Spywareblaster and Firefox

[John Bull]

I know this kind of subject has been raised before, but not the specific matter I am concerned with.
Anti-virus programs are basically "attack" systems, that try to identify the attacker and kill him. SWB is not, it is a defensive system that lays a minefield which catches the bad guys and BANG up they go. It protects the "target".

Now, SWB does protect both IE and Firefox, BUT it does not give Firefox an equal treatment as it does to IE.

You can activate a "system snap shot", protect the IE Home page from being hijacked, create a "hosts safe" backup and block Macromedia flash on IE, BUt none of these actions are relative to Firefox.

So, what real good is SWB to Firefox users if all the preventative measures are related to IE ? We are just left with a doubtful minefield.

OK, I can "try" to contact Javacool and ask them why SWB is no real use to Firefox but it just may be as useful as asking a turnip the time of day. Most of these conglomerates are unapproachable and simply toss out these user systems without providing any recourse to query. Google is a prime example of "no contact".

Has anybody on this Forum an intelligent answer to my queries ?

[1972vet]

Greetigns John Bull and Welcome to the Forums,

Although your query is not applicable to this particular forum, rather than having it moved, I'll attempt to quickly resolve your issue and then see about archiving this thread.

Has anybody on this Forum an intelligent answer to my queries ?

I'll give this the ole college try...

Now, SWB does protect both IE and Firefox, BUT it does not give Firefox an equal treatment as it does to IE.

You can activate a "system snap shot", protect the IE Home page from being hijacked, create a "hosts safe" backup and block Macromedia flash on IE, BUt none of these actions are relative to Firefox.

In answer to your several points:
1) The system snap shot is just that...a restore point of the system, not the browser. The feature will create a restore point regardless of what browser is installed.

2) Your concern of the home page hijack is valid, however if you have swb's default features enabled, the kill bits that are set in the registry will act as a barrier from within the system, not the browser.

3) Once again, a "hosts safe" backup is within the system. Most users "hosts file" contains only what default entries are there from the original installation of the operating system. Creating a backup copy is valuable regardless of what browser is installed, in the remote case that some malicious program alters the hosts file...with a backup handy, the damage can be reversed by a simple restore of the backup made.

4) The "Flash killer" feature is, once again, a system wide protection that would prevent flash from playing in a web page regardless of the browser...the protective feature comes by setting the kill bit in the registry, not the browser.

I hope this is helpful information for you as SpywareBlaster is indeed a very useful tool that I recommend in these various help forums on the web.

[John Bull]

Thanks a million, you are a real pal.

Every point you explain is perfectly clear and I am now quite happy that SWB`s love affair with IE still protects me in my love affair with FF. I have IE8 and seldom use it - no need to as FF operates superbly in all gears.

Not sure what you mean by "family site". I thought it was a site where we can pose PC problems and questions that fellow cyber-enthusiasts can pounce on and provide answers to. Is this not the case ? Perhaps I am on the wrong bus.

By the way, may I wish you health and happiness in your life, it looks like you deserve every ounce of it as a "vet". You read my profile ? Although I would never call myself a "vet", I have done my share of military mischief and enjoyed every second of it.
My very best wishes to you ; JB.

[1972vet]

Not sure what you mean by "family site". I thought it was a site where we can pose PC problems and questions that fellow cyber-enthusiasts can pounce on and provide answers to. Is this not the case ? Perhaps I am on the wrong bus.

Right bus...wrong seat perhaps? This is nothing I've said. Perhaps you read that in another thread? Regardless, this is indeed a family friendly web site, however, it should have nothing to do with asking questions about PC problems.
I merely mentioned that this particular forum isn't appropriate for such a question as this one relates only to Virus/Trojan/Spyware help for those who've become infected and cannot resolve the issue on their own.

You can read through the list of forums Here:
http://www.techsupportforum.com/
...and select which one you think is appropriate for your particular issue. I would think for a question such as this, "General Computer Security" would have been more suitable. However, it's fine for now...and if there is nothing else, can we consider this a resolved issue so we can archive this thread? Thanks for visiting with us!