A malware threat I've just found
- Thread starter Bill69
- Start date
Hello John, I agree completely, continue mate...!I think the main message here is to be very wary of any anti-virus, anti-spyware, anti-adware software that you haven't requested yourself and comes unsolicited when you're surfing the web!
If you have your own anti-virus software (I have avast! because it's free) then you don't really need owt else. Ad-Aware by Lavasoft is free and useful if you suddenly find adverts popping up unsolicited while surfing. "No-Ads", also free, gives you the control to stop individual advert pages from opening.
There is widespread speculation, and growing suspicion, that many Trojans and Viruses (should be Virii) have been written and launched by the Anti-Virus Software Distributors themselves!
I am surprised that our own Trading Standards Department haven't yet investigated the Norton / Symantec / McAfee annual subscription racket!
If you have your own anti-virus software (I have avast! because it's free) then you don't really need owt else. Ad-Aware by Lavasoft is free and useful if you suddenly find adverts popping up unsolicited while surfing. "No-Ads", also free, gives you the control to stop individual advert pages from opening.
There is widespread speculation, and growing suspicion, that many Trojans and Viruses (should be Virii) have been written and launched by the Anti-Virus Software Distributors themselves!
I am surprised that our own Trading Standards Department haven't yet investigated the Norton / Symantec / McAfee annual subscription racket!
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Hi Backyard, I think I'm about to start! (I sent you an email a few weeks ago about Dobro. Did you get it? Don't reply, I'll be in touch.
Hi sterrett, you touched on a sensitive subject. One dear to my heart.
I really do wonder why the thousands of more recent viruses (virii) and Trojans do little more than bring up warning messages on Anti-Virus programs?
Some seem so harmless that one has to wonder if they are there just to put the fear of God up you. Take for example, the Russian web sites that report you have untold infections, then offer to remove them for a fee. Are they doing anything worse that anyone else, or are they just being more blatant?
A friend recently downloaded two programs that AVG reported as being infected. He decided to run them anyway and they work fine. Now AVG can't find the viruses. Nothing has changed and the programs seem to be working perfectly.
Let me go one step further. With so much piracy going on, it would be in the iterests of top line developers to put "virus ridden" software on the peer to peer networks. Take a look at eMule for example, I believe that 50% of the downloads there contain ficticious viruses to scare you off. The programs won't work if you ignore the virus warnings, but the fear of God factor has done its job.
As much as I don't believe what I'm saying, I do believe that 90% of all viruses (as opposed to malware) are a load of garbage.
An old friend of mine was a night watchman. He always said: "Padlocks are not designed to keep theives out, they're there to keep honest people honest." I think most viruses are nothing more than padlocks.
I rest my case.
Hi sterrett, you touched on a sensitive subject. One dear to my heart.
I really do wonder why the thousands of more recent viruses (virii) and Trojans do little more than bring up warning messages on Anti-Virus programs?
Some seem so harmless that one has to wonder if they are there just to put the fear of God up you. Take for example, the Russian web sites that report you have untold infections, then offer to remove them for a fee. Are they doing anything worse that anyone else, or are they just being more blatant?
A friend recently downloaded two programs that AVG reported as being infected. He decided to run them anyway and they work fine. Now AVG can't find the viruses. Nothing has changed and the programs seem to be working perfectly.
Let me go one step further. With so much piracy going on, it would be in the iterests of top line developers to put "virus ridden" software on the peer to peer networks. Take a look at eMule for example, I believe that 50% of the downloads there contain ficticious viruses to scare you off. The programs won't work if you ignore the virus warnings, but the fear of God factor has done its job.
As much as I don't believe what I'm saying, I do believe that 90% of all viruses (as opposed to malware) are a load of garbage.
An old friend of mine was a night watchman. He always said: "Padlocks are not designed to keep theives out, they're there to keep honest people honest." I think most viruses are nothing more than padlocks.
I rest my case.
Only TWO?
And Let me interject from a Crappy Experience -- It's not Free like avast! Home Edition, and is nowhere near as Effective...
cascaderailroad
New member
A Good Bump...Heads Up
There are some nasty malware and Trojans out there. I have Norton AV and it did not detect the "Trojandropper". I used Malwarebyes and it took care of it. It was slowing things down and caused intermitant conectivity with my router/modem, and caused constant disconnection from my ISP Network.
There is also a warning out to PSP gamers of some bug that is caused by the internal clock changeover from February to March.
There are some nasty malware and Trojans out there. I have Norton AV and it did not detect the "Trojandropper". I used Malwarebyes and it took care of it. It was slowing things down and caused intermitant conectivity with my router/modem, and caused constant disconnection from my ISP Network.
There is also a warning out to PSP gamers of some bug that is caused by the internal clock changeover from February to March.
I would recommend using either Microsoft Security Essentials or AVG Antivirus Free edition. Both are freeware utilities, both have ability to detect antivirus/malware. Newest version of AVG has a "game mode" which suspends realtime scanning when a full-screen application has been detected to smooth out performance. Microsoft solution require you to keep your Windows installation fully up to date (Windows Update).
For spyware detection only you cannot go wrong with Lavasoft AdAware Free edition.
For spyware detection only you cannot go wrong with Lavasoft AdAware Free edition.
Baureihe41
Banned
The last four years I have been using Avast! Home edition. I haven't had a single virus during all those years. An occasional tracking cookie is all that managed to find its way to the system.
The home edition is completely free and I highly recommend it.
for those interested: http://www.avast.com/free-antivirus-download
The home edition is completely free and I highly recommend it.
for those interested: http://www.avast.com/free-antivirus-download
saintjimmy
You! Off my planet.
I like using Webroot Anti-virus with Spy Sweeper. It's renowned for getting rid of everything, including viruses, spyware, trojans, worms, and adware. I've had it since 2006, and it keeps my computer perfectly clean of bad stuff, runs light on system resources (but then again I have a 3.6 GHz quad core...), and I love how few popups there are, especially when gaming. I feel safe with it, and it's won over 50 awards through the years for anti-spyware/anti-virus protection.
For $30 you can protect one PC for a year, but I always go for the multi-user one for $10 more so I can protect as many computers as I want (usually my desktop, laptop, and parent's desktop).
I'm not trying to put down other free programs, it's just that I found this one that does the work of 2+ protection programs.
For $30 you can protect one PC for a year, but I always go for the multi-user one for $10 more so I can protect as many computers as I want (usually my desktop, laptop, and parent's desktop).
I'm not trying to put down other free programs, it's just that I found this one that does the work of 2+ protection programs.
Gandalf0444
FVRR member
I also use avast home edition...best thing is that it is free! It does the job well, but has it's flaws like any other virus scanner. I also own the full version of Malwarebytes and find that it finds things that avast doesn't and vice versa. More often then not with a virus that the thread starter had I would end up removing it manually. Sure some people view it as dangerous, but it is really not if you have any clue as to what you are doing. If you are just a normal/casual PC user it is best you don't do it yourself. However if you are very computer savvy or fix computers for a living like I now do, then it is very easy. If the person urgently needs the computer back it saves a ton of time, and makes that possible, rather then sitting and waiting for multiple virus scans to complete to find nothing has come up. OR waiting for windows to reinstall... Both very time consuming and can be very costly at certain places that charge by the hour.
greywolfretired
New member
I would say that for the amount of money spent on a strong reliable internet security program it is well worth the money.Do some research as to what the top 5 security and virus programs are and buy one. The free ones do not protect as well as some of the others. I would add that internet security is also a huge threat and you should also protect yourself from that.The free ones will not stop someone from stealing your identity . When that happens you will really wish you had purchased a good program. I know they cost $ but think about what you may lose.
have a great day,its really sunny and warm here,spring has sprung.
have a great day,its really sunny and warm here,spring has sprung.