Protection From Malware (Windows Users)

[Love]

Generally running windows in a vm for vulnerable apps, only running trusted software, and keeping AV and programs patched is sufficient. You're overdoing things a tad, I think.

I can see why you think that, and I partially agree. I used to believe that installing all available Windows updates, and installing standard security applications, such as AVG Internet Security Business Edition (which includes a decent firewall), offered extremely comprehensive protection. I also used to be a fan of Sandboxie, but even with all of this, infections were still creeping through. Are you aware of VirusTotal and Metascan Online? As a test, I uploaded a serial generator (which was not detected by my local installation of AVG) to these scanners, and the results were surprising. It was scanned by 40 virus scanners (AVG, Symantec blah blah) and it escaped virus detection on 50% of the scanners, obviously including AVG, hence my new found obsession with extreme security measures.

(Oh, and smart computing is more important than any gimmicks. Know what best practices are for safe computing and follow them. 90% of security failures are a result of human error. Any system badly configured, badly managed, and inadequately protected will be easy pickings.)

I agree that smart computing is very important. However, I have found that this is definitely the safest method to confidently execute unsafe Windows applications.