Online Armor Free v3.5.0.0 Released

[tonyseeking]

Originally Posted by innerpeace

Tony, have a look at the comparison page. http://www.tallemu.com/comparisons.html

Yeah ouch!!

Using the free version leaves the PC open to attacks and malware.

The free version has no Phishing Filter, no Kernel Keylogger Detection, and worse of all, no DNS Spoofing Protection.

It simply is not a viable or sensible option to install the free version as it won't protect against many security issues.

[MikeNash]

Originally Posted by tonyseeking

Yeah ouch!!

Using the free version leaves the PC open to attacks and malware.

The free version has no Phishing Filter, no Kernel Keylogger Detection, and worse of all, no DNS Spoofing Protection.

It simply is not a viable or sensible option to install the free version as it won't protect against many security issues.

Hi Tony,

I'm not aware of any other personal firewalls that have Phishing Filter, nor DNS Spoofing protection.

It is perfectly viable and sensible to use OA Free. Compared to other free firewall products it stands up perfectly well. The paid version adds even more.


Mike

[innerpeace]

Originally Posted by tonyseeking

Yeah ouch!!

Using the free version leaves the PC open to attacks and malware.

The free version has no Phishing Filter, no Kernel Keylogger Detection, and worse of all, no DNS Spoofing Protection.

It simply is not a viable or sensible option to install the free version as it won't protect against many security issues.

Well, I look at it differently. Most browsers have phishing protection plus common sense helps prevent being "phished". When it comes to keyloggers, just don't install them. I'm being serious. Only download from known and trusted sources and scan everything you download before you run it. I can't really comments on DNS spoofing protection but it seems like something worthy of paying for if your worried about it. I'm also not sure if using open DNS would help but it's worth looking into.

There is no "holy grail" of security programs and I find it best to build your own setup based upon your own needs that way each application and your security policies complement each other.

I hope this helps.

[tonyseeking]

Originally Posted by MikeNash

Hi Tony,

I'm not aware of any other personal firewalls that have Phishing Filter, nor DNS Spoofing protection.

It is perfectly viable and sensible to use OA Free. Compared to other free firewall products it stands up perfectly well. The paid version adds even more.


Mike

Really Mike? No other firewall has DNS Spoofing protection and Phishing Filter? Interesting.... if it's really important to have, why don't the other leading firewalls include it? I am not being cheeky, I am asking sincere and genuine questions as I am really interested to learn.

And if it's not really needed for user protection, why does the paid version have it?

And if it is needed, that makes the free version a security risk because it doesn't have it. Right?

Because you said "The paid version adds even more."... which raises a valid question... are those "more" functions needed in the paid version? If so, that means you admit the free version lacks something that you yourself claim is needed.

Your thoughts?

[tonyseeking]

Originally Posted by innerpeace

.... I'm also not sure if using open DNS would help but it's worth looking into.,,,.

yes I use OpenDNS.

BTW, what is this link all about?

http://secunia.com/vulnerability_scanning/personal/

[MikeNash]

Originally Posted by tonyseeking

Really Mike? No other firewall has DNS Spoofing protection and Phishing Filter? Interesting.... if it's really important to have, why don't the other leading firewalls include it? I am not being cheeky, I am asking sincere and genuine questions as I am really interested to learn.

I guess because Online Armor has a different approach than the other vendors.

Originally Posted by tonyseeking

And if it's not really needed for user protection, why does the paid version have it?

The idea is simple - the paid version has desirable features so that people will look at it and say "Hmm, I like those features, I think it could be worth upgrading" - then they buy it, and Tall Emu makes money - to pay salaries. The free version doesn't have it because if the free version did everything the paid version did, there would be no incentive to upgrade.

[Boost]

Originally Posted by innerpeace

Hi Boost,

My setup is almost identical to yours and I'm not seeing the delay. I have OA free beta 3.5.0.14, Returnil free 2.0.0.5007 (on demand only), Avira 8 paid and Sbie 3.36.04 paid.

Are you using OA free 3.5.0.9? If you would like to try 3.5.0.12 have a look here.

Nice setup by the way .

Trying out 3.5.0.12 and it still hangs at the Welcome screen.

Oh, well I like it and this setup,just wish it would load faster

[demoneye]

Originally Posted by Boost

Trying out 3.5.0.12 and it still hangs at the Welcome screen.

Oh, well I like it and this setup,just wish it would load faster

i see u are using much security software there , try exclude then in OA and all be fine

[Boost]

Originally Posted by demoneye

i see u are using much security software there , try exclude then in OA and all be fine

1)A Firewall

1) sandboxie (on demand)

1)Virtualization app

1)Antivirus

1)on demand antispyware program

Hardly alot of security programs compared to alot of people are running on here.

[Stem]

I installed this latest version onto a laptop just to see how it runs. But now it refuses to uninstall with error:- "Cannot uninstall- Access is denied".



- Stem

[sded]

Saw a thread at http://support.tallemu.com/vbforum/s...65&postcount=5 where Mike said to reinstall and uninstall in safe mode if there is an uninstaller corruption problem.

[Fuzzfas]

Well, i ve been running .0.12 version for more than 16 hours now and no problem seen. Although maybe i am paranoid but i think the .0.9 was a tad lighter on CPU with emule. But i didn't run it for long to be sure. Anyway, i decided to upgrade my CPU. This will give me some comfort i guess.

[Fedorov999]

No problems whatsoever - as an online gamer myself my pings are the same with or without Online Armor, and I certainly do not get kicked from servers.

Great support as well - always respond and try to diagnose any problems if you do happen to be unlucky with your system setup.

[MikeNash]

Originally Posted by Stem

I installed this latest version onto a laptop just to see how it runs. But now it refuses to uninstall with error:- "Cannot uninstall- Access is denied".



- Stem

This can happen when OA hasn't finished shutting down and self-protection is still present. It can be worked around by shutting down OA before running the uinstaller, or running the uninstaller in safe mode.

I used online armor a couple of times ,I found out the best way to uninstall is to deactivate the HIPS reboot then from the add remove uninstall it it works like a charm, hope that helps anyone trying to uninstall it.

[innerpeace]

Originally Posted by tonyseeking

yes I use OpenDNS.

BTW, what is this link all about?

http://secunia.com/vulnerability_scanning/personal/

Secunia has a scanner (online or downloadable versions) that scan your computer for programs (browsers, Java, Flash, Adobe, Windows, etc.) that need updated because they are vulnerable. After the scan runs it will let you know which programs have new updated versions. It's an important step that helps you stay safe while online.

[tonyseeking]

Originally Posted by MikeNash

I guess because Online Armor has a different approach than the other vendors.



The idea is simple - the paid version has desirable features so that people will look at it and say "Hmm, I like those features, I think it could be worth upgrading" - then they buy it, and Tall Emu makes money - to pay salaries. The free version doesn't have it because if the free version did everything the paid version did, there would be no incentive to upgrade.

Ok Mike, good answer, and I fully appreciate your desire for people to upgrade so you can make a living from providing a good service, great product and value. :-)

So one last question... Unfortunately I am not in a position to purchase the full product at this stage, but that may change in the future... so here is my question... when I install the free version, what do I need to be careful of so I don't get money stolen when I do netbanking and access the internet, due to me not being able to get the full version protection.

Thanks

[tonyseeking]

Originally Posted by innerpeace

Secunia has a scanner (online or downloadable versions) that scan your computer for programs (browsers, Java, Flash, Adobe, Windows, etc.) that need updated because they are vulnerable. After the scan runs it will let you know which programs have new updated versions. It's an important step that helps you stay safe while online.

Cool

It reported my system as perfect, expect I did need to update flashplayer it said, which I did

But too bad it doesn't scan my TrueCrypt container that runs a virtual drive as J: which contains portableapps firefox, thunderbird, etc etc.

Any way to tell it to scan that?

[Julian]

Edit: Wrote wrong things.

[MikeNash]

Originally Posted by tonyseeking

Ok Mike, good answer, and I fully appreciate your desire for people to upgrade so you can make a living from providing a good service, great product and value. :-)

So one last question... Unfortunately I am not in a position to purchase the full product at this stage, but that may change in the future... so here is my question... when I install the free version, what do I need to be careful of so I don't get money stolen when I do netbanking and access the internet, due to me not being able to get the full version protection.

Thanks

As with any other product which does not contain the OA Paid features - be vigilant and surf safely.

[tonyseeking]

Originally Posted by Julian_evil

The OA Free HIPS is really crap, it doesn't prevent common process manipulations and so theoretically malware can easily bypass it etc.

.....

What do you mean?

[Julian]

Originally Posted by tonyseeking

What do you mean?

Sorry, I was wrong there. Some beta of 3.5 Free didn't block cpilsuite2 & 3 leaktests (dll injection) but now it seems to be working.

I gonna edit my preivous post.

[Stem]

Originally Posted by MikeNash

This can happen when OA hasn't finished shutting down and self-protection is still present. It can be worked around by shutting down OA before running the uinstaller, or running the uninstaller in safe mode.

Hi Mike,

I did try closing down OA first but no effect. I did uninstall in safe mode.
Not a problem on my setup as I keep backup images, but I hope it will be more "Mum friendly" again in the future.


- Stem

[MikeNash]

Release 3.5.0.14 - 1st May 2009

1160 Resolved (Fixed) ARP Spoofing FP
1163 Resolved (Fixed) Exclusions list column headers bug
1158 Resolved (Fixed) OA tries to restore non existent file
1168 Resolved (Implemented) Popup Optimization
1169 Resolved (Implemented) HIPS improvement
1170 Resolved (Fixed) Network detection tuning
1155 Resolved (Fixed) folder leftover build 3.5.0.9
1180 Uninstaller issue not progessing
1184 Resolved (Implemented) HIPS improvement (mouse control)
1185 Resolved (Implemented) add exclusions to the free version
857 Resolved (Fixed) Steam - GameOverlayUI.exe crash (Exclude directory added to OA Free)

Hi Guys - just a note that build 14 has been released, and will go onto the update servers progressively over the next few days.

As usual - release notes are here:

http://support.tallemu.com/vbforum/s...ead.php?t=6308



Mike

[SamSpade]

Not to be too much of a fan-boy or anything, I've been beta-testing OA for almost two years now (my, how time flies!! ) and it keeps getting better and better. Not only is the protection rock solid -- no baddies in so far -- but the optimization has really improved the speed and overall "lightness" of the suite .... I'm using the AV+ version for about a year.

There are very few pop-ups because the learning is done on set-up via the "Safety Check Wizard" which goes down the list of all your apps and programs to see which are already known by OA (the OASIS function keeps an ever-expanding data base of known good and bad apps), and only asks about unknown installed items. After the SCW has done its thing, the pop-ups occur very rarely afterwards. Great idea, in my opinion. Life is too short to keep answering the same questions again and again.

Even with Webshield activated surfing is very quick and light, yet I feel very secure behind the comprehensive protection that OA is providing, particularly with the AV+ module. I used to run NOD32, but no more; I do not use any other antivirus beyond OA's AV+.

I'm impressed with the overall progress OA has made in the time I've been testing it. I've used a lot of different firewalls, including those with HIPS functions, before, including ZA, ZA Pro, ZA w/ AV, Jetico, Kerio, and Comodo. I had Comodo on for quite a while, but really, the pop-ups and other high maintenence are a bit much for me. It's a good ap for sure, but OA does a lot of the grunt labor onto itself, and does it rather well I'd say.

<Fanboy off>

Sam