KajitiSouls Wrote:Apparently something called "hacks" doesn't occur to you. It's the axe or crowbar used to break down your door.
So let's say you have a router which you use to connect to the internet. It's protected by WEP encryption, a standard type readily available to anyone. Assuming viruses and the like don't exist, hooray, you're safe browsing the internet!
WRONG!!
Someone just cracks your encryption and gains access to your router, whether they're local or a million nodes away. It's already easy to see that they can compromise the router and do w/e the hell they want with it, and they're only a few steps away from fking over your computer.
WEP cracking is something an intermediate level computer programmer can do (I can't, but I understand the concepts behind it) and unfortunately it's pretty available for anyone looking for the software to do so. I only used WEP as an example; other encryption methods and protocols can be used, but who's to say they will be safe? No Such Agency might have already done so and are snooping around in your files right now (although they're much more successful at subverting security protocol than strongarming the encryption).
Them attackers don't care if your backdoor is open or closed. Spidey, I hope for your sake you don't keep anything valuable on that computer of yours, or you could be underestimating the attackers out in the world.
Usually in most security scenarios, people will just call it good when the value gained from attacking your computer is less than the value of the resources necessary to attack you. If said attack is only software, it's virtually free. If all they're doing is trying to compromise your computer and make your day miserable, they're going to jump at you.
Too bad I don't use WEP because I know it's shit. WEP is pretty low level crap, it's pretty low tier. Also, learn to set up your network more securely and you won't have a problem at all. Restrict access to any MAC that isn't yours. Use a strong password, not "hotdog" or "my mom" or "hack me caus I suck cock". Set it up so your network informs you that someone else made a connection. Restrict it to only allowing x connections at a time. There are plenty of security options available to you, if you can learn to utilize them correctly then you shouldn't have to worry unless you're specifically targeted by dudes who know their shit. But in that case, you probably have some pretty important information on your system. If your information is that important then you're probably not some average joe.
By the way, your real time virus protection wouldn't be catching those dudes snooping around your system unless they're planting stuff in your system as well. A firewall is different from antivirus software. They often come bundled in with each other, but they're not the same so don't mix them up. Of course I have a firewall running 24/7, but that's not the same as having an antivirus program constantly looking if there's any viruses around. Most routers nowadays have a built in firewall for itself, coupled with the firewall you should have running on your computer.