Flash drive virus protection

Question

Malware

Hello! I constantly encounter infected flash drives, in which all folders have become hidden. I fly, I clean, I give. A day or two later, the situation repeats itself. It's just that employees constantly go to different organizations, shoving flash drives everywhere. Accordingly, a whole bunch of viruses are formed on flash drives.

Is there any way to protect yourself from this infection? All that I saw from the proposed options suggest manipulations with the autorun.inf file. But I didn’t find it about hidden folders

Answer 1

You can use the method described in this article: habrahabr.ru/blogs/infosecurity/47287/
In a nutshell, the flash drive is formatted in NTFS, the necessary folders are created at the root, and then writing to the root is prohibited.
The advantage is that not a single virus can physically gain a foothold on a flash drive.
Minus - the Send To context menu in Windows will not work, since it writes the file to the root.

Answer 2

I have Linux computers, and I don't care about these viruses of yours =)

Answer 3

There are flash drives with a write protection switch or a USB card reader + SD card. This is suitable when you need to dump it from a USB flash drive to an organization's computer.
If it is the other way around, then only DrWeb CureIt (before that, set the switch to the Lock position) and force at least the start of a quick check (when processes are checked) to be done on each computer.
You can also make a hidden partition with a password, write everything down there, and in organizations they will write to a clean partition and there will be nothing to hide viruses, well, if only just written folders.

Answer 4

I have read the comments. Fuck off. Live and learn.
And a significant question. Ideally, of course, I would like to switch + record not from my computer, only to a separate menagerie folder.
I think I've even seen such a flash drive somewhere. But of course this is not an option.

Answer 5

And what are the bad manipulations with autorun.inf? For example, create a hidden folder with the same name, and put 1 file in it. It will save you from most "under-viruses".
Although I personally have been using the free USB Vaccine utility for about 3 years now. I set autovaccination in the settings and forgot - it couldn't be easier. And the aunts do not need to explain anything, but simply return the flash drive. Although, if there is already a virus on the flash drive, then it should still be formatted just in case (I have all hidden / system files displayed, so the virus does not go unnoticed).

Answer 6

There are two options:
1. Buy a flash drive with a write protection switch. I bought myself a QUMO flash drive like this . Works for the second year without complaints. I recommend it as the easiest way.
2. Use a program that clogs all the remaining space on the flash drive to 0. I used this program of the venerableMechanicus . But here it is necessary to move the brain a little.

Answer 7

There is only one solution - to have a device with a switch - "you can write / read only".
But if earlier there were a lot of such flash drives, then over the past 5 years I don’t remember such options.
Another option described above is SD / microSD - almost all manufacturers still put a switch on them. Well, a small card reader, which will be like a flash drive in size for you.
An example of such a microSD card reader is www.ulmart.ru/goods/201401/
Dimensions are no larger than a flash drive.
I also met (I definitely bought it a year ago, now I don’t know whether they produce such ones or not) - a flash drive of a certain volume + built-in microSD card reader. As a result, you get 2 devices at once - a flash drive on which you can write information from users, as well as some area with your files / folders, the volume of a microSD card, but in read only mode - viruses will not break into it.
After you come somewhere with a screw of various programs ... and when you connect you get a lot of infection - I got it. I bought myself a Zalman VE200. There just is a switch write/read_only. Conveniently.
Well, or write down on blanks - what you need to write down to the clients, and take the information from the clients on a flash drive, but carefully check it at home.
There are many options. It remains to decide which is more convenient.

Answer 8

Format the flash drive to NTFS and prohibit all groups except Owner from writing to the flash drive. Pluses - the infection itself will not be recorded on another computer. Cons - nothing useful can be written from another computer without manipulating access rights, which will be available only to the local administrator.