You Need To Disable Autorun

he autorun feature enables CDs to play automatically when inserted in the drive. This is the same feature that enabled the now infamous Sony rootkit to install. Removable and thumb drives use the same autorun feature to load files when the drives are plugged into the USB port. Malware relies on this autorun feature to spread from thumb drive to PC. Disable the autorun feature to prevent malware from spreading. And who knows, it may just stop the next rootkit-enabled CD.
Difficulty: Easy
Time Required: 2 minutes
Here's How:
1. If you use XP Pro, follow steps 1 through 8 only. XP Home users begin at step 9.
2. Click Start and then click Run
3. Type gpedit.msc and click OK
4. The Group Policy window will open. In the left pane, double-click Administrative Templates
5. In the right pane, double-click System
6. Scroll down the list and double-click Turn Off Autoplay
7. In the Turn Off Autoplay Properties window, select Enabled. From the dropdown next to Turn Off Autoplay on, select All drives and then click OK
8. Exit Group Policy by selecting File, then choosing Exit from the menu.
9. XP Home users will need to make the changes by editing the registry directly. To begin, click Start and then click Run
10. Type regedit and click OK. The Registry Editor window will open.
11. In the left pane, navigate to:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER
Software
Microsoft
Windows
CurrentVersion
Policies
Explorer.
(Note: For help navigating the registry, see the Windows Basics System Registry tutorial).
12. With Explorer highlighted, in the right-pane right click the value NoDriveTypeAutoRun and select Modify from the drop down menu. The base value will be set to Hexadecimal. If not, select Hexadecimal.
13. Type 91 and click OK
14. Exit Registry Editor by selecting File, then choosing Exit from the menu.
15. You will now need to reboot your computer for the changes to take effect.

From Mary Landesman