Posted on 06/05/2004 8:06:55 PM PDT by Long Cut
That is what my scripts look out for. My system isn't your typical soft target.
One of my kids managed to get some coolweb stuff on a laptop that I hadn't updated. Among other things, it took over Windows media player and turned it into a monster.
In addition to the programs you mention, you also might want to look into CWShredder, a small program that removes Coolweb malware.
And I recommend the combination of SpybotSearch&Destroy and Spyware Blaster to immunize yourself from bad sites.
Do you have any pointers? I'm still pretty computer-illiterate, just way more familiar with hijackers now.
You are not alone.
I am an IT professional and have been so for 20+ years.
I now am cleaning spyware/adware/trojans from computers several times a week.
Most of these machines have become unusable because of it.
The latest genuine threat is Peper. This nasty piece can't be killed until you go into safe mode, delete a pile of hidden files and clean out the registry of BHOs.
I will say this...unless you run a popup stopper and/or an ad remover, you're going to get this garbage.
You need to get and run:
Spywareblaster
spybot search and destroy
Adaware
hijackthis
Further stop using Internet Explorer. Switch over to Mozilla Firefox. At least until this garbage is kept at bay.
Firefox is also VERY extensable. Imagezoomer is a great add-in to firefox. Allows you to zoom in or out any image in any post. There are over 100 add-ins to Firefox that add all sort of nifty things. Firefox displays pages just as fast or faster than IE(if someone tells you otherwise, they have an OS problem, I've installed it on over 50 machines) and Firefox blocks popups and much of the adware issues we've got right now.
-Mal
Exact same thing happened to my Mom's PC. One day, out of nowhere, she opened an IE window, and BAM...some disgusting porn garbage.
This is my MOM we're talking about here. Words could not express my fury and embarrassment over this hijack!
I tried everything I could think of to get rid of the offending bug, but it seemed that every time I thought I made some headway, I'd re-boot and the bugger would re-appear.
Eventually, I just downloaded and installed NetScape. She's been using that ever since with no problems.
ping for later
Man is this a timely thread. I just spent a couple hours getting rid of this crap on my computer. But here's something I can't solve. For some reason my "Favorites" will only except 4 addresses. If I try to add more, it shows up until I close my browser, and then doesn't reappear. Any ideas?
Thanks. I'm downloading it as we speak.
Then run the file
I've got all the programs you listed except Mozilla. Is it difficult to replace IE with it? How exactly is this done?
Thanks for posting this. I would sure like to spend an afternoon with the Democrats (you know that what they are) that create this malware.
see #31
That's a new one on me. Mal, any ideas??
HijackThis is great. I rank it up there with Lavasoft's ad-aware.
I'm doing exactly the same thing right now...been fighting it for two weeks now.
Thanks for the tip on cleaning in Safe Mode.
It has gotten to the point that I rarely venture off of FR. I find myself waiting for commentary on an article rather than clicking on the source for the full story. I use spybot and adaware. The web can be a realy dangerous place.
There are a few Linux viruses in circulation. More will surely come as more start using it.
Same with Mac's. Just this past week there was a thread on a Mac 'vunerability.'
If every one stopped using Windows tomorrow and changed to Mac or Linux, the virus makers would increase their attacks on those.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.