Mark(study) F1 Veteran

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    #6 Mark(study), May 15, 2009
    Thanks...very helpful

    I'll look into the Host file and ask my computer tech about my (HW firewall).
    I'm going to call out a tech to look at both my computers, and I just wanted to be able to ask the right questions.
     
  7. Etcetera

    Etcetera Two Time F1 World Champ
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    #7 Etcetera, May 15, 2009
    The HOSTS file is a simple text file that your PC looks at and blocks whatever is on that list. It is by no means complete protection on its own, but it can really add to the overall protection of your PC.
     
  8. SPEEDCORE

    SPEEDCORE Four Time F1 World Champ

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    #8 SPEEDCORE, May 17, 2009
    While you're at it remove Adobe Reader that is full of exploits. :eek:

    It is an internet standard but Google doesn't index any information found in Flash so what a lot of sites do these days is only use flash for logo/menus or marketing new products etc.

    There are constant new 0-day exploits for Flash and Adobe are just slow to fix them and while most of the attacks affect IE users, Firefox and Safari/Chrome aren't safe either. Lucky for Firefox they have lots of plugins available that help make it a bit more secure. You can install flashblock on FF and then flash doesn't load at all but you still have the option to turn it on/off :eek:

    HOSTS file is good only for known "bad" sites as well as disabling ads but the malware coders are a pretty creative bunch...
    For XP users always have AV installed(avast! or AVG are free), malwarebytes(basic version is free) sweeps every week and a software firewall(comodo or online armor both free and top of the class) that if all else fails tells you that a trojan is about to inject code.

    Good Luck :eek:
     

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