{"id":3285,"date":"2016-01-04T15:51:40","date_gmt":"2016-01-04T21:51:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/?p=3285"},"modified":"2016-01-04T15:51:40","modified_gmt":"2016-01-04T21:51:40","slug":"rant-do-not-download-or-run","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/rant-do-not-download-or-run\/","title":{"rendered":"RANT: DO NOT DOWNLOAD OR RUN"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>DO NOT DOWNLOAD OR RUN THE FOLLOWING PROGRAMS.<\/p>\n<p>Read on&#8230;<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_81 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\"><p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<\/div><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/rant-do-not-download-or-run\/#introduction\" >Introduction<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/rant-do-not-download-or-run\/#things-to-never-download\" >Things to NEVER download<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/rant-do-not-download-or-run\/#things-you-should-do\" >Things You SHOULD DO<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/rant-do-not-download-or-run\/#do-not%e2%80%a6\" >DO NOT&#8230;<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/rant-do-not-download-or-run\/#stick-to-popular-software-and-packages\" >Stick to Popular Software and Packages<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/rant-do-not-download-or-run\/#avoid-buggy-weak-code\" >Avoid Buggy \/ Weak Code<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/rant-do-not-download-or-run\/#summary\" >Summary<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"introduction\"><\/span>Introduction<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">&lt;RANT&gt;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">When presented with a simple instruction, most people blindly follow it.\u00a0 This is the basis of <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Social_engineering_%28security%29\" target=\"_blank\">social engineering<\/a>.\u00a0 People download complete CRAP every day, that puts them at risk, because they are manipulated.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">Don&#8217;t be manipulated.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">The best thing you can do is click &#8220;NO&#8221; or &#8220;CANCEL&#8221; when asked to install ANYTHING.<br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">I know it&#8217;s tempting.\u00a0 You see a pop up that says: &#8220;Is your computer running slow?\u00a0 Click here to speed it up!&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">DON&#8217;T DO IT<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">You see a pop-up:\u00a0 &#8220;Do you want to install xyz toolbar with that?&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">DON&#8217;T DO IT<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">DO NOT INSTALL ANYTHING FOR ANY REASON, unless you specifically found it and downloaded it, for a specific purpose.\u00a0 You want a music app&#8230; you google &#8220;greatest music app&#8221;&#8230; you download &#8220;TheGreatestMusicApp&#8221;&#8230; You install TheGreatestMusicApp.\u00a0 SUCCESS!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">Conversely&#8230;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">You download &#8220;TheGreatestMusicApp&#8221;, and it says, &#8220;SCAN MY PC FOR FREE!&#8221;\u00a0 &#8220;SPEEED BOOOST!&#8221; or whatever.\u00a0 JUST STOP!\u00a0 NO. NO. NO!\u00a0 DO NOT EVER DOWNLOAD AND RUN THIS CRAP!\u00a0 JUST SAY NO!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">EVERYTHING YOU INSTALL IS PROBABLY A VIRUS!\u00a0 If people STOPPED CLICKING YES, and just hit &#8220;CANCEL&#8221; OR &#8220;NO&#8221;, there would be virtually no adware, crapware, or spyware.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">&lt;\/RANT&gt;<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"things-to-never-download\"><\/span>Things to NEVER download<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">&lt;RANT&gt;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">Here are some key words to NOT download.\u00a0 If you see any of these, no matter how tempting, DO NOT DOWNLOAD IT!\u00a0 DO NOT INSTALL IT!\u00a0\u00a0 DO NOT RUN IT!\u00a0 JUST&#8230; DO&#8230;.NOT!!!!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">HERE IS A BY-FAR INCOMPLETE LIST OF BAD THINGS:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>&#8220;toolbar&#8221;<\/strong> &#8212; ALL tool bars are bad.\u00a0\u00a0 ALL OF THEM.\u00a0 YES, even THAT one.\u00a0 BAAAAD.\u00a0 NO INSTALL TOOOL BAAAR.\u00a0 Even the ones that sound friendly or useful.\u00a0 JUST SAY NO!\u00a0 <strong>It&#8217;s stealing your personal information and sending it to some Russian company that will steal your identity<\/strong>.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>&#8220;booster&#8221; \/ &#8220;speed booster&#8221; \/ &#8220;speed up my PC&#8221;<\/strong> &#8212; IT WILL NOT!\u00a0 Do not.\u00a0 There is no &#8220;boost&#8221;.\u00a0 There is only pain and agony.\u00a0 <strong>And maybe, some asshole in Jackassistan is going to encrypt your files and then extort you, by holding your files for ransom.<\/strong>\u00a0 DO NOT.\u00a0 INSTALL.\u00a0 ANY.\u00a0 BOOSTER. EVER.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>&#8220;scan&#8221;<\/strong> &#8212; BUT IT&#8217;S HELPING ME!!! NO!!! It&#8217;s a trap!\u00a0 &#8220;Scan&#8221; means <strong>&#8220;scare you in to buying&#8221;<\/strong>.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>&#8220;download helper&#8221; \/ &#8220;download manager&#8221;<\/strong> &#8212; Here&#8217;s a hint:\u00a0 (it&#8217;s NOT HELPING, and it&#8217;s NOT MANAGING).\u00a0 How is downloading and installing some file, going to help you download some other file. NO. DO NOT EVER DO THIS.\u00a0 If you don&#8217;t get the file, go to another website! <strong>&#8220;Download Manager&#8221; is Chinese or Russian for &#8220;install spyware&#8221;<\/strong>.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>&#8220;coupon&#8221; \/ &#8220;deal&#8221;<\/strong> &#8212; Legitimate resellers will post legitimate coupons on legitimate websites.\u00a0 You don&#8217;t need a toolbar to get coupons.\u00a0 All you get are &#8220;ad words&#8221; that monitor and modify your browsing activity, and highlight &#8220;interesting&#8221; words with a link to sponsored websites.\u00a0 &#8220;Coupon&#8221; or &#8220;deal&#8221; is a code word for <strong>&#8220;SHOVING POP UP ADS IN TO YOUR FACE&#8221;<\/strong>.\u00a0 Go ahead and install this if YOU WANT POP UP ADS SHOVED IN YOUR FACE.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>&#8220;plugin&#8221;<\/strong> &#8212; OH the classic.\u00a0<em><strong> &#8220;A plugin is required in order to view this content.&#8221;<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0 RUN FAR AWAY!!\u00a0 That&#8217;s code for, <strong>&#8220;you&#8217;re trying to view something illegal, and by clicking yes, you will install a virus or ransomware, that will MESS UP YOUR COMPUTER&#8221;<\/strong>.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>&#8220;free trial&#8221;<\/strong> &#8212; NOT FREE.\u00a0 NOT TRIAL.\u00a0 <strong>Spyware or scareware<\/strong>.\u00a0 Guaranteed.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Oh, I recognize this company!<\/strong>\u00a0 Right.\u00a0 <strong>No, you don&#8217;t<\/strong>.\u00a0 UNLESS you go to company xyz website, DO NOT INSTALL xyz software.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">&lt;\/RANT&gt;<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"things-you-should-do\"><\/span>Things You SHOULD DO<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Download ONLY from trusted sources<\/strong>.\n<ul>\n<li>SourceForge<\/li>\n<li>GitHub<\/li>\n<li>rpm.net \/ kernel.org (Linux)<\/li>\n<li>C\/NET<\/li>\n<li>Official repository or website for xyz application<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">&lt;RANT&gt; <strong>DO NOT EVER DOWNLOAD SOMETHING THAT YOU DIDN&#8217;T ASK FOR<\/strong>.\u00a0 I&#8217;m repeating myself, but DON&#8217;T EVER DOWNLOAD ANYTHING THAT YOU DIDN&#8217;T ASK FOR. &lt;\/RANT&gt;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><strong>Scan every download with your Antivirus software<\/strong>.\u00a0 Most antivirus programs allow you to right-click the program or folder, and select <strong>scan for viruses<\/strong>.\u00a0 <span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">&lt;RANT&gt; JUST DO THIS ALWAYS!\u00a0 ALWAYS!\u00a0\u00a0 Oh&#8230; except&#8230;. NO&#8230; JUST ALWAYS DO IT! &lt;\/RANT&gt;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><strong>When you click &#8220;Install&#8221; or &#8220;Setup&#8221;, look at every screen<\/strong>.\u00a0 Do not blindly click &#8220;Next Next OK&#8221;.\u00a0 If one screen says, &#8220;free trial&#8221;, or any of the NEGATORY code words, just cancel.\u00a0 Also, never select &#8220;express&#8221; install.\u00a0 Always do &#8220;custom install&#8221; if the option is a available, because some installers hide crapware install screens that you can only DESELECT during a custom install.\u00a0 Whatever benefit you think you will gain from installing the app, if you can&#8217;t bypass the spyware, you&#8217;re causing yourself MORE PAIN.\u00a0\u00a0 When you install spyware and viruses, you have no one to thank but yourself!<\/li>\n<li><strong>Copy any link in to Google<\/strong>.\u00a0 If the link is legitimate, Google will respond with the link in its results.\u00a0 If not, Google will pop up a warning, claiming that this might not be a legitimate site.<\/li>\n<li><strong>When in doubt, Google<\/strong>.\u00a0 If you have a question about something, GOOGLE IT.\u00a0 Type the message or program in to Google.\u00a0 <strong>Google will give you a fairly honest assessment about the application in question<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>DO NOT RUN INTERNET EXPLORER.<\/strong>\u00a0 The big, friendly, blue &#8220;<strong><span style=\"color: #00ccff;\">e<\/span><\/strong>&#8221; will both invite and allow every piece of malicious software on to your hard drive, where it&#8217;s almost impossible to remove.\u00a0 RUN <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mozilla.org\/en-US\/firefox\/new\/?product=firefox-3.6.8&amp;os=osx%E2%8C%A9=en-US\" target=\"_blank\">FIREFOX<\/a> OR <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/chrome\/#eula\" target=\"_blank\">CHROME<\/a> as your primary browser.<\/li>\n<li><strong>BLUE &#8220;<span style=\"color: #00ccff;\">e<\/span>&#8221; MEANS VIRUSES.<\/strong>\u00a0 Don&#8217;t use the blue &#8220;<strong><span style=\"color: #00ccff;\">e<\/span><\/strong>&#8220;.\u00a0 EVER.\u00a0 <strong>Delete all the blue &#8220;<span style=\"color: #00ccff;\">e<\/span>&#8221; icons<\/strong>.\u00a0 Make sure your wife, kids, and guests know, or log in as them and delete all of their blue &#8220;<strong><span style=\"color: #00ccff;\">e<\/span><\/strong>&#8221; icons.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Force Guests to log in as &#8220;Guest&#8221;.<\/strong>\u00a0 By default, the Guest account is disabled.\u00a0 Enable Guest access, create a Guest password, and enforce that your guests need to log in as Guest.\u00a0 Guest has no permissions to install software, and can&#8217;t infect your system with viruses (intentionally or unintentionally).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"do-not%e2%80%a6\"><\/span>DO NOT&#8230;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>DO NOT Click on links from your e-mail<\/strong>.\u00a0 Go to the website, or go to Google, and type the name of the company.\u00a0 E.g. google, &#8220;Pizza hut&#8221;, to make sure you get the right website, and not some Russian scammer trying to steal your credit card.\u00a0 &#8220;<em>Oh you got a special deal<\/em>&#8221; &#8212; GOOGLE for the deal!\u00a0 A known, trusted link will show up, or maybe the deal is fake!\u00a0 <span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">&lt;RANT&gt; DID YOU EVER THINK OF THAT??? SCAMMERS TRYING TO CHEAT YOU WITH A FAKE DEAL?\u00a0 It could never happen!\u00a0 &lt;\/RANT&gt;\u00a0 <\/span>I know you think this is unfathomable, but it&#8217;s fathomable.\u00a0 Google has built-in algorithms that will protect you from bad links.\u00a0 TRUST GOOGLE.<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/li>\n<li><strong>DO NOT Install ANYTHING EVER<\/strong>.\u00a0 You have all the software you need.\u00a0 If not, GOOGLE FOR IT.\u00a0 DO NOT install something, thinking, &#8220;I might use this later&#8221;.\u00a0 You&#8217;ll never use it.\u00a0 If you need it later, INSTALL IT LATER.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"stick-to-popular-software-and-packages\"><\/span>Stick to Popular Software and Packages<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Every software developer has their own solution.\u00a0 Instead, stick to standards.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Open compressed files:\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.7-zip.org\/download.html\" target=\"_blank\">7-Zip<\/a><\/li>\n<li>View videos:\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.videolan.org\/vlc\/download-windows.html\" target=\"_blank\">VLC<\/a><\/li>\n<li>View Acrobat PDF (Portable Document Format) Files:\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/chrome\/#eula\" target=\"_blank\">Chrome Browser<\/a><\/li>\n<li>View Adobe Flash:\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/chrome\/#eula\" target=\"_blank\">Chrome Browser<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"avoid-buggy-weak-code\"><\/span>Avoid Buggy \/ Weak Code<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Don&#8217;t install Java unless you really need it.\u00a0 Most people DO NOT NEED JAVA.\u00a0 Uninstall it.<\/li>\n<li>Don&#8217;t use Adobe Flash or PDF (Acrobat) plugins &#8211; use <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/chrome\/#eula\" target=\"_blank\">Google Chrome<\/a> instead.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Avoiding these will save you innumerable updates, and remove the possibility of someone exploiting vulnerable code running on your PC.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"summary\"><\/span>Summary<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>DO NOT click on any pop-up ads suggesting that your PC is broken, in need of repair, needs a free &#8220;scan&#8221;, nor offering to speed your PC up<\/li>\n<li>DO NOT install any toolbar ever.<\/li>\n<li>DO NOT install any download managers.<\/li>\n<li>DO NOT install any software offering a &#8220;free trial&#8221;<\/li>\n<li>DO NOT install any coupon bar \/ deal bar<\/li>\n<li>If a website suggests that you need a plugin to view its content, use Chrome or Firefox.\u00a0 If you can&#8217;t view the website using Chrome or Firefox WITHOUT the plugin, you MOST LIKELY don&#8217;t need to be viewing that content nor visiting that website.<\/li>\n<li>DO NOT install software &#8220;you think you recognize&#8221;.<\/li>\n<li>DO download only from trusted sources, such as the software developer&#8217;s website<\/li>\n<li>DO scan every download with your antivirus software<\/li>\n<li>DO use Google to help detect malicious software and links, by copying link or messages in to Google.\u00a0 Legitimate links will appear in the search results, while malicious ones should display a warning.<\/li>\n<li>DO look at every screen while installing a new program.\u00a0 Select &#8220;custom setup&#8221; where available, and look for screens that say &#8220;install this toolbar&#8221; or &#8220;install free trial of&#8230;&#8221;.\u00a0 TURN THEM OFF during installation, or bail out and find another download site.<\/li>\n<li>DO NOT run Internet Explorer.\u00a0 Instead, use Chrome or Firefox, and just delete the blue &#8220;<strong><span style=\"color: #00ccff;\">e<\/span><\/strong>&#8221; icon.\u00a0 Make sure to delete it from the profiles of your wife, kids, and &#8220;Guest&#8221;<\/li>\n<li>DO Enable the &#8220;Guest&#8221; user profile and force guests to use it.\u00a0 This keeps people from installing crapware because they think you need it, or because they think THEY need it.<\/li>\n<li>DO NOT click on links from e-mail.\u00a0 Instead, go directly to the company&#8217;s website, or use Google to find the right website.<\/li>\n<li>DO NOT install anything ever, unless you specifically need and want it installed.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>There are a lot of rules here, but they all have one common theme:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>ASSUME EVERY LINK OR PROGRAM IS DESIGNED TO STEAL YOUR IDENTITY OR BREAK YOUR COMPUTER.\u00a0 <strong>Handle with care, accordingly<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>DO NOT DOWNLOAD OR RUN THE FOLLOWING PROGRAMS. Read on&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3285","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-rants","category-tech-recommendations"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3285","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3285"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3285\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3363,"href":"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3285\/revisions\/3363"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3285"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3285"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/justinparrtech.com\/JustinParr-Tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3285"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}