Hi Im new to linux and was just wondering if I need to install any firewall stuff or virus scanners or something. Just curious 
Firewall is available and you can configure it under YaST. Antivirus, frankly, not needed.
openSUSE comes with a Firewall which will be installed and turned on for you by default. Virus scanners are much less common for Linux. They exist, but the need for one is much less. Linux, like any Operating System could be breached with someone who knows what they are doing and has a good reason to write a virus for Linux. However, there seems to be very few people doing this as many more people use Windows, which provides a more fertile field for virus writers to make more money. It is my opinion that Linux by its nature is more secure and with fewer people trying to crash it, it is by far more safe than Windows any day. So, as a matter of fact, few people use an Anti-Virus scanner while using Linux. This could change in the future, but it does not look all that likely right now.
Thank You,
On Sat, 26 Jun 2010 01:36:02 +0000, ken yap wrote:
> Antivirus,
> frankly, not needed.
Arguably, that depends on the use of Linux - while there are very few
viruses for Linux, a Linux box used as a mail server can still spread
Windows viruses to Windows clients.
Jim
–
Jim Henderson
openSUSE Forums Administrator
Yes, I was sure someone would get persnickety. 
In this case I judged, perhaps without sufficient evidence, that this person was not setting up a server and didn’t need this elaboration at this point. We both have set up virus scanners for Linux servers, I’m sure.
On Sat, 26 Jun 2010 01:56:02 +0000, ken yap wrote:
> hendersj;2181239 Wrote:
>> > Antivirus,
>> > frankly, not needed.
>>
>> Arguably, that depends on the use of Linux - while there are very few
>> viruses for Linux, a Linux box used as a mail server can still spread
>> Windows viruses to Windows clients.
>
> Yes, I was sure someone would get persnickety. In this case I judged,
> perhaps without sufficient evidence, that this person was not setting up
> a server and didn’t need this elaboration at this point. We both have
> set up virus scanners for Linux servers, I’m sure.
Yep, and I knew you knew that there were good reasons to do so as well;
and I figured you wouldn’t mind someone highlighting that for most
desktop users it’s not necessary, but that doesn’t mean it’s never
necessary. 
Jim
–
Jim Henderson
openSUSE Forums Administrator
The soft underbelly of a desktop system (as opposed to a server) is usually the web browser. If you are worried about security, you should read up on browser security and safe browsing practices. Here are a few thoughts:
- Keep your software up-to-date.
- Use the noscript add-on for firefox.
- Be careful of blindly following tutorials on how to do things (especially if they involve downloading things from random websites and installing them.)
- Be wary of using server programs that allow you to remotely access your computer (i.e. SSH or graphical remote desktop programs). If you need to use them, read up on their security.
- Don’t be so paranoid that using a computer ceases to be fun. In general, when you use linux you don’t have to worry about a lot of those things that Windows Anti-virus companies try to scare you about so that you will give them money.
- Use the noscript add-on for firefox.
NoScript is actually a rather dubious addon, see → here.
I read the criticism portion of the wikipedia article. Why is noscript a dubious addon? By dubious do you mean:
- It is unnecessary / does not work as advertised?
or
- There have been some criticisms of its interaction with the adblock and ghostery firefox addons?
I would not trust a programmer who includes functions like blocking or affecting other addons without any users interaction or even knowledge.