Comments on: Security geeks: should I be worried about software HP has reporters install? http://www.ryanblock.com/2008/03/security-geeks-should-i-be-worried-about-software-hp-has-reporters-install/ Editor and technology critic in the midst of founding a new content startup. Sat, 10 Jan 2009 00:18:30 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7 hourly 1 By: muzo http://www.ryanblock.com/2008/03/security-geeks-should-i-be-worried-about-software-hp-has-reporters-install/comment-page-1/#comment-66205 muzo Mon, 17 Mar 2008 11:41:44 +0000 http://www.ryanblock.com/2008/03/security-geeks-should-i-be-worried-about-software-hp-has-reporters-install/#comment-66205 You can install Little Snitch now and see what the HP software is doing.. If you find anything suspicious please let us know.. You can install Little Snitch now and see what the HP software is doing.. If you find anything suspicious please let us know..

]]> By: Zac Garrett http://www.ryanblock.com/2008/03/security-geeks-should-i-be-worried-about-software-hp-has-reporters-install/comment-page-1/#comment-66109 Zac Garrett Mon, 17 Mar 2008 03:03:10 +0000 http://www.ryanblock.com/2008/03/security-geeks-should-i-be-worried-about-software-hp-has-reporters-install/#comment-66109 I am a security paranoid person and would never install unknown software without using a software firewall. There are too many applications that phone home without the users consent. Little Snitch is a great program on the OS X side of things and Kerio Personal Firewall on Windows. As Christian said, a VM would have solved this issue as well. You could even disable networking on the VM to confirm that it does not phone home. That also depends on whether or not the application needs internet access to begin with. For a more specific answer to the question: HP software sucks. As someone who supports quite a few computers I refuse to install any software made by HP. On the Windows side it all causes slow computers and even blue screens. I will often spend quite a bit of time getting a pure INF driver so that I do not have to install their software. I no longer recommend buying their hardware just because their software is so painful. I am a security paranoid person and would never install unknown software without using a software firewall. There are too many applications that phone home without the users consent. Little Snitch is a great program on the OS X side of things and Kerio Personal Firewall on Windows.

As Christian said, a VM would have solved this issue as well. You could even disable networking on the VM to confirm that it does not phone home. That also depends on whether or not the application needs internet access to begin with.

For a more specific answer to the question: HP software sucks. As someone who supports quite a few computers I refuse to install any software made by HP. On the Windows side it all causes slow computers and even blue screens. I will often spend quite a bit of time getting a pure INF driver so that I do not have to install their software. I no longer recommend buying their hardware just because their software is so painful.

]]> By: Christian http://www.ryanblock.com/2008/03/security-geeks-should-i-be-worried-about-software-hp-has-reporters-install/comment-page-1/#comment-66065 Christian Sun, 16 Mar 2008 23:46:57 +0000 http://www.ryanblock.com/2008/03/security-geeks-should-i-be-worried-about-software-hp-has-reporters-install/#comment-66065 My suggestion is install it on a virtual machine that does not have anything of value on it. Safe or not why worry about it? They can scan the virtual and get nothing. My suggestion is install it on a virtual machine that does not have anything of value on it. Safe or not why worry about it? They can scan the virtual and get nothing.

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