IditaProject Forum

It is race time 2019!! As I have grown to expect each year I pick up a digital bug or two as I rapidly access some unfamiliar sites while attempting to get the "most current" and "most revealing" information about this sport that I follow with vigor.

I just updated my browsers, anti-virus, anti-malware software and my Cleaner software, and then ran a full scan and restarted all my devices. I will do this regularly during racing season, particularly between the Yukon Quest and the Iditarod and then again following the Iditarod. In spite of my best efforts and reliable software, the trolls manage to infect me, so my advice is be diligent in protecting yourself and your data.

Enjoy the races, safely

Good advice, TX. Thanks.

I deep cleaned again today -- 1 Potentially Unwanted Program (PUP) found and removed. Ready for the Yukon Quest.

Bump up for safety!

txbennett wrote:In spite of my best efforts and reliable software, the trolls manage to infect me

All those "anti-virus" and cleaner programs don't help as such.
On Windows 10, the built-in Windows Defender is quite capable. I personally do not use any additional anti-virus software because it slows everything down.
What I really recommend is an ad-blocker or a browser with a built-in ad-blocker or, for those who are familiar with using the Windows Explorer, a modified HOSTS file.
This is a Windows system file which has a long list of unwanted web addresses which then get sent into digital nirvana when you stumble upon a link and try to click on it.
The modified file can be downloaded here: http://winhelp2002.mvps.org/hosts.htm. This is quite a robust way of blocking ads, malware and the likes.

It's also useful to NOT use HTML mail view in your mail program, or use a mail program that allows for "plain-text" view. Example in difference:
in a HTML mail, you may click on Iditarod News because you think it's a page with Iditarod News, but in reality you are sent to the Yukon Quest website. In plain-text view, you would see

Code: Select all

<a href="http://www.yukonquest.com">Iditarod News</>

which is ugly, but at least you could see the real link (a href=).

It also helps to have a modern browser. And maybe use a portable installation (Opera portable, Vivaldi portable, Firefox portable) and use different browsers for different purposes. I have one browser for online banking, one browser for online shopping, one browser for only surfing, and one browser for logging into Facebook, if I must. All browsers are cleaned automatically when I close them.

On a smartphone with Android it's much more difficult to stay safe, as many apps don't offer the transparency and functionality of their Windows counterparts. It's more difficult to see whether a link sent in a mail is indeed what it appears to be, which is why I only click on a mailed link on mobile if I absolutely have to.

If you have a personal question regarding this topic, feel free to send me a PM

How do you get a browser to clean automatically when you close it? Is any particular browser better for any particular activity? I just tend to do everything in Chrome, but use Firefox once in awhile.

Done! Thanks!

Done following the Quest and ready for Irod! My computer picked up a PUP (appropriate from a dog race) and a Windows 10 "MEMORY MANAGEMENT" problem. All fixed now. My experience is that Irod is more contagious than the Quest!