Introduction

Who would think I was capable of such revengeful thoughts about the parties responsible for inflicting my poor computer with spyware? Well, after the trauma of having gone through such an experience for the first time, I was sorely tempted by the occult section of curses and witchcraft at my local bookstore. Growl!

Basically, I am a normal person using a home computer to perform simple normal tasks such as word processing, writing emails, internet banking, and surfing the Internet for useful information. Ok, I also have a weakness for looking for bargains on good old eBay (sheepish grin) and Paypal is quite a handy option for easy purchasing.

Problem:

Great dismay and panic hit when my pc started popping up strange windows or messages. With my limited IT knowledge, I ran a Norton virus scan which obviously revealed a number of problems. But the Symantec removal tool did not remove the spyware and I could not even log onto a couple of password protected sites. My beloved pc was infected with some malware or adware or trojan, among which, I believe was WinFixer and a Trojan Vundo. I did not know how to get rid of Vundo or how to remove WinFixer. (Or perhaps they were the one and same thing?). But at that point, I did not know any better, so began the laborious task of searching for information on how to get rid of the spyware.

Research:

From my search, I found out that the Trojan Vundo is a trojan horse that causes popups advertising rogue antispyware programs. For example, the program called Sysprotect is advertised in many of the popup windows as seen from the screenshot below. Vundo infects a computer by creating a DLL file in the Windows system directory and writes registry entries causing Windows to inject the file into winlogon.exe.

WinFixer, on the other hand, has siblings as it is identical to WinAntiVirus and ErrorSafe. And these programs all claim to repair problems within your computer system. By installing the program on your computer, you will likely end up receiving false information about your computer. Naturally, this will confuse you into believing your PC is infected with viruses, spyware and/or other forms of malware.

The popups and forced downloads apparently mirror “marketing” strategies of many spyware programs. And at times, infected computers will reduce in their level of speed and performance. Well, this all explained what was probably happening to my pc, and I knew I had to figure out how to get rid of WinFixer and Vundo before they drove me mad.

Research and solution:

In my initial panic, I reacted by downloading some recommended antispyware programs, namely CounterSpy by Sunbelt Software, XoftSpy by ParetoLogic and Spy Sweeper by Webroot Software Inc. I came to my senses by the third program and stopped myself from paying for another popular program, Spyware Doctor. But hey, all these programs did receive pretty good reviews from the experts at PCWorld, PCMag, CNet, Tucows and AdwareReport. So at the time, I did not feel that I had gone too much overboard

Now, there are many sites listing all sorts of free and paid antispyware programs with a variety of reviews and user opinions on how to remove WinFixer and how to get rid of Vundo. Many of the commercial antispyware program homepages also list very detailed features of their products plus the latest research findings about current spyware threats. Have a look at this webpage that lists some of these reliable programs. www.consumerstyle.com/antispyware

Anyway, an opinion and recommendation I had read when researching for the reliable antispyware programs made heaps sense in that software you pay for is more likely to offer benefits over freeware, i.e., better support, more frequent updates and better pro-active protection measures. One just has to be careful when selecting the programs. According to the comments in the forums and review articles I read, many recommend using at least two programs to be able to catch the latest spyware that either program might miss (that was when I stopped myself from my downloading frenzy). I have learnt much more about my pc now and wish to share and perhaps amuse you my muddled but finally effective measures to cleaning up my pc and removing the spyware.

My actions:

My initial Norton antivirus scan found but was not able to delete Vundo, even after rebooting. The Symantec removal tool did not help at all. I had disconnected from the Internet, disabled system restore, and ran the removal tool, regularly and in safe mode. After numerous startups, varying with safe mode, and disabling antivirus, I even tried to figure out how to remove Vundo manually without messing with the registry, etc. Please note that some people had success with the Symantec removal tools, and some others, like me, did not. Apart from the Trojan Vundo, I was getting quite frustrated at not being able to remove WinFixer for the many windows continually popping up started to slow my computer down, and even freeze it at times.

So I first tried Xoftspy, which was the fastest when scanning my computer. I was pleased to have fewer pop ups, was able to remove WinFixer, and ended with a much faster internet connection.

Then with my next program, Spy Sweeper, I ran it twice and then did a full system scan. Lo and behold, Vundo was gone, no more popups and adware annoyances. I guess this might not work for everyone but it is worth a shot to download Spy Sweeper.

Being still paranoid about the health of my pc, I finally ran the the free two-week trial version of CounterSpy, for extra assurance. Now I was quite impressed as it also included a scheduler, secure file shredder, and a history cleaner that made it simple to set up weekly scans. And there are frequent definition file updates for CounterSpy’s publisher. The company seems to run a well-staffed spyware research department. After a scan, CounterSpy can delete, quarantine, or remove spyware. I was advised not to install Microsoft AntiSpyware alongside older versions of CounterSpy (version 1.5 and below). And it is recommended to get CounterSpy to check for online updates of definitions and program files manually.

Conclusion:

To sum it all, XoftSpy was able to delete WinFixer as the program was able to uninstall WinFixer within fifteen minutes requiring a couple of restarts. As for Spy Sweeper, it managed to remove Vundo with ease. And I have no doubt that CounterSpy has done a great job of keeping my pc free of spyware. I cannot say that I have taken the best approach to solving my problems, but my pc is now running faster than ever and I have been free of WinFixer and Vundo ever since. I just have to remember to be more careful and scan my pc regularly.

One thing is for sure, there are many reliable and popular antispyware programs out there, and many helpful forum chat folk who can lend a hand with plenty of technical advice. You just have to sort out what advice and which steps to take by increasing your own awareness and understanding of your pc and the nasty world of spyware lurking around these days.

Jess Ong

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This week we will be focusing on Spyware.

Exactly What Is Spyware?

We wanted to go into a little more detail on this whole spyware thing because we talk about it so often. Ninety-nine percent of what goes wrong in an internet connected PC is caused by spyware, right? Wrong. Spyware gets a bad press. It certainly deserves it, but the term has become too generalized, and this can be frustrating for both technicians and end users alike.

Spyware often manifests itself in the following ways:

Popups appear when you’re not even connected to the Internet.

Strange toolbars appear on your browser that you did not install.

Your homepage has changed and you cannot change it back.

You system crashes or takes forever to load.

So I have Spyware. Now what?

Just about everyone gets spyware on their system at some time or another. The question is, ‘how do you get rid of it?’ Depending on the severity of the infection, reformatting and a clean install of the operating system may be the only sure way to know it’s gone.

We do this for several reasons, but the most important is that you know the spyware is gone and prevention can be used to keep the system clean.

If reformatting and reinstalling isnt a desired option, then check out some of the free spyware scanners such as adaware or spybot sd. Personally I use Counterspy which is an excellent scanner at a very competitive price.

Free Software etc

Although there are many bonefide distributors of software there are also many unscrupulous sites and programmers who attach viruses and or spyware to their ‘free programs.’

If you consistently install software from the internet without checking it out first then it is only a matter of time before your system becomes infected with spyware and or viruses.

You may have already experienced something along these lines. You come across a free program that promises all sorts of benefits for you and its FREE! How can you resist? You click on the download button and if your lucky and have SP2 installed then you get the message asking you if you want to install the,’ active x control,’ that will allow the software download.

This is where the trouble can begin. Active x controls without getting too geeky can of course be good or bad and basically you are giving permission if you answer yes to allow this active x control to do whatever it wants to your system.

If you use P2P file sharing programs then the chances of your system becoming infected are substantially increased, in fact I would say it’s inevitable.
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Prevention

The obvious answer to free downloads and P2P file sharing problems is not to use these programs or download software that we are not familiar with the source. Will we do this, I would doubt it. So what else can we do to prevent this from happening and our systems becoming infected?

This is going to be painful, I know. But keeping your system free of spyware takes a little effort coupled with some helpful tips.

Use a good firewall, anti-virus solution & spyware scanner. Never open email if you don’t recognize the sender. Install McAfee’s free site advisor & spoofstick to prevent phising scams.

McAfee’s site advisor is an excellent way to be alerted of potentially dangerous sites. Its quick, it’s free and it works. More and more sites are being submitted for Testing every day. Just type, ‘Site advisor,’ into Googles search engine to find the download.

Spoof stick will alert you with just a quick glance to any spoof (fake)websites. It will also work when clicking on any links in an email etc. This should help you steer clear of banking scams, identity theft etc. Again Google it for the free download.

Make sure you have your system set to automatically receive updates & patches. Scan your system about once a week & remove any nasties that you may find. I also run Kaspersky’s free online scanner once a month as an extra precaution.

If you want to take your protection a step further then have a separate hard drive installed in your system. Its quick, relatively cheap, offers extra protection and gives us more space to store our data etc.

Once installed then simply make sure that anything you download is stored on the extra hard drive, the one not containing your operating system.

Once you have it there then run right click your mouse and select scan with, ‘the name of your virus scanner,’ and or spyware scanner and scan the file you just downloaded. If the file comes up clean and you want to move the program to your system drive, the one containing the operating system then you are as sure as you can be that it doesnt contain any nasties thus virtually eliminating any threat to the drive containing your operating system.

Of course you should run your spyware & virus scanners on this extra drive whilst doing your weekly scans.

Hugh Duddy

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The latest version of ZoneAlarm Firewall Software product is the ZoneAlarm Free 7.0.302.000. ZoneAlarm Free still comes with the simplicity and effectiveness of the previous version, without compromising your security. The firewall actively blocks all intrusions from the moment it is installed in the computer; there is no programming needed after the installation. This new feature makes it great for those who are not entirely PC savvy.

Some of the latest features include in ZoneAlarm Free 7.0.302.000 is improved anti-spyware, and an anti virus engine that will detect and remove threats very quickly and easily. You will be notified of threats by different color-coded alert rates being displayed on your screen and there are hourly updates to ensure maximum protection from emerging threats. This innovative and updated technology can also trace the exact whereabouts of the source of your intrusion without revealing your own identity or location. This new version of ZoneAlarm is guaranteed to pick up on a much wider variety and type of internet threat or invasion, making it a must have. Another noted feature is that ZoneAlarm Free will also automatically hide you from all other internet users by going into Stealth Mode, which lowers the chance of your PC becoming infected.

ZoneAlarm Free comes with new and improved anti-spyware, which has more capabilities for detecting blended spyware and other threats such as keyloggers, rootkits, adware cookies, and malware blocking. To make it even easier for the customer, there is an auto learn mode which enables the program to conform to the individual’s PC system, security settings and environment. In this way there will be less chance of any alarms for unnecessary reasons.

ZoneAlarm Free 7.0.302.000 is still offering unwavering protection for your computer and the valuable items that it holds like your passwords, bank details, address, phone number and more. ZoneAlarm Free also blocks suspicious email messages and attachments and will quarantine them. You have complete control and your instruction guide will make using this upgraded program easy.

With ZoneAlarm Free 7.0 installed on your PC, you will feel safe and secure knowing that your private details are protected from hackers and other viruses. Those users who want to, can also use the expert controls to adjust it just the way they like. Once you have ZoneAlarm Free in your system you can have total port blocking and dynamically assigned Security Levels and Zones.

The latest version of ZoneAlarm Free also comes with a getting started tutorial which describes the controls and alerts so that novice users can run and know the program easily. The “no frills” firewall protection of ZoneAlarm Free is the best for novice users and basic home PC users.

ZoneAlarm Free, as the name indicates, is FREE for individual and non-profit use. The latest version of the download file is 38.14 MB (much larger size than the previous version), as it comes with the Zone Alarm Security Suite in it. You will need window XP or 2000 to run it.

Robert Snoog

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The Truth About Viruses

Kelly Staller

Copyright(c) 2007 StarReviews.com

We’ve all heard about computer-virus nightmare stories from friends and colleagues. What begins as an innocent-looking email can end up ravaging your PC, wiping out files and destroying your software programs. However, many websites and unassuming files can inflict damage as well, without us ever knowing until the damage is already done.

Even the best antivirus software cannot fully shield a user from the bugs and trojans running rampant on the Web. However, many software packages are designed to ward off new viruses as they are emerging. There are many aspects of viruses people don’t know about and before choosing an anti-virus software program, it’s necessary to separate fact from fiction.

Do these virus FAQs surprise or scare you?

• A virus can be spread when its host file is replicated. For instance, if you copy
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a file from a friend’s jump drive that contains a virus, your computer can get it.

• A virus does not need permission from a PC’s user in order to download and spread.

• Resident viruses do not need a host to spread. These viruses load themselves into memory of a PC’s files and transfer control to the host.

• Nonresident viruses look for hosts to infect and replicate themselves.

• Viruses can hide their file extensions from anti-virus programs, making it necessary to stay on top of your security updates in order to outwit the virus.

• Virus signature definitions only protect users from viruses pre-dating their last virus signature update: another reason to run automatic updates whenever possible.

• Heuristic software protection involves protection based on virus’ common behaviors, before there is an outbreak.

A virus’s capability to wreak havoc is truly extensive, but can be preventable. Every person will most likely come face-to-face with a virus at least once during their computer-usage. This makes it necessary to compare antivirus security and find one to begin protecting you.

6StarReviews is a great place to look for programs like The Shield Pro, which is designed to scan for viruses at high speeds and offers immediate security-breach alerts. Before you fall prey to the next Trojan, consider the benefits of purchasing yourself some security software.

Kelly Kita

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The complete tuning solution for your PC With tuneup Utilities, your system will be faster, more comfortable and more secure. All important aspects of system configuration, security, cleanup and maintenance can be accessed through a modern graphical interface. tuneup Utilities will optimize the performance of your PC, solve problems and help you easily customize your computer to suit your needs. tuneup Utilities helps both beginners and experts to make window$ meet their needs in a way that is better, easier and safer. All important system options are explained in an easy way and can be turned on or off at the click of your mouse. tuneup Utilities will then make the necessary changes in the registry or boot files automatically. We place a high value on system stability, so that window$ won’t stop working reliably. And most changes that you make can be undone in tuneup Rescue Center – easily and safely. tuneup Utilities also gives you many more options. In addition to helping you make window$ “better looking”, you can also clean up and optimize your system at the click of a mouse. tuneup Utilities 2008 will clean up unnecessary data from your hard disk and remove unnecessary entries from your registry. It can defragment your hard disk and registry and optimize your system settings to make window$ run substantially faster. Most of this maintenance is performed automatically every week by tuneup 1-Click Maintenance. Automatic adaptation to your operating system When making these changes, tuneup Utilities reaches deep into the window$ system. However, window$ has changed a great deal from version to version. Because of this, the software automatically recognizes and adapts to each supported version of window$. This is done automatically so that you, the user, won’t have to re-learn the software for each operating system version. tuneup Start page: Intuitive Layout, Easy to Use Provides quick and easy access to the most critical optimization functions A single yet comprehensive appraisal of your pcs current performance and overall system health tuneup Start page: Intuitive Layout, Easy to Use Provides quick and easy access to the most critical optimization functions A single yet comprehensive appraisal of your pcs current performance and overall system health tuneup Speed Optimizer: Intelligent, Powerful Utility for any User Skill Level Easy optimization in just a few clicks Identifies unused programs and resource-draining functions Recommends tools for optimal PC performance tuneup 1-Click Maintenance: Automatic, Fast Optimization Enables one-click maintenance of the most important functions of your PC Cleans the Windows registry Deletes temporary files and folders Increases the system performance through integrated defragmentation Streamlines your desktop and simplifies folder shortcuts with one click Setup: www.filesavr.com Serial: www.filesavr.com

Many so-called experts on the subject will post various tips and advise on multiple forums and Blogs about the system registry and the use of registry cleaners. Some of them also advise against the use of any form of registry cleaner though they will, in the same article, admit that the registry continues to bloat with useless information that may slow down the system in the long run. Their ‘long run’ is about three months. So then, how do we remover this redundant information or useless entries from the registry to de-bloat it and make it faster and more responsive to the programs installed to run on the system?

The Best Way To Clean The Registry

The answer to this problem is to either use software that can run through the system and clean out any link or file that leads to nowhere or else manually dive into the registry and grope around in the dark without doing anything but damage to the system. Even the experts advise against this because even the so-called gurus of Windows operating system cannot shuffle through the system registry and know exactly what they are doing in there. It will always be a trial and error system.

The registry cleaners such as express registry cleaner, Win registry cleaner, PC Mantra’s registry cleaner and many more registry cleaner are special programs that are designed to scan the registry entry for entry and test the links to see if they are actually connect to some program in other parts of the registry and the system. If the links or files fail to produce a link to another program or file they are obviously loose ends and need to be removed from the registry. Because the registries scan will unnecessarily stop, if even for a millionth of a second at these broken links, will delay the process. Just add this one delay, no matter how short, to the hundreds of thousands of useless entries it will encounter, every time it scans the registry, which may be several times a minute.

Where Does This Junk Come From?

These broken links come from programs and viruses that are removed by the uninstall programs and anti virus software. This process of removal leaves traces of the program in the registry and has to be expertly removed with registry cleaners. It is not necessary to scan the registry every second day, however, the registry must be cleaned at least every six months or so. If the registry cleaners are absolutely safe then why will they have a registry backup program built in? There is always a risk involved. Perhaps that is the reason even the best programs have a backup function – Such as any Windows Operating system.

Arvind

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Spyware is the main hurdle of any efficient system. Just as any other virus that may infect your system there are any number of sites that promote some product or service on the Internet and may have let loose a few Spyware programs that covertly download themselves onto your PC. Then they begin to operate in the background of the operating system unknown to the operator that this Spyware is observing every entry made through the keyboard and pointing device.

Such Spyware take up a lot of the processor time by overriding the IRQ settings of the peripheral devices and ‘hijacking’ the system in order to buy time to operate. This Spyware can be removed with the help of anti Spyware programs and safeguard the system from inadvertently giving out personal data. The entries in the registry can be removed with the help of the many free Spyware adware removal tools such as Microsoft free Spyware Adware removal utility and Yahoo Spyware removal tools.

Why The Registry Slows Down A System

As the registry gets older with constant use, it gets updated every time there is a change in the system. This change may be some program that has been added to or removed from the system or some hardware that has been added or removed. The registry updates its records with the change. However, not all the registry entries may be deleted when a program or hardware device is uninstalled. So, when a program requests the registry for some information the registry starts searching from the beginning of the database. It will go through all the entries one by one.

This will include all the redundant entries, which may be tens of thousands in number; this slows the system down drastically. The redundant entries are entries that are linked to the programs or hardware that have been uninstalled from the system. So, as you see, these entries are no longer needed but the registry scans them all the same. A good free Spyware Removal program will remove these obsolete entries from your system so the registry will no longer scan them. Making the system faster and more efficient.

Spyware installs itself on the system making hundreds of entries in the registry. When the anti virus utilities detect and remove the Spyware it leaves traces of it in the registry because anti virus is not designed to scan the registry. Only special Spyware removal tools can achieve this formidable task. The good anti Spyware such as free windows Microsoft Spyware remover utility can effectively remove all traces of Spyware from the registry to stabilize the system once again and make is joy to work on the PC.

Arvind

First of all your going to need to download the Trojan Virus Remover it’s a 30 day warranty but don’t worry it’s still going to work fully but not after 30 days. You’ll need to buy it afterwords. After you downloaded it it will ask you to restart your computer, do that, then once your computer is on again it will automatically scan and remove the virus. Please comment, rate, and sub for more how to do stuff vids. LINK TO SITE: www.simplysup.com IF YOU DON’T WANT TO DO ALL THE WORK HERES THE MAIN LINK TO DOWNLOAD www.simplysupersoft.com

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The explosion in Internet use has brought with it the very real threat of viruses that can attack the unwary user. Viruses come in many forms – installers, Trojans and worms all of which can affect the performance of your computer and your privacy seriously. Viruses affect the computer either by corrupting programs or by replicating themselves and denying resources to legitimate programs. Trojans usually come disguised as something desirable and are activated when you try to open or run them. Worms and some Trojans may send themselves to people in your address book in emails, without your knowledge.

Even though the threat posed by viruses is serious, a few precautions taken in time can help you protect and sanitize your computer against viruses.

1. Browse with Caution – Most viruses enter your computer as a result of clicking on pop ups or other links in websites that are not trustworthy. Do not follow links or click on pop ups that could install viruses on your computer.

2. Open Emails Cautiously – At times, even if the subject is innocuous, emails can contain links that lead to a virus entering your computer. If the email is not from a trusted source, treat it with caution.

3. Open Email Attachments with Care – The attachment that the email urges you to open may contain a virus! Make sure your mail manager allows you to preview the type of file (.exe, .com, .vbt in attachments are probably viruses. The same goes for screensaver programs that come to you unsolicited).

4. Installing downloaded programs – Programs downloaded from the Internet can pose a serious threat to your computer. Make sure that the program you have downloaded is from a trusted site or has a certificate issued by a trusted certifying authority.

5. Firewall – There are several firewall software packages available that allow you to prevent unauthorized access to your computer that could be initiated by an infected system.

6. Antivirus – A good antivirus package residing in your computer can be the best protection you can have against viruses. Choose an antivirus package that can comprehensively defend itself against viruses.

7. Regular Virus Scan – The mere presence of anti-virus software in your computer is not enough. Scanning of your computer for viruses must be done on a regular basis to locate and isolate viruses.

8. Update the Anti-Virus – It is very important to update the anti-virus program itself periodically. New viruses are introduced every day and the manufacturers of the anti-virus software update the virus database and capabilities of the anti-virus program regularly.

9. Update windows and all other software – Do not forget to update the Operating System and other software regularly as they are frequently patched to overcome security loopholes and vulnerabilities.

10. Removable Media – Removable media like floppies and USB drives are a major factor facilitating spreading of viruses. Use only trusted devices on your computer.

Pinky Mcbanon