With apologies to the Spencer Davis Group, it is possible to keep on running Windows XP, if you really must, thanks to SuRun and EMET:
http://www.dedoimedo.com/computers/w...16-report.html

SuRun download:
https://sourceforge.net/projects/surun/

SuRun tutorial:
http://www.dedoimedo.com/computers/surun.html

Enhanced Mitigation Experience Toolkit (EMET):
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/down....aspx?id=50766

Hi beachboy2...

Thank you for the article. I still run Windows XP on my public access station (here in my complex) primarily because of two reasons: The system is 12 years old and uses a Pentium 4 with 768 MB's of memory. It can't be upgraded with respect to Windows. Also, a utility I use to control what areas of the OS is available to the users is only available for XP. Strangely enough, I have found nothing like it for any other OS anywhere, including Linux!

In terms of security, my content filter does a good job of keeping folks where they ought to stay, including away from malware sites. Even still, I have warned people not to do anything on it that involves entering Social Security or credit card numbers or anything like that.

Despite the older OS and software, the system still does very well and (I think) has been quite a blessing for folks.

Regards...

ardvark71,

Just as a matter of interest:

Do you use either EMET or SuRun, the equivalent of sudo?

What security software do you use?

Hi...

No, I have everyone use the basic Windows XP users account, which restricts some activities. The administrator's account is off limits for everyone other than myself. The utility I spoke of locks down additional OS features, programs and locations, including the cmd. Plus, I have disabled access to safe mode and, I believe, the recovery services.

In addition, I have add-ons installed in Firefox that disable certain features of the browser. All of this has been effective in keeping things above board.

Because this is such an old system with limited resources, I use a cloud antivirus program call Immunet. It's not the best out there but everything else would add too much weight. I also use Malwarebytes to regularly scan for malware. Plus, the content filter, K9 Web Protection, also acts as a screen against sites containing malware. I haven't had any problems in this area thus far.

My biggest problem has been folks trying to access inappropriate content and going to somewhat great lengths to try and bypass the filters, almost all of which have been unsuccessful. The one exception was that a person was able to find pornography on Yahoo images. That was solved by blocking all image sites.

Eventually, time will run out for this system/setup. Blue Coat (the company who offers K9) was just purchased by Symantec. I'm not sure how much longer they will continue to support K9. Also, programs like Immunet and Malwarebytes will not always continue to support Windows XP. At this point, I don't have a newer system to replace it, even if I could find all the utilities I need for a different OS.

Regards...

ardvark71,

Thanks for the info.

Long may the old system keep running.

You're welcome.

Lord willing!

Regards...