Dial-up Safer then Broadband?
Is a dial-up connection safer than broadband? Is obsolescence better for computer security on the Internet?
We read this blog on Slashdot today: Is Obsolescence Good Computer Security?
Our position on this matter is that a dial-up connection is not inherently safer than broadband. Some of the most malware infected computers we have repaired were on dial-up connections. One of these computers required a complete reinstallation of Windows after being completely disabled by a virus. Another computer had an extensive malware infection and also had the most difficult to remove malware that we have yet encountered. Both were owned by people who thought that they didn’t use the Internet enough to worry about security. Both computers were way behind in security updates.
Additionally, a dial-up connection is susceptible to the one of the most expensive malware infections, the Trojan dialer. A dialer can rack up hundreds of dollars of phone charges before you know it. A broadband connection is immune to this kind of infection. And while a broadband connection can be much more useful to a hijacker or a zombie or a virus, most viruses and Trojans and zombie hijacks don’t care what kind of connection you have.
And our experience is that people with slow dial-up connections are far more likely to fail to do security updates of any kind. It simply takes too much time.
