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I hear that web-browsing is the most likely origin of malware on a computer these days. I also hear that one doesn't need to worry about viruses on Linux. So, should I use a browser extension that allows me to selectively enable javascript for favoured domains, such as No-Script or Not-Script?

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I use it myself but I think that it is a non-starter for the "less patient". Even I couldn't be bothered until I found the keyboard shortcut. I tell my sister, "switch to Ubuntu, no viruses" and then insist she use No-Script? No chance. Can I at least tell her she'll be x% safer on Ubuntu? –  daithib8 Apr 10 '11 at 9:26
@daithib8 Your use of non-starter is especially appropriate here. –  belacqua Apr 11 '11 at 17:15
Keep in mind that NoScript is ADDED security. You're already using a safe browser on a safe Operating system. Noscript is a wonderful extension and I use it all the time, but it's not for everyone. Some people are turned off with the amount of upkeep it needs when browsing foreign sites (it will break them). I think it's worth the hassle, personally. But it's your decision. –  user6658 Apr 23 '11 at 13:07
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Many websites use scripts.Some of them can be harmful.An attacker can use scripts to perform some attacks such as XSS:

Cross-site scripting (XSS) is a type of computer security vulnerability typically found in web applications that enables malicious attackers to inject client-side script into web pages viewed by other users...

Read more in wikipedia.

No script give you the power to control all scripts and plugins such as flash, java, ...This way you can add trusted websites to the white list and prevent others from running.You will have a more secure browsers this way.

Better performance, better speed and decreasing unwanted bandwidth usage are some side benefits.

A question and it's answer in no-script website (faq) can make this answer more clear:

Why should I allow JavaScript, Java, Flash and plugin execution only for trusted sites?

JavaScript, Java and Flash, even being very different technologies, do have one thing in common: they execute on your computer code coming from a remote site. All the three implement some kind of sandbox model, limiting the activities remote code can perform: e.g., sandboxed code shouldn't read/write your local hard disk nor interact with the underlying operating system or external applications. Even if the sandboxes were bullet proof (not the case, read below) and even if you or your operating system wrap the whole browser with another sandbox (e.g. IE7+ on Vista or Sandboxie), the mere ability of running sandboxed code inside the browser can be exploited for malicious purposes, e.g. to steal important information you store or enter on the web (credit card numbers, email credentials and so on) or to "impersonate" you, e.g. in fake financial transactions, launching "cloud" attacks like Cross Site Scripting (XSS) or CSRF, with no need for escaping your browser or gaining privileges higher than a normal web page. This alone is enough reason to allow scripting on trusted sites only. Moreover, many security exploits are aimed to achieve a "privilege escalation", i.e. exploiting an implementation error of the sandbox to acquire greater privileges and perform nasty task like installing trojans, rootkits and keyloggers. This kind of attack can target JavaScript, Java, Flash and other plugins as well:

  1. JavaScript looks like a very precious tool for bad guys: most of the fixed browser-exploitable vulnerabilities discovered to date were ineffective if JavaScript was disabled. Maybe the reason is that scripts are easier to test and search for holes, even if you're a newbie hacker: everybody and his brother believe to be a JavaScript programmer :P

  2. Java has a better history, at least in its "standard" incarnation, the Sun JVM.There have been viruses, instead, written for the Microsoft JVM, like the ByteVerifier.Trojan. Anyway, the Java security model allows signed applets (applets whose integrity and origin are guaranteed by a digital certificate) to run with local privileges, i.e. just like they were regular installed applications. This, combined with the fact there are always users who, in front of a warning like "This applet is signed with a bad/fake certificate. You DON'T want to execute it! Are you so mad to execute it, instead? [Never!] [Nope] [No] [Maybe]", will search, find and hit the "Yes" button, caused some bad reputation even to Firefox (notice that the article is quite lame, but as you can imagine had much echo).

  3. Flash used to be considered relatively safe, but since its usage became so widespread severe security flaws have been found at higher rate. Flash applets have also been exploited to launch XSS attacks against the sites where they're hosted.>

  4. Other plugins are harder to exploit, because most of them don't host a virtual machine like Java and Flash do, but they can still expose holes like buffer overruns that may execute arbitrary code when fed with a specially crafted content. Recently we have seen several of these plugin vulnerabilities, affecting Acrobat Reader, Quicktime, RealPlayer and other multimedia helpers.

Please notice that none of the aforementioned technologies is usually (95% of the time) affected by publicly known and still unpatched exploitable problems, but the point of NoScript is just this: preventing exploitation of even unknown yet security holes, because when they are discovered it may be too late ;) The most effective way is disabling the potential threat on untrusted sites.

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In theory you can get viruses on Linux and Mac OS. The reason most people don't is because Linux and Mac OS are not big targets. The malware writers want to cast a wide net with minimal effort. Secondarily Linux/Unix offer more in the way of security and better informed users (in general). That being said I use Flashblock and No Script on Windows, Mac OS X and Ubuntu at all times. Pages load faster, it helps with online anonymity by preventing flash cookies and all manner of other issues. I highly recommend them, regardless of platform. At minimum they make you more aware of what pages are trying to do.

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I suggest you read this: theregister.co.uk/2004/10/22/linux_v_windows_security –  user6658 Apr 23 '11 at 13:04
Apache is not really relevant to the point being made here. With desktops, the primary security hole is the user who clicks on anything. As Canonical becomes more successful with targeting non-geek types, I'm sure there'll be a rise in security issues. –  Chan-Ho Suh May 8 '12 at 19:09
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I use NoScript regularly on Firefox, and recommend it for daily use.

It doesn't block ads, so you still support the site costs for their administrators.

However, it does block flash ads, greatly reducing your CPU load when browsing (provided that you have the flash plugin installed)

You can individually allow content to run, so most video sharing sites will start to work after you allow the scripts related to video playback (This may take a bit of guessing if there are several scripts on the page). The permissions you grant may be temporary for the session, or permanent so the site will work unless you decide to block them again.

When filling out forms such as site registrations, it's a good idea to allow the scripts before filling out the forms so you don't have to repeat your work. Allowing a script on a page forces a reload of the page.

The most important protection NoScript grants you is from malicious sites that try to change your window size, post content to social sites or do anything else unwanted. NoScript changes the default action to denied, and you can choose per-site if you judge that the scripts are trustworthy.

Here's the install link for Firefox: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/noscript/

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