> I read an article recently that a PC is
> attacked, on average, within 7 minutes of
> being attached to the internet. Oh yeah, the
> average guy isn't going to have any trouble
> with that.

7 minutes is probably conservative.

Sometimes I have difficulty convincing an average user that he really needs a firewall, all the latest security updates, AV software, etc. This despite the fact that I'm usually having the conversation subsequent to removing spyware, viruses, etc. from his system. His line of reasoning is usually something like, "With all the millions of people online, why would anybody be interested in my computer?"

I just pop one of those bootable Linux CD's I have mentioned in other posts into his system, boot up, and run tcpdump. (Viktor knows this, but for the benefit of other readers, tcpdump is a utility that monitors network traffic and displays it on the monitor.)

It usually only takes a few minutes for the screen to fill with data scrolling by, and the following converation ensues:

Him: "What's all that stuff?"

Me: "Network activity. Portscans, mostly."

Him: "What's a portscan?"

Me: "Probably someone checking out your system to see if they can get in."

Him: (long pause, as we watch the lines of data scrolling down the screen) . . . . . . "damn!"

Firewall, etc. are subsequently installed.