Can win98 be secure?

[PiKe]

There is a machine that I need to set up that only has win98 as an OS, will this be as secure as XP with all the updates applied and NOD32 or will there still be some gaping security holes?

 

[Cuchulain]

There is a machine that I need to set up that only had win98 as an OS, will this be as secure as XP with all the updates applied and NOD32 or will there still be some gaping security holes?

If any new security holes are found they are not going to get patched as MS no longer support it.

 

[PiKe]

It will behind a NAT router so thats maybe not so critical.

 

[Uhtred]

depends what you intend to do with it or run on it. Will you be using it for web browsing?

 

[PiKe]

Be used by a child for web browsing, what worries me is that it's on the same network as office machines though, so win98 will be the weakpoint.

 

[zx81]

Have you thought about trying linux ? Would be much more secure once you get it working

 

[barnettgs]

Have you thought about trying linux ? Would be much more secure once you get it working

Get Linux, it makes more sense as it is free and always updated. Even comes with Firefox, Open Office etc pre-installed. No viruses to worry about, making it a more secure.

I had tried it on my 6 yrs old pc, I'm impressed with it.

 

[Tute]

If you had a spare copy of Windows 2000, I think that would be a fair improvement on 98, not just in terms of security, but stability also.

 

[Uhtred]

for a child using the internet in an office you really want to use a more secure browser and take away admin rights. Windows 98 is not ideal...

 

[Jonny69]

It'll be fine if you use Firefox as the browser. If you want you can use a net nanny like Cyberpatrol which will restrict the access.

 

[M0KUJ1N]

I only know one way to truly secure a Win 98 box from the internet- take a pair of wire-cutters to the ethernet cable

On a more serious basis, theoretically it should be pretty secure providing you have a combination of regularly updated antivirus and a decent firewall. The only real issues with Windows 98 is the amount of patches required to bring a machine up to date (which will also mean your machine will be vulnerable while it gets it updates) and of course it's no longer a high priority as far as Microsoft go and may have dropped off the support radar completely by now.

We generally have a policy of not allowing any Windows 98 or 2000 machines on our network now because they are so vulnerable. Also machines that can't run Windows XP these days are probably better off in the skip tbh.

 

[Tute]

I only know one way to truly secure a Win 98 box from the internet- take a pair of wire-cutters to the ethernet cable

On a more serious basis, theoretically it should be pretty secure providing you have a combination of regularly updated antivirus and a decent firewall. The only real issues with Windows 98 is the amount of patches required to bring a machine up to date (which will also mean your machine will be vulnerable while it gets it updates) and of course it's no longer a high priority as far as Microsoft go and may have dropped off the support radar completely by now.

We generally have a policy of not allowing any Windows 98 or 2000 machines on our network now because they are so vulnerable. Also machines that can't run Windows XP these days are probably better off in the skip tbh.

I actually thought 2000 was a fairly secure operating system, is this not the case?

 

[PiKe]

Well the machine Spec is a P3 500 with a massive 64mb RAM so I don't know that it would run anything other than Win98.

I think it's intended use is word processing also.

 

[NathanE]

Add some more RAM and run XP. 500MHz is more than capable.

Windows 98 can not be secure. It is an OS from a pre-internet era.

 

[eXor]

We generally have a policy of not allowing any Windows 98 or 2000 machines on our network now because they are so vulnerable.

LOL.

Win2k is no more vulnerable than XP if you secure it properly. They are not radically different "under the hood". 98 is a different story.

Also machines that can't run Windows XP these days are probably better off in the skip tbh.

They can run Linux and that is enough to surf the web, check e-mail, run a server e.t.c.

 

[M0KUJ1N]

LOL.

Win2k is no more vulnerable than XP if you secure it properly. They are not radically different "under the hood". 98 is a different story.



They can run Linux and that is enough to surf the web, check e-mail, run a server e.t.c.

Under the hood they are very similar. However Windows 2000 has about 7 years of updates, has no firewall to speak of unless you install a third-party firewall and is vulnerable to all sorts of nasties including Sasser and Blaster even with the base SP4 installed on it. Putting an unpatched vanilla Windows 2K build on any fairly open network is ill-advised unless your intention is to use it as a honeypot

 

[Corasik]

Under the hood they are very similar. However Windows 2000 has about 7 years of updates, has no firewall to speak of unless you install a third-party firewall and is vulnerable to all sorts of nasties including Sasser and Blaster even with the base SP4 installed on it. Putting an unpatched vanilla Windows 2K build on any fairly open network is ill-advised unless your intention is to use it as a honeypot

Who would install any Vanilla OS on an open network? Windows XP 'Original' without SP1/2 is just as insecure as Win2k.

Cant remember the program name, but I have an old 2k server, and it's got a command line program which checks for updates, and installs them. Fully patched up 2K is perfectly secure, and there are plenty of options, both hardware and software for firewalls. Just because it doesnt include a free 'Microsoft Firewall' doesnt really matter.

98's not so hot, but you can still install a firewall software like 'ZoneAlarm' and use Firefox instead of Internet Explorer (As IE7 is now the 'standard' for security, and that certainly wont install on 98).

Dont allow the 98 machine to have any write access to file/print sharing on any other computer you have on your network, that way even if it does get a virus, it wont transfer it to your other more secure computers.

Whats the spec anyway, sure you cant run XP? Not too expensive to buy an XP lic these days.