Posted 11/05/09 at 06:19:45 PM by Ryan Whitwam

Security firm Sophos recently took it upon itself to run some tests on Windows 7 sans anti-virus software. Sophos used ten unique viruses found in circulation and attempted to infect Windows 7. While many may have thought this would be a foregone conclusion, they wanted to make a point. Microsoft claims that User Account Control (UAC) is more secure in Windows 7. Does it actually make a difference?

Sure enough, eight out of ten viruses ran without problem on a stock install of Windows 7 without User Account Control. With UAC active, an additional threat was actually blocked, and the other two still failed to run. Overall, UAC didn’t make much difference in virus protection. So yes, you still need to run an anti-virus on Windows 7. There’s been a lot of positive buzz around Redmond’s new release, just don’t let that stuff go to your head. 

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Posted 03/13/09 at 09:15:46 AM by Paul Lilly

Password. Letmein. Asdf. Blahblah. Monkey. 1234. These are just some of the most commonly used passwords being used around the web, but even worse than using a boneheaded password is using the same one for every registered website. Nothing new, right?

Apparently it is, at least for one-third of respondents who participated in an online survey conducted by security outfit Sophos. According to Sophos, only 19 percent of respondents said they never use the same password for multiple websites. Almost half admitted to using a few different passwords, and 33 percent fessed up to using the same password all the time.

To state the obvious, using a single password for multiple websites makes it easy for hackers to wreak more havoc should the password become compromised. But obvious as basic security may seem, it's not being practiced by many. Recent examples include high profile Twitter account hijackings, including the ones belonging to President Barack Obama, Britney Spears, and Fox News, and the discovery that the population at large continues to use unimaginative passwords, such as selecting their first name.

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