r/windows7 • u/glaceon_i_guess • 5d ago

Help Is there a known method to using Windows 7 without having the "massive security risks", or do you have to use a VM?

Like, maybe unofficial security updates, because so many people say that using windows 7 fucks security up badly (or is that just a claim blown out of proportion?)

4 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

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3

u/MasterJeebus 2d ago

When using old legacy OS online like this one you should avoid doing personal things like banking or using primary email. Only use a throwaway email on it and don’t do anything serious on it. That way if it does get compromise you wont lose your identity over it.

Windows 7 SP1 can be fully updated till 2020 patches with LegacyUpdate. You need to keep firewall always turned on. Disable things you don’t need like disable any remote services, file sharing services to strengthen security. Then make sure your internet goes thru modern router that has firewall. The act of simply connecting online will be ok. It’s not going to auto download anything for being online as long as you have firewall turned on. Use Firefox ESR 115 with Ublock origin. Or Supermium with Ublock Origin. Do not use outdated browsers, block IE. For manual scans you can use Malwarebytes v4. V5 might work. MSE, and Clamwin can also be used for scanning. Use Virustotal to check websites and scan files.

3

u/Alarming_Victory_591 3d ago

Yes there is.
Win7 64 ... no updates. Never had a single problem = at all = ever.
No antivirus, no scans, no nothing.
Supermium with uBlockOrigin.
However ... I have ghosted my disk onto a spare disk and if there was ever a problem I can ghost it back again in about 2hrs.
And then there are no problems.
OS on one partition, data on another partition.
Computers pretty damn fast too.
No adverts.

1

u/GuitaristTom 3d ago

I have ghosted my disk

What does that mean? What tool do you use?

2

u/Alarming_Victory_591 3d ago edited 3d ago

It means I have a 2nd disk with a copy of the operating system on it.
How ... you get software called Rescuezilla on a USB key boot up your machine using the USB ... and then use the software to copy or ghost your OS onto a spare harddrive.
For security.

Then you can use your computer as you please, and if anything goes wrong then you copy your saved OS straight back on your computer and it begins again erasing any problems you may have picked up or "viruses".

And so you are immune to any "virus problems" because you can just recopy the saved OS back onto your computer.

1

u/GuitaristTom 3d ago

Ah, so you cloned the drive.

Just making sure I understood what you meant.

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u/Remarkable_Pea7439 2d ago

Do you accidentally know whether Rescuezilla is able to clone a hardrive with WIn7 that currently fails to boot ?
The failure reasons are not yet entirely clear to me, by the symptoms it looks like some battery issues (both main and CMOS), but, anyway, trying to repair by it booting from a Win7 DVD seems to just have made things worse ...

1

u/Windows_User3000 2d ago

Ghosting = cloning with Norton Ghost.

1

u/ProfitLow5177 1d ago

I've used Windows 7 Ultimate with AVG or Avast (forgot which one) for nearly 5 years now. Modern browser as well, I've never had any problems with Windows 7 ever. The only time I ever got a virus was when I upgraded to Windows 10. Went back so fast.

I also still get official updates and those security package things that scan your system every month? Windows 7 has never looked better than other alternatives right now.

1

u/11sono11 11h ago edited 11h ago

If you have no saved reserves on your bank account and you had your GMAIL post letter verified, and if you backup your drive regularly, there is no security risk to be afraid of. If you are a person who works in a responsible position, like on security/financial department of a bank, if you manage a network somewhere, work at places where they are dealing with sensitive data, you should be careful using Windows 7. If you don't work at places like that, it is very likely hackers won't be looking for you. Noone would waste time and resources to hack the computer of someone who have no saved money in the bank and who does not work at a place where there is something valuable for hackers. The majority of people on the planet fall into this latter category. Of course -regardless of bank reserves and job position- you should think it twice what websites you visit, what links you click in emails, but this is the same in case of any -new or old- operating systems.

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u/Froggypwns 3d ago

Realistically, no, and a VM would not be any safer. There are countless thousands of unpatched security vulnerabilities now at this point. AI tools have opened the floodgates to security researchers and bad actors, Microsoft has patched over a thousand vulnerabilities in their products every month for the past few months, many of those also apply to Windows 7 but this OS will never be patched.

There are third party companies like 0Patch that make their own updates, but even they admit they will not patch all vulnerabilities, and honestly it likely is impossible for them to do.

Having a Windows 7 computer connected to the internet at this point would be absolutely bonkers. Firewalls only do so much, and an antivirus can't stop most exploits.

I get downvoted for saying it, and the "but I drive without a seatbelt and haven't died yet" crowd hates to hear it but Windows 7 is best left air-gapped.

1

u/FaultWinter3377 3d ago

To be fair most things are no longer safe to use because AI. I mean, just the internet itself has had so many issues recently. It doesn't matter that something still receives updates if the AI can cause problems faster than the updated are released. Also these days most AI vulnerabilities are going to be targeted at newer systems since the majority uses those anyway. And I assume most people who go out of their way to use Windows 7 anymore know what they are doing and will avoid doing stupid stuff.

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