Teenage Proofing a PC

[Labrat309]

So I am about to pass on my previous gaming pc to my soon to be teenage son, I am trying to figure out the best way to "lock it down", I am not trying to block him from "learning things" as most do or did, I am trying to save the PC from spyware, malware, rootkits, etc.  And not be overloaded by virus's when he "learns things". Besides the normal antivirus, malware, spyware etc programs, is there anything else i don't know about? Would like him not to be able to move files or delete files either for drive safety also.

 

Sorry if wrong area to post, seemed the best fit.

[WambleCropped]

2 minutes ago, Labrat309 said:

So I am about to pass on my previous gaming pc to my soon to be teenage son, I am trying to figure out the best way to "lock it down", I am not trying to block him from "learning things" as most do or did, I am trying to save the PC from spyware, malware, rootkits, etc.  And not be overloaded by virus's when he "learns things". Besides the normal antivirus, malware, spyware etc programs, is there anything else i don't know about? Would like him not to be able to move files or delete files either for drive safety also.

 

Sorry if wrong area to post, seemed the best fit.

mircosoft family feature if you use windows

[Electronics Wizardy]

You can not give him a admin accounts, removes most of the big issues he could cause.

 

Or just teach him how to deal with issues if they happen, and to keep good backups, and reinstall if something goes really bad.

[TetraSky]

Change the DNS on that PC to 1.1.1.3 .

 

This will block malware and adult sites, so the teen won't be able to visit those "sites" and get infected with some viruses. They will hate you for that, most likely, but hey, at least the PC will be safe. 

Edited April 16, 2020 by TetraSky
Added a bit more, someone complained that this wasn't funny, so now I have to explain the joke. Way to ruin it.

[Labrat309]

5 minutes ago, TetraSky said:

Change the DNS on that PC to 1.1.1.3
 

I will have to study up on this, I didn't know this was a thing that could be done.

 

would this affect any gaming apps like steam, or youtube for him?

[Fasauceome]

What you can do is teach him about safe internet browsing behavior and install Avast, if viruses are what you're most worried about. Show him a download page for a third party app that has a bazillion fake "download now!" Buttons all over the page, and teach him how to find the right button, and what happens if he clicks the wrong one. Show him a webpage plastered with ads on a skeevy website like KissAnime.RU and tell him to never ever click an ad, and boom no malware.

[MartinIAm]

8 minutes ago, Labrat309 said:

I will have to study up on this, I didn't know this was a thing that could be done.

 

would this affect any gaming apps like steam, or youtube for him?

No it shouldn't. 1.1.1.3 is a cloudflare dns server and it blocks malware and inappropriate content.

[Labrat309]

56 minutes ago, Fasauceome said:

What you can do is teach him about safe internet browsing behavior and install Avast, if viruses are what you're most worried about. Show him a download page for a third party app that has a bazillion fake "download now!" Buttons all over the page, and teach him how to find the right button, and what happens if he clicks the wrong one. Show him a webpage plastered with ads on a skeevy website like KissAnime.RU and tell him to never ever click an ad, and boom no malware.

No thank you on Avast

 

Also, telling a teenage kid not to look at free porn links is like telling people not to touch their face right now, it's going to happen.

52 minutes ago, MartinIAm said:

No it shouldn't. 1.1.1.3 is a cloudflare dns server and it blocks malware and inappropriate content.

Thanks for the info

[IntMD]

2 minutes ago, Labrat309 said:

No thank you on Avast

 

Also, telling a teenage kid not to look at free porn links is like telling people not to touch their face right now, it's going to happen.

Thanks for the info

Just setup a bookmark for Pornhub in chrome...

[YellowJersey]

Splash guard?

[Ergroilnin]

Well install at least ad blocker of some kind, hides a ton of the unwanted ads that lead to getting viruses etc.

[TetraSky]

14 minutes ago, Billbill said:

Not funny 

It's funny when you consider this line from OP
"And not be overloaded by virus's when he "learns things". "

and attribute that to the teenager wanting to learn about the "human anatomy" on certain adult only sites, yet being unable to do so with that DNS. Which fits the criteria of OP since it also blocks known malware sites.

 

But hey, r\woosh I guess.

[IntMD]

1.1.1.2 is just the malware blocker, so teen should still be able to hit up the pr0n sites that hopefully don't contain any malware. So that, along with something like Malware Bytes would probably be sufficient.

[Pickles von Brine]

1 hour ago, Labrat309 said:

So I am about to pass on my previous gaming pc to my soon to be teenage son, I am trying to figure out the best way to "lock it down", I am not trying to block him from "learning things" as most do or did, I am trying to save the PC from spyware, malware, rootkits, etc.  And not be overloaded by virus's when he "learns things". Besides the normal antivirus, malware, spyware etc programs, is there anything else i don't know about? Would like him not to be able to move files or delete files either for drive safety also.

 

Sorry if wrong area to post, seemed the best fit.

I would recommend a few things:

1) Make sure he is not an administrator. That alone will help prevent infections. He wants to install something, he needs your permission. This will act screen to prevent bad software from being installed. 
2) Run Malwarebytes on the system (get the paid version). It does a pretty good job activitely protecting your system. 
3) Setup Cloud Flare Family (1.1.1.2 and 1.0.0.2) as a DNS on your router can further help stop some nasties. 
4) Education - Teach your son. Sit down with him and explain to him about things, why they can cause issues and whatnot. 
5) Do a regular audit - AKA check over the system and make sure it is up to stuff. Do this once a month. Have your son sit down with you when you do it so you can educate him as well. If you show him your password, change it. Explain to him why you are doing it. 

 

[Slayerking92]

https://www.faronics.com/products/deep-freeze

 

Deep Freeze makes workstation configurations indestructible. Guarantees 100% workstation recovery upon restart. Provides password protection and complete security. Protects multiple hard drives and partitions. Prevents configuration drift and accidental system misconfiguration. Helps maintain Software compliance across all workstations. Protects workstations from unauthorized changes with a simple restart.
 

 

We use this product in a few schools that I support.

[Stormseeker9]

1 hour ago, Pickles - Lord of the Jar said:

I would recommend a few things:

1) Make sure he is not an administrator. That alone will help prevent infections. He wants to install something, he needs your permission. This will act screen to prevent bad software from being installed. 
2) Run Malwarebytes on the system (get the paid version). It does a pretty good job activitely protecting your system. 
3) Setup Cloud Flare Family (1.1.1.2 and 1.0.0.2) as a DNS on your router can further help stop some nasties. 
4) Education - Teach your son. Sit down with him and explain to him about things, why they can cause issues and whatnot. 
5) Do a regular audit - AKA check over the system and make sure it is up to stuff. Do this once a month. Have your son sit down with you when you do it so you can educate him as well. If you show him your password, change it. Explain to him why you are doing it. 

 

3: if you do it on the router... daddy and mommy can’t watch porn either!!

[TetraSky]

7 minutes ago, Slayerking92 said:

https://www.faronics.com/products/deep-freeze

 

Deep Freeze

 

We use this product in a few schools that I support.

My old school like 15 years ago used to use that, too. Worked nicely.

But is there even any way to buy it as a regular consumer? And is the license just for a year or perpetual ?
Not to mention, they seems to be the kind of terrible anti-consumer company that forces you to give them a call just to buy the damn product instead of properly having a shopping cart to buy it online. Even their "buy online" option, literally has no way(that I can see at first glance.. or even when I try to find it) to actually buy it without talking to anybody, it's actually ridiculous.

Just now, Stormseeker9 said:

3: if you do it on the router... daddy and mommy can’t watch porn either!!

1.1.1.2 is just malware protection 

[Pickles von Brine]

1 minute ago, Stormseeker9 said:

3: if you do it on the router... daddy and mommy can’t watch porn either!!

You have the option to do just malware or malware and adult content. The later is 1.1.1.3 and 1.0.0.3.

[orbitalbuzzsaw]

Best thing to do is just to teach him how to deal with issues if and when they pop up and make sure he has a good anti virus software (malwarebytes is what I'd go with)

[Slayerking92]

7 minutes ago, TetraSky said:

My old school like 15 years ago used to use that, too. Worked nicely.

But is there even any way to buy it as a regular consumer? And is the license just for a year or perpetual ?
Not to mention, they seems to be the kind of terrible anti-consumer company that forces you to give them a call just to buy the damn product instead of properly having a shopping cart to buy it online. Even their "buy online" option, literally has no way(that I can see at first glance.. or even when I try to find it) to actually buy it without talking to anybody, it's actually ridiculous.

1.1.1.2 is just malware protection 

the shop online worked fine for me, it was 55$ CAD for a single license. For deep freeze standard.

[Pickles von Brine]

Just now, orbitalbuzzsaw said:

Best thing to do is just to teach him how to deal with issues if and when they pop up and make sure he has a good anti virus software (malwarebytes is what I'd go with)

Do that is asking a bit much from a teenager. Baby steps. 

[orbitalbuzzsaw]

Just now, Pickles - Lord of the Jar said:

Do that is asking a bit much from a teenager. Baby steps. 

Make sure to take regular backups (every 2 weeks or so) then. Let the boy have his fun

[TetraSky]

4 minutes ago, Slayerking92 said:

the shop online worked fine for me, it was 55$ CAD for a single license.

It's literally not showing anything to me. Did you make an account to see the price?

Spoiler

 

[Slayerking92]

4 minutes ago, TetraSky said:

It's literally not showing anything to me. Did you make an account to see the price?

  Reveal hidden contents

 

No, i just clicked on the blue "Order now" button, then clicked on the deep freeze standard box.

 

[TetraSky]

1 minute ago, Slayerking92 said:

No, i just clicked on the blue "Order now" button, then clicked on the deep freeze standard box.

-image0

Oh my f'ing.... I literally don't see the "buy now". It's white on white for me. But if I highlight it, it's there... what the hell is this shit. I even used Edge in case something was wrong with my main browser and it was also white on white.

Spoiler