Opera security vulnerability, opera update.
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A Former User last edited by
Dear all.
My biggest security concern on my computer is opera web browser. Iam not able disabling the opera update hence every update is changing my security settings in opera webbrowser. I do not want passwords to be remebered, I do not want my searches to be logged, I always want browserhistory deleted upon exit. Opera update updates almost every week without notice, all of a sudden I discover my setttings changed from safe to unsafe by opera. Every update is a change to my computer, if updates makes me acustom to changes Iam less likely discover intrusions and viruses as I will assume it is opera as usually changes my computer without my consent. As Iam running open source virus protection "clam", and disabled all windows updates I have never any problems with viruses. No viruses is sent to my computer as no company will benefit selling me updates of virus protection. My only concern now is opera as opera is now behaving as a virus, unwanted changes to my computer. The illogic at opera company is breathtaking. Opera offers safe vpn tunnels for protecting my data but have no problems logging everything I do and my passwords.
Opera please comply. -
leocg Moderator Volunteer last edited by
@jpma said in Opera security vulnerability, opera update.:
every update is changing my security settings in opera webbrowser.
What are being changed?
@jpma said in Opera security vulnerability, opera update.:
I do not want passwords to be remebered, I do not want my searches to be logged, I always want browserhistory deleted upon exit.
You can disable the option to remember passwords. For the other two I don't think there is a setting for.
@jpma said in Opera security vulnerability, opera update.:
My only concern now is opera as opera is now behaving as a virus, unwanted changes to my computer.
What changes? Is Opera changing anything that is not related to Opera?
What is your version of Opera? What is your OS?
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burnout426 Volunteer last edited by
@jpma said in Opera security vulnerability, opera update.:
My biggest security concern on my computer is opera web browser. Iam not able disabling the opera update hence every update is changing my security settings in opera webbrowser. I do not want passwords to be remebered, I do not want my searches to be logged, I always want browserhistory deleted upon exit. Opera update updates almost every week without notice, all of a sudden I discover my setttings changed from safe to unsafe by opera.
If an Opera update is reverting those settings back to default, I'd consider that a bug. Can't say Opera's done that to me though.
To disable the updater, just rename opera_autoupdate.exe in the versioned folder in the Opera program files directory.
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A Former User last edited by
@jpma - Maybe you could make a new firewall outbound Block rule for the (opera_autoupdate.exe) if you don't wanna rename it like burnout426 said...that way if its not opera's fault, you can allow laters perhaps..
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A Former User last edited by
If your concern is the auto update feature to opera, there are several ways to block it. I am using windows, so this applies to that OS only.
a. you can create a custom firewall rule. You will need to access advanced firewall setting in an administrator account. There is an abundance of how to instructions (google it) on how to create a firewall rule. pro's and cons:
pro: you can effectively block just about anything with a custom firewall rule.
con: when the firewall rule is active, you will not receive ANY opera update. Some are not merely cosmetic, but rather security updates. Not applying security updates on a browser (opera in this case) is probably the worst idea.
B. the other method, is to block the startup process of opera update. I have not tested this method, but I use it for other purposes and it is very effective. You will use Sysinternals AUTORUNS program. You will need to download it from the official Sysinternals website (there are unfortunately many malicious programs that pretend to be legitimate, be careful.) the sysinternals website provide sha1/sha256 file verification hashes. Most other sites do not do that. So you will know you are on the official website. You must run the AUTORUNS program from an administrator account.
Pro's: you do not need to have extensive experience using AUTORUNS compared to creating custom adv firewall rules. Most users find autoruns to be fairly intuitive. When it completes the full scan of all programs that are set to "autorun", you simply remove the checkbox from the program that controls autoupdate for opera. It should read something like opera update. Once you remove the checkbox for that item, it will not run.
con's: again, you lose the ability to update Opera, and any future security update. You can however, go back periodically to autoruns and put the checkbox, and then MANUALLY update opera.
Now these two methods will not prevent the overwite of your custom settings in opera, presumably that is caused by opera updates. However, I have not experienced this at all myself, and have run at least three updates, and all my settings remain intact, so you might have something else going on that is causing that problem.
to be honest, I am concerned you mentioned you are not running any security or anti-malware programs. Hopefully, you are at least running Defender. You should reconsider your decision wrt to security. windows is very vulnerably, and any browser, opera included offer little true protection of your computer, and just about anything you want to protect (email, fb, twitter, bank accounts, etc....these are all exposed to the risks ...use some kind of security greatly reduced the risks..with few performance tradeoffs...even kaspersky has offered a free on year to their full featured anti virus software. I highly recommend it!
lastly, you might want to look at this:
http://help.opera.com/Windows/12.10/en/backup.html
these instructions show how to backup your settings, and bookmarks, etc, before "upgrading"...I have never used these instructions myself, but I just googled it and it came up within the first several "hits". What I would do it test it out, and see if you can restore backups using this method after the next update.
I agree you situation seems very strange.
Another things to look into is "exporting bookmarks"...I do this fairly often, so that I can import favorites from one browser to another. In your case, frequently exporting your bookmarks to a file, will preserve them before an update. I would do this at the end of every session and just overwrite the backup file. That way, if an update happens, and your bookmarks get squashed, you can just import the most recent set of bookmarks from this file.
Opera menu - bookmarks - export Bookmarks
this method will not save your settings, but it will save your bookmarks.
as a side note, there might a good reason for you to review your settings and redo them after each update. If you think about it, opera might be introducing different controls. So after each update, would be a good time to review what has changed and make your settings accordingly. Unfortunately, most users do not actually read change logs, so inspecting what changes are made to your settings after an update is good due diligence. Just take a look long term to how differently chrome has changed its browser and settings as an example. Normally they are very public about what major changes are made to the browser, but again it is really up to you (the user) to inspect what those "new" settings really are, and make sure you choose according to your taste..and in some case, appetite for risk!
good luck
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A Former User last edited by
"to be honest, I am concerned you mentioned you are not running any security or anti-malware programs. Hopefully, you are at least running Defender. You should reconsider your decision wrt to security. windows is very vulnerably, and any browser, opera included offer little true protection of your computer, and just about anything you want to protect (email, fb, twitter, bank accounts, etc....these are all exposed to the risks ...use some kind of security greatly reduced the risks..with few performance tradeoffs...even kaspersky has offered a free on year to their full featured anti virus software. I highly recommend it!"
if 808freesurfr is right and you don't have any protection you don't belong online, cause you're not just jeopardizing you're security but the security of EVERYONE you interact with online. as for opera updates changing your settings no unless you have a bug on your end.
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blackbird71 last edited by blackbird71Malware threats are real. However, probably much more has to do with one's computer habits than any other single factor. If one doesn't open unsolicited eMail attachments, avoids visiting 'questionable' sites (though there's a lot of debate about what is questionable), doesn't download/install all kinds of freeware, keeps their OS and browsers updated for security, and operates their system from a 'limited' user account, they reduce their attack surface to a minimum even without AV. Nevertheless, there are still episodes each year where even 'reputable' sites have been hacked (particularly the ad scriptings they carry) to funnel drive-by malware onto user systems that simply visit the site, which is why using a limited user account is so critical - especially for those without AV.
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A Former User last edited by
@leocg said in Opera security vulnerability, opera update.:
@chuchkyschild There are lots of people around that don't have any security software installed and don't face any issues with virus, malware and so on.
those people are liars
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blackbird71 last edited by
@chuchkyschild said in Opera security vulnerability, opera update.:
@leocg said in Opera security vulnerability, opera update.:
@chuchkyschild There are lots of people around that don't have any security software installed and don't face any issues with virus, malware and so on.
those people are liars
Actually, not all of them. I know a number of respected security 'gurus' on various security forums and a couple of personal friends who have their systems tightly locked down using limited accounts, group policies, EMET, script-blocking, etc. but use no AV per se, and they seem to do OK with it. That's not a course I recommend for most users, however, since most typical users don't have the knowledge to do it properly or the willingness to accept the consequences of those measures' impact on their web browsing habits. Personally, I believe the average user is better off combining "safe hex" with a modest combination of layered security.
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zalex108 last edited by zalex108@chuchkyschild said in Opera security vulnerability, opera update.:
@leocg said in Opera security vulnerability, opera update.:
@chuchkyschild There are lots of people around that don't have any security software installed and don't face any issues with virus, malware and so on.
those people are liars
@blackbird71 said in Opera security vulnerability, opera update.:
@chuchkyschild said in Opera security vulnerability, opera update.:
@leocg said in Opera security vulnerability, opera update.:
@chuchkyschild There are lots of people around that don't have any security software installed and don't face any issues with virus, malware and so on.
those people are liars
Actually, not all of them. I know a number of respected security 'gurus' on various security forums and a couple of personal friends who have their systems tightly locked down using limited accounts, group policies, EMET, script-blocking, etc. but use no AV per se, and they seem to do OK with it. That's not a course I recommend for most users, however, since most typical users don't have the knowledge to do it properly or the willingness to accept the consequences of those measures' impact on their web browsing habits. Personally, I believe the average user is better off combining "safe hex" with a modest combination of layered security.
In my case I just use the StevenBlack hosts file and an ad/popup blocker in the browser.
And off course, some common sense.Depending on your life style you may need an AV to block user's infected pendrives.
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A Former User last edited by
key words tightly locked down. what's the point of being online if you're not going to go anywhere?
