Two free Windows malware tools updated

As I have pointed out on more than one occasion, Microsoft Windows is under continuous and concerted attack, often successful--over half of all PCs running Windows are infected with malware. We need tools that help keep us safe as we use Windows; it's even better when these tools are both excellent and free. Two good tools have been updated to be even better (and the Windows Secrets Newsletter is an excellent resource):
Two great security tools get free updates

While I don't use Microsoft Security Essentials myself, it IS a very functional anti-malware package (better than most commercial packages), and useful--but I make sure to install Secunia PSI on every Windows PC I touch; the new version has useful added functions.

I also have a Links page with more security-related software listed.

Clickjacking -- and a fix

There has been a lot of talk this week about a newly discovered vulnerability in all modern browsers running under any operating system, including all versions of Microsoft Windows, Linux, BSD, and Mac OS X. Called clickjacking, it's a means of hijacking (redirecting) clicks on links within browsers:
Computerworld article or http://tinyurl.com/3rmfac

Fortunately, a useful fix is available. I have recommended the use of the Mozilla Firefox browser for quite a while. It runs on Windows, OS X, BSD, and Linux. The important information here is that Firefox supports add-ons -- plug-ins that add useful features. That's where the solution comes from; it's yet another reason to (mostly) abandon Microsoft's Internet Explorer under Windows.

I am a long-time user of the NoScript add-on for Firefox, which blocks scripts (which are usually JavaScript-based) from running in the browser -- unless you allow it on a per-site basis (easily managed). It has just been updated to add useful protection against this very vulnerability.

Managing add-ons in Firefox is pretty easy. Go to the Tools menu in the menu-bar top-of-page, select Add-ons. When the dialog window opens, enter noscript in the search box near the top of the window and install the add-on from there. There may be other useful add-ons of interest to users; see the Firefox add-ons page for more information, including the ability to browse add-ons by category.