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How To Avoid a Botnet Infection?
Taco Cowboy writes "Two of the networks in the company I work for have been zombified by different botnets. They are taken off the grid as we speak. We thought we had taken precautions against infection, such as firewall and anti-viral programs, but for some reasons we have failed. Is there any list of precautionary steps available?" I'd suggest port blocking 80 for any computer that is detected running a web browser, but that might prevent some percentage of legitimate work.
No, you don't "have" to do anything that you didn't sign on for.
Windows has a very definite issue with regards to security, even 7- anyone telling you otherwise is selling something. You should consider re-thinking your ideas about whether you "have" to do it or not- if only on the security angle and the REAL total cost of ownership (which is more than just the purchase and support contract prices by a longshot...). Ask Ernie Ball's IT people about whether or not you "have" to have Windows- you'll be surprised at what they or Ball himself will tell you there.
You don't "have" to support MacOS or Linux- but if you want to do your job right, you'll do it anyway. Moreover, you'll actually lower your support efforts in doing it.
I am not merely a "consumer" or a "taxpayer". I am a Citizen of the State of Texas
"Newer Windows are just as secure as Linux/BSD."
Really? Out of the box? Wanna take the Pepsi Challenge on that? I have some WIndows servers that are pretty secure but not because WIndows is. Rather, because they are firewalled to hell and have a third party IDS running on them that prevents even casual copying to or execution within any system space without red flagging it for permission.
This issue is, in fact, Windows "Server." I put server in quotes because frankly it's hard to take seriously any server that has IE and My Documents on the console default.