Many people do not realise that internet sites can install stuff without you even knowing. These sites can install programs that can:

*Automatically dial foreign countries (causing huge phone bill)
*Allow people access to your computer
*Cause your browser to crash
*Change what websites say/have on them
*Cause popups
*Cause sites to load slowly

There are also many viruses out there that can easily be installed on your computer. A common one I have seen going around infects computers through AIM.

If one of your AIM buddies says to you
"Check this cam im gettin from bestbuy Pic - Mini DV Digital"
or ANYTHING about a camera including a link, do NOT click it. It will automatically infect your computer, (even though you get a dialog asking if you want to save the file, its too late).

Alert the buddy that he is infected with a virus, and make sure you have antivirus/have it updated.


Now, for the preventative measures:

<span style='font-size:9pt;line-height:100%'>To PREVENT spyware/adware/malware from installing</span>
without having any program running, download this neat prog from javacool. (NOTE--it will interfere with installation of macromedia flash. Simply deactivate the protection, update, then activate it again.)
http://www.javacoolsoftware.com
(always check for updates; dont forget to click download updates)

<span style='font-size:9pt;line-height:100%'>To scan for adware/malware/spyware</span>
as well as add some additional protections,
http://security.kolla.de
(again, always update it...weekly is best...when downloading updates, pick a mirror in the same country as you)


<span style='font-size:9pt;line-height:100%'>For further adware protection</span>
Ad-Aware is good....it gets stuff that Spybot Search and Destroy doesnt, and Spybot gets stuff that Ad-Aware doesnt...they make a good team...
http://www.lavasoftusa.com
(again, always remember to update...and the prog HAS to be run to work....)



<span style='font-size:9pt;line-height:100%'>for a FREE ONLINE virus check:</span>
http://housecall.trendmicro.com

(this will begin the check)

<span style='font-size:9pt;line-height:100%'>For advanced users--wondered why that damn adware/spyware loads at startup?</span>
wanna stop it?
http://www.mlin.net
easy to use, accessible from control panel applet that can easily change which progs load at startup.


<span style='font-size:9pt;line-height:100%'>Finally....lookin for a popup killer?</span>

Finnish programmer Eero Muhonen has made two really awesome programs. First one is freeware, and is great for most popups.
http://www.emsproject.com/FS/download.htm
(mkII download)

For $20, you can get the full version, which can be used to manually kill certain popups that would normally get by...it also has some extra great plugins, and uses 50% less RAM than the MKII popup killer. Purchase now, and the new version (1/31/04) is free (save $3.90). I say its worth it.
http://www.emsproject.com/FS
(click buy now) (dont bother tryin to use a crack....prog will get all goofy on ya, and anywho, any hint of crack use will result in a ban)



Edited By viper2040 on Jan. 23 2004 at 09:23

MY COMP HAS CRASHED B4 AND I FIXED THE PROBLEM BASICALLY MAINLY POP-UPS ARE(WERE) A PROBLEM FOR ME SO I DOWNLOADED A POP-UP BLOCKER AND ALSO WHAT U CAN DO IS CLEAN UR DISK DRIVE AND OR GO TO MY COMPUTER(if youHAVE WINDOWS) AND GO TO DISPLAY, THEN GO TO ADD REMOVE PROGRAMS AND U CAN DELETE STUFF THERE :buttrock: IT WORKS

be careful what you uninstall...these solutions i mentioned can be done easily and by anyone...

[quote:post_uid0="viper2040"]A common one I have seen going around infects computers through AIM.[/quote]
Yea I got one by clicking on this link in someones profile.....it not only downloaded spyware onto my computer.....it automatically would put the link in my profile...

So I hit conrtrol-alt-delete and I found there was a program running called "B"....that turned out to be the right one cause I deleted it and it stoped:P

I'd testify to the one from AIM.. It attacks ur PC in a very foolish way.. Some rubbish virus.
Someone on ur buddy list sends you a message and tells you to check out a camera or so.. and when you click the link.. BAM! It enters ur PC..

That happened to me.. and the first step I think is best to take is to go to http://housecall.trendmicro.com That should be a good start to getting rid of those VIRUSES.. :biggrin:

and its common sense also the fact not to click on stuffudont no ???

ok. can u tell me if im safe. i have a norton antivirus protect trash bin. norton systemworks and a newer anitvirus. ever so ofter i get a message saying that im protect from all new virus. am i still safe? also my comp is scanned and quantined for virus ever fri. am i safew?!?!?!

Some people really gotta know what has anything to be done for your computer to get those spyware and all !

for once, let me clarify this...

NOTHING CAN BE DONE TO YOUR MACHINE WITHOUT YOUR PERMISSION !

this is a basic rule for computer, you must accept the file for it to be dangerous !
if you come to a web site and click yes to every sungle thing just because you want to open correctly, then and only then are you sure to install things you really don't want to install !

example...
going into a web site, it ask me if i want to install the XXX SEARCH BAR, otherwise the web site will not open !
guess what... i said no to that and it opens anyway, why because that tool bar is nothing more then a publicity thing !

so again, if ya got anything openning up for no reason, that is because you accepted something on your computer !

that's the way all virus are !

WORMS = sent by email, activated when you actually open the email.
TROJAN = sent thru any file sharing programs, activated only when you open the program.
HOAX VIRUS = sent by by any fashion possible, activated by your mind ! :colgate:

see all things starts by you accepting something.
i rarely ever get anything, spyware wise or any other things, i don't have any anti-virus nor do i have any special protection against anything. it is called READING CAREFULLY !

read what is hapenning, even tho you think you know, read it carefully and see how many things you will not need anymore !

the only thing that can be downloaded (not installed, just downloaded) are cookies, and the web sites themselves. which in themselves, in cache, do not do anything to your machine !

there is no way for a web site to make you run without your notice any programs all by itself, there is no way, unless you gave them access to your machine !

so again, yeah those solution are great if you were struck by anything... but remember a website cannot do any harm to you without you accepting anything !

best thing to do...
WHEN A POPUP APPEARS, READ IT, AND RE-READ IT CAREFULLY !

this way you are sure not to open anything wrong !
if you don't know the thing, just don't accept it, if you know the thing, then do as you please !

** ULTIMATE SOLUTION TO VIRUS **
it is a simple command, yet it is very hard for so many reasons, mainly because after it there is nothing on your hard drive !

the command is called FORMAT
no virus can survive a FULL HD FORMAT !
don't tell me MEMORY, it cannot because it takes around 15 seconds after the computer been turned off for the memory to to be completely emptyed and shut off !

so no, the only way a virus has to keep going is thru BIOS BATTERY, which is READ ONLY, it cannot be modified fromt he original configuration. and the HARD DRIVE which was formatted, so no virus can survive this !

this tho, kills the machine itself !
so you'll have to re-install everything from the very start !



Edited By SSJKarma on Jan. 22 2004 at 19:55

[quote:post_uid0="viper2040"]Many people do not realise that internet sites can install stuff without you even knowing. These sites can install programs that can:

*Automatically dial foreign countries (causing huge phone bill)
*Allow people access to your computer
*Cause your browser to crash
*Change what websites say/have on them
*Cause popups
*Cause sites to load slowly[/quote]
.... and like you said, so can i also trust those sites you have provided to us?

lets all keep on topic, and try and trust me--YES those sites are safe.

SSJKarma--you dont always have to accept somethin....that aim virus--you click on the link, and it opens a website....INSTANTLY, a virus infects your computer. (there IS a download dialog box, but it really doesnt matter whether you click save, open, or cancel--the virus is already on yer comp)
\
To bubble--yes, youre safe from VIRUSES....but spyware, adware, and malware, as well as browser hijackers can still infect your computer. Thats why i included those other links. You also probably get a lot of popups...mkII popup killer works like a charm

so umm ne ideas on how i can get rid of my virus, i have the old version of trend pc cillin (98), and it doesnt even detect the virus, but the website u said where it does a scan told me i have a trojan virus, man dont tell me i have to use restorer on my comp.

i suggest you get a new version...or you can always format your comp but why would you want to do that :biggrin:

after u install the pop up killer what do i do?

Ah yes the topic of the most annoying yet simple pest called the Virus. Actually a Hacker and a Virus maker are very different. A hacker will use his "spy" and "stealth" skills to "sniff" out open ports in your system. Once in probably delete some of your programs or either route your connection to a bigger connection which holds millions of other connections and do denial of server attacks on its target site. A Virus maker is nothing more than a programmer. He/she would start by coding the Virus and then test it after that code it to multiply itself on your system. Hacking is easy if you know the basics. Anyone can hack no problem. A Virus maker on the other hand. Is more advanced than a everyday hacker. I know this because I once made a virus a very simple one to unload window files into this one guy who wanted to see if I could do it into his recycle bin.
Anyways getting back on subject here yah those are some REALLY nice sites to go to. Actually Im suprised you knew so many and detailed at that. Usually only hackers and virus makers themselves go to these sites. Good to see you guys are taking care of your comps :). Really you would be suprised the percentage of people who own a pc who doesnt know what a anti-virus program is.

LEDMONKEY: yes, coding in HEXADECIMAL is very possible, tho its a very very very unlikely used technique ! it is more used for hacking already made programs more then creating those programs !

VIPER: AIM, MSN and basically all programs that are PEER TO PEER like that are very different then those WEB SITES... web sites requires you to accept any files, but ya gotta admit it... if in AIM ya clicked the LINK that brought you to the site itself, then ya clearly accepted what was about to come at you, so in a case i was still right !

in any cases about programs like MSN or AIM, they are on SERVERS all around the the place, if one is infected, it takes on the network and travels by it !

gotta test that at home if ya want to know this... place two computers, doing a network, share both computer to have full access to each other, infect one and see that the second computer gets infected at almost the same time !

so like i said, the best thing to do against any kind of viruses, is to not accept anything that you don't know about !

if its a friend and he infected ya, then sorry about it, he got infected or he voluntarily infected you, its either one or the other, nothing else !

RYU'SREVENGE: i would check it out entirely and wouldn't save any EXECUTABLES, they are the one who gets infected ! in any cases yousbnhould look for the name of the trojan, and look for a CLEANER for it over the net. i passed so much time in the channel #AID on IRC that i know that the worst common problem people have is trojan viruses...

basically, your anti-virus software detects it, gives you the complete name for it, then go onto the net and find yourself a CLEANER for that type of trojan, it will clean it for you !

as the reason as to why it is un deinfectable, is because the whole program is the virus, only way around is to kill it !

the CLEANER should get rid of it in an instant. then you won't have to restore anything !

be on the look out for some other things...
the file you usually get has maybe too extensions, winbdows, may it be 98SE and less, will only see the last one. so it can be a trap unless you make your windows change config and show you all extension.

also, they can usually change the name of the program, thus changing his extension, but as soon as you try to run the program, even if it starts with the wrong thing, it will infect you !
also the size usually happen to be different. as in, how can a simple text file be over the meg limit ? this is impossible unless it is a book of more then 300 pages !

so again, ya gotta look for the files you receive and whihc files you execute. tell yourself that no files auto-execute itself ! ya always gotta give it the start, and then it will auto-execute itself at each start of your computer !



Edited By SSJKarma on Jan. 24 2004 at 02:26

sorry to contradict ya, karma....what yer talkin about is how it SHOULD be...but there are security holes...

in fact, anyone who was here for the snow/music i set up, you were witnessing one of those loopholes....that music was downloaded to your computers temporary internet cache, and run, without your permission...its a commonly used technique for media called embedding. What if the file had had a virus in it? (of course, it didnt....it was just a simple midi file, appx 15 kb in size)

I COULD give you a link that would infect you upon clickin it--its been goin around through AIM recently. It DOES prompt you to download a file, but thats just a distraction...the virus is already on yer comp by then.

As for typing random numbers in a text file, thats a load of crap. EXE files are compiled in machine code, which cannot be written or properly viewed through notepad. When you look at an EXE file using notepad, youre NOT seeing the actual machine code...youre seeing notepads interpretation of it. EXEs CANNOT be written through notepad. Programs can be written in notepad, but they must be compiled to work. (Scripts--bat files, vbs files, are different...)


<span style='font-size:10pt;line-height:100%'>However, this is all besides the point....the topic is NOT "lets discuss how viruses are made" or "Can that virus truely infect you"....the topic is protecting your computer, and stopping spyware. </span>



Edited By viper2040 on Jan. 24 2004 at 16:38

[quote:post_uid0="viper2040"][/quote]
Well I've got this problem with my homepage.. It keeps going back to the same page called "Cool Search." Yes, I've tried changing it on internet options.. But it still goes back to the same freakin page.

Any suggestions?


*If this has already been discussed then w/e tell me anyways..i'm too lazy to read all that.



Edited By illfusion on Jan. 24 2004 at 16:49

Did you click on one of those " Do you want to set this page as your homepage" things on accedent?

Sorry about gettin off topic.....just wondering if it was true or just a myth:P



Edited By ledmonkey on Jan. 24 2004 at 17:20

[quote:post_uid0="ledmonkey"][/quote]
No I don't think so..

Can anyone help?

(if you don't know what i'm talkig about, check my previous post.)

do this illfusion,it might help:
-clean ur cache
-clean ur history
-clean ur cookies
-clean ur temp files
-reset ur homepage ( go to internet options and click use blank.

[quote:post_uid0="Resident Evil"]do this illfusion,it might help:
-clean ur cache
-clean ur history
-clean ur cookies
-clean ur temp files
-reset ur homepage ( go to internet options and click use blank.[/quote]
k i'll try.

thanks

illfusion u have the same virus as me, its called "trojan startpage Q", its undeletable, u can go to control panel and internet options and reset web settings, but it will not stop the virus, it will take like 5 minutes for it to happen again. the only advice i can give u is to look up the virus on the internet and look for a antivirus, like karma said, but i looked and havent seen anything yet, looks like u maybe have to reformat.

[quote:post_uid0="RyusRevenge"][/quote]
poop are you serious? what else can the virus do? will it crash my comp?

...anyways to find out what the virus does, search for it here

onces u find it go down and it will tell u what to do, to get rid of it manually...

[color=purple:post_uid14]Hey alright a pop-up blocker that works..[/color:post_uid14]

Sorry to to disappoint you VIPER, viruses, and its been proven, cannot be in any files that aren't executable !

MUSIC, VIDEO, TEXT, DOCS, PDFs and basically all those things cannot have viruses !

EMBEDDING for once cannot be used to start up a virus !
and, in your CACHE, it is downloaded, but it is useless ! the only thing that can start up a virus are EXECUTABLES, and like i said, EXECUTABLE PROGRAMS cannot be hidden on things that are not meant to be PROGRAMS ! which cancels all the things you metnionned !

those holes do happens, but they are in WINDOWS itself, and in your SOFTWARE, that's why they say its good to UPDATE with what we call CRITICAL SECURITY HOLES !

but again, there is no way for any programmers out there to make a MP3 file to be a PROGRAM itself, this cannot be !

example:
you fuse your virus into an MP3... yes it is possible, but once ont he person's computer, playing it will result in an ERROR at LOADING time which will stop the process right away, without any codes to actually be EXECUTED !

which means no infection !
so like i said, nothing, really nothing taken from internet can be runned on your machine without your consent ! the embed thing, it didn't work on me at all... why, because i was using EXPLORER which can only take the BGSOUND thing, it cannot use EMBED, but even tho you used it, netscape user wouldn't have gotten any virus by it. you can't play a music which is in fact a program, the above error will happen and it will stop !

look around the net and see for yourself, how many MUSIC file or TXT files can be virus, you'll see none, so tell yourself that if it was possible, it would have hapenned a lot of times, whch it never did !

again, only EXECUTABLE FILES can be a virus !

TO PPL WHO USE AIM!!

ppl who use aim i want to inform u that if a buddy has ..I CANT BELIEVE I FOUND(UR SCREEN-NAME) here..

DO NOT CLICK IT..it can affected ur pc and it might crash..its call a Trojan Virus..

gah, its been a while, aint it?

ssjkarma--you hear of the blaster worm? On my campus, i got to see the bugger in action--it was infecting files like crazy...the virus' location? crazy "emails" saved to disk--it would create files called stuff like "1001 ways to save money.xml"...you didnt have to execute em, or anything.

Why do you think virus checkers check EVERY file, and not just exes?

viruses can also be written in vbs, bat, and pif files...

Ive had run ins with virus infected movies, and pictures...

well... again !

The blaster WORM is a virus using some SECURITY HOLE in WINDOWS all versions except WinME !
it provokes INSTABILITY and can at the right moments give full control over your machine to some hackers, yet again, this virus doesn't work against machine who has the RPC patched like microsoft has said it. and believe me, it does nothing if you are patched !

so again, a virus cannot autoexecute itself, ya gotta start it !
BAT files must be executed to be activated, same goes for VBS which are actually VISUAL BASIC files. they do not run by themselves. and PIF are SHORTCUTS made by windows to run programs at place by another place ! they do not run all by themselves !

so like i said...
don't start or accept anythings suspisous that you wouldn't take and believe me, you will not be infected by anything !

also, check for the size of the things, a virus is by definition a program... a program is in no case a valid musics or anything. musics, ascii chars and the likes cannot make a program.

if you got infected by a virus which was in a music file, then right int he beginning, it wasn't a music file at all !

if the ANTI-VIRUS checks each files like that, it is to find th evirus before you actually clicks it, because once you ran it it is already too late. so they got to warn you before you run the file !

and as far as i am concern, ANTI-VIRUS softwares are just too damn dumb to be any use !
example:
NORTON ANTI-VIRUS, at the maximum security level, it see's itself as a virus !

conclusion:
VIRUSes are a threat yeah, that i don't disagree with. but NO they aren't VIRUSes until they got started by the user in front of the computer !

you know, technicians around the globe have a code called for this...

its CODE19 which stands for 19 inches which is the basic distance between the user and the computer !

that means that the user is actually the one not taking care fo the machine in front of him. the machine never does anything by itself, it is always obeying the user who controls it !

I have Adware 6.0 by lavasoft and it really does get rid of everything I had like about 100 adware stuff on my computer and I got rid of it using the adware software. The only thing am consern about is something called a tracking cookie I don't know what it does but do those softwares viper said do they get rid of tracking cookie I know most of you guys probaly may of saw it on you guys computer before. Because everytime I go to websites a message appears saying we can detect you have spyware and tracking system installed on your machine is this really a message or is it fake. You guys may of seen this message before.



Edited By MrPegasus88 on Feb. 10 2004 at 20:13

thanx for the infor........

COOKIES, are nothing mroe then TEXT FILES !

all the company can do with that is, checking which pages you surfed and write on your harddrive a text files keeping those info, so they can reuse that info later !

lots of web site use those cookies to keep your personnal web site info... example, HOTMAIL use cookies to keep your configuration. but if you really don't want any cookies on your computer... just go into...

TOOLS / INTERNET OPTIONS / CONFIDENTIALITY / ADVANCED
and play around with those since they are all options for the cookies management !

but be aware that setting them to have no cookies, can mean lots of web site stopping to work !
Don't be afraid, this web site doesn't use any cookies so it should work fine even without them !

as for getting rid of the cookies already installed on your machine...
TOOLS / INTERNET OPTIONS / DELETE ALL COOKIES

this should solve the problem of tracking cookies and all other cookies that are in your cache !

hope this helped !

i got a new pop up blocker... its this msn toolbar on the top of my internet thingy.its great it blocks all popups adn it tells u how many pop ups it blcoked. u cud search stuff from in and everything... thing is im not sure where i got it cuz my dad got it... viper thx for the great info and guys always expect the unexpected

ah just hack the hackers and let the spyware slide along by. revenge is sweet my pretties lol. but really, dont download too much anti this and anti that or they'll conflict each other and crowd and use cpu and virtual memory leaving ur pc a useless snail monkey. essentials are adaware, a basic pop up killer, and norton. if you are running a big business u could use black ice but ... lol they've had some really bad crap happen to the users lol. the best thing is to prevent getting viruses and spyware... dont download anything off a site unless you know what it is (like flash etc) even if the site sais you cant continue if you dont download. second, if you are doin some of this p2p stuff be very carefull. compare the sizes of the file you are downloading to other files to see which is the most common. its obvious that a program thats only like 300 k is a virus lol. do not click on links you get on messengers and i wouldnt trust all links on this forum either. they can easily lead you to a virus. you should all know not to veiw html on you emails especially if you use outlook. and for crying out loud, DO NOT use the preview pane in outlook. its virus heaven. now you should know how to deal with spyware when you have to remove it manually. lots of times adaware will do the trick and I've NEVER had it remove needed files unless it was kazaa (not lite) because it contained spyware. sometimes you might have to go into the registry and remove it manually. for example, for gator, search for gator and see where you find it. many times removing the gator entries is the only way to remove gator. you shouldnt have downloaded it in the first place but oh well. most if not all viruses need the user to let it in. the chances of a hacker getting into your pc are low unless they know you and really wanna ##### up your computer. another thing... lol dont keep cred card or other important info on your pc... NEVER unless you are certain you have a powerfull enough firewall. beware of networks. they are one of the biggest sources of viruses. for example a univeristy network can harbor millions and millions of "1000 term papers" viruses and such. finally the UNR people are doing something about the virus i discovered a while ago on their networks. do not share folders or use remote access unless you absolutely have to. ftp works fine. watch if you use access points. they can be hacked so secure them... ok im getting tired, but dont be to paranoid, be cautious. ^_^

lol......Ive still got windows 98,and Ive never gotten a virus since that "valintines gift" one last time,dont worry,ive got a strong comp,its just Windows XP wasent really finished when it came out,so fouth it would be a higher percentage to viruses :D

ah but ive never gotten a virus unless i dl myself.

Hey men...u wont get a virus..here is 3 steps no to get a virus

1. Never click on e-mail attachmenet..unless u know who its from
2. if youdid and u downloaded use a Anit-Virsu to scan and delete if there is one..
3. The Virus will never open it self..as long u dont click on it 2 times, u wont get one. But u can get a Trojan horse..so just run a firewall..I suggest u run Zone Alarm Pro 4 and Norton Anti-Virus 2004 :alien:

MY parents downloaded "spybot" What is that, and what does it do ?

use google to research. but dont dl software unless u know what it is lol. dl adaware!