I'm so effin' sick of MALWARE !!!

[Argent Dragon]

Booted up my machine this morning, logged on, and awaited startup.

Then......

*System Error
*Hard-drive infected with bad sectors
*Recover system immediately

And all sorts of crap running under this HDD imitation Defrag Window with lots of error checks, red flags, and bar readouts.

WTF ?!?!?! .........:508:........these bastards wouldn't let me access the hard-drive, I couldn't close the window or stop the ap..........used a pen drive with an R-Kill to stop it and F:/ drive wouldn't READ.........I mean muther-F()*#$&()@#*& !!!!

Reboot, acted as quickly as speedy-gonzalez and beat the damn program to the punch to run R-kill again.........*WHEW* ......everything calmed down.

Then I ran Malware removal, Spyware, CC cleaner, reset the Registry.........rebooted........rinse, repeat the above steps and FINALLY achieved victory.

WTF is wrong with these A-holes trying to sell their damned software garbage ?!?! ..........I'm sure I'm not the only victim - anyone else with a similar experience to share ???

:realmad: :s10: :508: <<----luv this guy (he's me right now)

[anywoundedduck]

Booted up my machine this morning, logged on, and awaited startup.


WTF is wrong with these A-holes trying to sell their damned software garbage ?!?! ..........I'm sure I'm not the only victim - anyone else with a similar experience to share ???

:realmad: :s10: :508: <<----luv this guy (he's me right now)

Yes, you just described my life. Anyone with a mother-in-law that likes to send greeting cards and other cute attachments in their email, with a wife stupid enought to open them up. I have blocked her in every way I can, attempted to isolate my wife from the computer by password protection, (my life was really miserable then). So I live with it. I hate nights on the couch.:s10:

[notasockpuppet]

Booted up my machine this morning, logged on, and awaited startup.

Then......

*System Error
*Hard-drive infected with bad sectors
*Recover system immediately

And all sorts of crap running under this HDD imitation Defrag Window with lots of error checks, red flags, and bar readouts.

WTF ?!?!?! .........:508:........these bastards wouldn't let me access the hard-drive, I couldn't close the window or stop the ap..........used a pen drive with an R-Kill to stop it and F:/ drive wouldn't READ.........I mean muther-F()*#$&()@#*& !!!!

Reboot, acted as quickly as speedy-gonzalez and beat the damn program to the punch to run R-kill again.........*WHEW* ......everything calmed down.

Then I ran Malware removal, Spyware, CC cleaner, reset the Registry.........rebooted........rinse, repeat the above steps and FINALLY achieved victory.

WTF is wrong with these A-holes trying to sell their damned software garbage ?!?! ..........I'm sure I'm not the only victim - anyone else with a similar experience to share ???

:realmad: :s10: :508: <<----luv this guy (he's me right now)

www.superantispyware.com

Best thing I ever did for my computers.

[KGMe]

Been "Windows Free" for over a decade. OS X the last 4 years (got lazy), but going back to Slackware when this laptop dies.

I absolutely HATE all that ****e.

[TheBigWookie]

http://www.malwarebytes.org/ is another good free program. Yes we all suffer from relatives who send cute links, moveis, flashes etc.

[phideaux]

Ditto on malwarebytes. Excellent program that really finds the deep-root stuff that SlacAfee and Ed Norton have no clue about. :haha:

[shades]

Microsoft Security Essentials + Malware Bytes

[Lt Dan]

Ditto on malwarebytes. Excellent program that really finds the deep-root stuff that SlacAfee and Ed Norton have no clue about. :haha:

Got malwarebytes on my windows computers, but I use Linux for Internet browsing. No problems with malware or viruses. M-I-L not computer savvy. LOL!

FWIW, thread should be moved to the computer sub-forum.

[Zed]

Avast Home FREE and a little common sense (research anything you install --> there will be comments all over the web if its crap!) and nothing has got past it in decade! It is actually not that hard....! But if you don't need specific Windows Apps then load Linux. Even if you only need a few windows apps and you have a fast machine load windows in a virtual machine on Linux, it is actually not very hard to do and it runs almost as fast as native. (hardware dependent but I have done it on quite an old machine!). A little bit of work and you can be bullet proof.

[Dave Thomas]

Some of these are very bad, and they install a multitude of payloads depending on who's controlling the installation.

I've seen some send out spam, I've seen some act as brute force password hackers for Yahoo accounts, I've seen some just ask for money to just go away.

No antivirus program will stop all of them, you just better hope that your definition deployments are just as fast as the malware writers.

Boot into Safe Mode with Networking support, and try as hard as you can to get a program called ComboFix, run that in safe mode, then follow up with a Malware Bytes scan.

I've had some where I just had to blow away the computer, it attaches to a system process like svchost, or winlogon, when you refresh those binaries from disk, it hides somewhere else like the boot sector, or an alternate data stream in NTFS and re-infects your machine.

Another thing you need to do is run as an UNPRIVILEGED account. I.E. Make sure your user isn't a local administrator, just a regular user.

A lot of these bugs hinge on exploiting Javascript, or sometimes Flash, and if they execute with administrator privileges you're toast.

UAC tries to prevent this, but I don't know how well it does the job.

The reason Mac's never get infected is because by default the user session runs without super user access, and Apple's development tools aren't as widely known or used by the rest of the world. If you use a windows PC you're participating in one of the most used/abused development platform in the universe.

In the meantime AV up and don't run as administrator.

[techguy2]

Another thing you need to do is run as an UNPRIVILEGED account. I.E. Make sure your user isn't a local administrator, just a regular user.

A lot of these bugs hinge on exploiting Javascript, or sometimes Flash, and if they execute with administrator privileges you're toast.

UAC tries to prevent this, but I don't know how well it does the job.

The reason Mac's never get infected is because by default the user session runs without super user access, and Apple's development tools aren't as widely known or used by the rest of the world. If you use a windows PC you're participating in one of the most used/abused development platform in the universe.

In the meantime AV up and don't run as administrator.

Right on DT!

I might at Firefox with Noscript add on to make sure those bad javascript's dont run!

[Zed]

Right on DT!

I might at Firefox with Noscript add on to make sure those bad javascript's dont run!

I have used Opera for years... it is just off everyones radar and never gets exploited, its also happens to be the best browser out there IMO (once you learn what it can do, you should be impressed)

Also consider Windows 7 if you are not running it. It is a step forward, as much as it pains me to endorse Bill because it typically bites me in the ass, but so far Win 7 64 has been good.

[Dave Thomas]

Hey TG, thanks for the Noscript heads up. Just about every website you need to use, like your bank, state comptroller, or something else important wants to run Javascript, now you can allow those, whilst disallowing everyone else.

Big ups mon.

[Professur]

Malwarebytes and Superspyware are great free programs ... but it's a cheap investment to pay for it. It's an upgrade to the protection ... but more importantly, you ensure that the guys doing all the work to keep you safe don't have to go get a second job to make ends meet.

[Goldfinger]

I love my...

http://thenextweb.com/apple/files/2010/01/apple-logo-black-xsan.jpg

[KGMe]

Right on DT!

I might at Firefox with Noscript add on to make sure those bad javascript's dont run!

Great tool. Also use BetterPrivacy (unfortunately not update for 4.0b6 yet) and ABP. ABP used to be about preserving bandwidth and eliminating horribly annoying banner ads, but a TON of malware is pushed through ads nowadays. Also, a great way to custom block images/etc. On a lot of forums it's nice to be able to block sigs or avatars of certain users with blocking all.

[Lt Dan]

I have used Opera for years... it is just off everyones radar and never gets exploited, its also happens to be the best browser out there IMO (once you learn what it can do, you should be impressed)I have Opera on all my computers and do use it for some internet browsing, but have used Firefox for so long, it's hard to give it up. Big thunbs up on Opera!

[mayhem]

I have been running Windoze since v3, and have never, I repeate never had a virus or malware on my computers.

Rule #1 that no-one follows. Make your email client display only text, no html. This alone will knock out 80% of the malware.

All the rest of the security thing have been discussed here forever.

[SilverJeep]

Remember the Goldismoney rules

No Spam
No Porn
So Personal attacks
=
No malware.

[JFN111]

Yes, you just described my life. Anyone with a mother-in-law that likes to send greeting cards and other cute attachments in their email, with a wife stupid enought to open them up. I have blocked her in every way I can, attempted to isolate my wife from the computer by password protection, (my life was really miserable then). So I live with it. I hate nights on the couch.:s10:

I got my wife her own computer. ;-)

[bemac]

Another handy program to have...
http://www.f-secure.com/en_EMEA/security/tools/rescue-cd/

This is a very cool way of ridding your PC's of malware. Since some of those are so nasty, they use Windows to protect themselves, this is actually a bootable version of Linux designed exclusively to rid your hard drive of malware. Since Windows is not running, these malware are defenseless and can be more easily cleaned up.

[K_Flynn]

I just had to restore my windows partition because it was so infested with spyware that I couldn't do anything.

Luckily I have a linux partition that I can dual-boot to if I want :)

I would highly recommend linuxmint.com , if you burn their install disk, it will take care of everything, and you will be virus-immune on it.... I would have 86'd windows entirely except for two or three programs that I use every once in a while that I can't do with linux. For most people though, mint will do every single thing you want, is very stable, and best of all it's FREE. Everything you will probably need is even pre-installed when you load it-- Office, Firefox, media players, codecs, everything!

[Lt Dan]

I got my wife her own computer. ;-)

My wife has her own computer too. Problem is, when something acts up on it, guess who gets to figure out the issue and fix it? She is so spoiled.

[Sheepdog]

My wife has had several pc's the last 3 years. all killed by trash programs and infestations. I have had one Apple iMac. Her pc's are slow and need work weekly. Mine is as fast as when new and never has a problem. Her next computer WILL be an apple.

[Lt Dan]

My wife has had several pc's the last 3 years. all killed by trash programs and infestations. I have had one Apple iMac. Her pc's are slow and need work weekly. Mine is as fast as when new and never has a problem. Her next computer WILL be an apple.Want to really speed up your wife's PC? Download Linux Mint, burn it to a disc, and install it to even an older PC and problem fixed. I have not had to reboot my PC for an update since installing Mint 9 back in the spring. The problem isn't the PC, the problem is Windows. I have run Linux on this same PC, an HP laptop since back in 2007, runs faster today than it did the day I brought it home from the store. Original operating system was Windows XP.

I do keep Windows on a netbook for the few programs, like GPS and Ham radio programs, I use. Also, a few older programs that I use occasionally, but OTT. do all my online browsing with this HP and Linux using either Firefox or Opera.

One other solution to some of the windows issues would be to buy the install discs for the computer and just reinstall the OS when it gets too messed up to fix. Even though I use Linux, which is free for the download, I bought the original install discs for my computers, just in case I want to start over. Not a big deal, it'd be much cheaper for you than buying a new computer.

[JFN111]

My wife has her own computer too. Problem is, when something acts up on it, guess who gets to figure out the issue and fix it? She is so spoiled.

ain't that the truth.

[angryhippy]

The maintenance of PCs really drove me crazy, I couldn't deal with it anymore so I made the switch to macs about 5 years ago. It cost a little more but not having to deal with any of the PC crap anymore has been more than worth those extra bucks.

Beside the stability and security I've found on a mac, they also offer some really cool and useful programs. Currently using their cheapest unit, the Mini. I'd highly recommend it to anyone on a budget.

[Zed]

With a little knowledge and the right hardware selection PC's are no more bother than Mac's. Admittly Macs come "off the shelf" easy for the average user... but... if you want to push the envelope at all they have thier issues and can be frustratingly simplistic. As for stability, on good hardware Windows is good. People seem to forget that Windows deals with all sorts of hardware where as Macs are running on a purpose built platfrom, very often the stability issues are not Windows persay but the cheap assed hardware it s trying to run on. Linux is a good solution on PC, the Mac OS (since 10 I believe) is essentially unix with the traditional GUI i.e. Linux (you can make Linux look like a Mac), you certianly get the 'no worries' of a Mac with Linux but you still have 'cheap assed hardware issues' if that is indeed what you have.

2c

[Aussie]

. . . very often the stability issues are not Windows persay but the cheap assed hardware it s trying to run on . . .

So true Zed. Anyone who opts for the $199 PC Korean special, then all I can say is you'll get what you pay for . . . there's a reason Apple has by far the highest customer satisfaction rating of all computer makers and you nailed it - they make the hardware and the OS and they design them to work together so there are never any "compatibility" issues, quirks or hiccups.

In the Mac v's PC debate people routinely say that Mac's are more expensive . . . Yes they are when compared to a Korean special or any low spec PC. But what I mostly find is that if you spec a PC from a major manufacturer to the same level as standard Mac and minus out all the hundreds of dollars in additional PC software that the average user feels compelled to buy, the prices are not inly similar and in the case of higher-end machines like the multi-core Mac Pro, many times the Mac is actually quite a bit cheaper or actually better value. A case in point is two standard workstations from HP and Dell V's a MacPro . . .

5695

Not only is the MacPro competitive to the PC's it's actually cheaper than the DELL and is better specced than all . . .

[bemac]

No offense, Aussie, but learn how to buy Dell. :D

As someone who used to buy/sell Dell systems for 5 years, I can assure you, Mac's are quite expensive. There's a reason they intentionally design models that don't quite compete with desktops made by other PC makers. Notice they don't sell the high-end single cpu desktop, i.e., something like an XPS 7100 or 9100. IMHO, Dell's outlet is one of the best places to get a computer.