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I've been living in a dorm for the last week. When I arrived I basically set up my laptop and plugged in the ethernet cable directly into the socket in the wall (without a router in between). During the last days I've noticed that the internet is really slow and unstable. This got me thinking that I'm under attack since the router provides a basic firewall if I'm correct, and without it I'm vulnerable.

I'm using Windows 8 with the standard Windows firewall turned on, and I've scanned with malwarebytes without finding anything. Am I at risk? What should I do now? I've been using my bank, Facebook, email etc.

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    Good anti-virus will help you with pluggin it into every other campus network.
    – Aria
    Aug 31, 2016 at 21:51
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    But is the Windows firewall good enough to not lose my facebook, bank account, email etc?
    – user123039
    Aug 31, 2016 at 21:55
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    Firewalls have really nothing to do with security against web-based attacks (think: phishing or XSS) or man in the middle attacks that could occur on a residence hall network.
    – multithr3at3d
    Sep 1, 2016 at 2:27

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TL;DR

Get good AV, use a firewall, and be skeptical of things you download and links you click on.

I'm using Windows 8 with the standard Windows firewall turned on, and I've scanned with malwarebytes without finding anything. Am I at risk?

Anytime you connect to a network with other users, there's always a risk. That risk is decreased with the use of firewalls, AV, and a generally skeptical mindset regarding all sites you visit and things you download. To quote the X-Files... Trust No One. Don't click on suspicious links, or download unknown files from the Internet or email. If you do download anything, scan it with a well-known AV. Alternatively, you can upload it to Virus Total to see what other AVs have identified in that file.

What should I do now? I've been using my bank, Facebook, email etc.

The reality is the Internet can be appear to be slow at times. Think about where you are. At a college when everyone is coming back to school. Bandwidth may experience congestion and appear slow at times -that's probably normal. If you really want to test it, go to a local coffee shop or Internet Cafe when there's low traffic, or test the school network at a time when there should be low usage (i.e., 6am). If your computer functions as expected, chalk the slowness up to congestion.

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