Worms and Virusses

[Kin]

Damn, suddenly out of nowhere I got a warning from Norton Antivirus that a worm has been detected in c:/my document and settings... which is pretty strange since I wasn't clicking on something for a few hours on my browser.

It's called gaobot32. ...

He can't remove it but I got this link from Norton for the fix

http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/FxGaobot.exe

[mikeszekely]

Damn, suddenly out of nowhere I got a warning from Norton Antivirus that a worm has been detected in c:/my document and settings... which is pretty strange since I wasn't clicking on something for a few hours on my browser.

It's called gaobot32. ...

He can't remove it but I got this link from Norton for the fix

http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/FxGaobot.exe

Norton...

Norton is a system hog that acts as if it were your computer's administrator instead of you. And yet people are still convinced that it's better.

Reguardless of your antivirus, always keep it updated. And antivirus isn't always enough. I reccomend some kind of spyware/malware/adware remover as well (which you should also keep updated), and if you're broadband, a firewall.

That said, sometimes you get junk on your computer, like VX2, that's really damn hard to get rid of. You can check with companies like Symantec to see if they have tools you can use to get rid of certain nuisances (often reguardless of whether or not you use their software). But, sometimes you just have to reformat (or System Recover, for XP users). It pays to back things up.

[Kin]

I triedeverything... spybot and adaware.. and still there are someproblems... like "bloodhound" which cannot be removed..

[Daishi3500]

Y'know, being an XP user, I get SH:T loads of spyware and all kinds or messy stuff. I find myself monthly deleting my hardrive and reinstalling windows altogether. Its a very brute way of handling those unremovable bugs but it can be done easy if you have an external backup drive, which I do. So If everything else fails, I think you should just delete your HD and restore with your windows cd. You feel so clean and porn-ridden when you clear everything and start-over, kinda like the first time you bought your computer.

[gnollman]

Norton is a resource whore, but between it, my firewall, and Lavasoft's Ad-Aware, I've been able to keep things pretty clean....

Norton gets my respect. Hell, it even blocks poo I don't want it to.... someday I'll figure out how to view Sexy Losers without turning off my firewall....

EDIT: spelling's a bitch...

Edited September 7, 2004 by gnollman

[gnollman]

Eh? Since when did we have a profanity filter on the site?

[azrael]

Damn, suddenly out of nowhere I got a warning from Norton Antivirus that a worm has been detected in c:/my document and settings... which is pretty strange since I wasn't clicking on something for a few hours on my browser.

Do you have ActiveX running on your browser (assuming your browser is IE)?

[Greyryder]

System Works is a hog, and from what I hear, so is their firewall. I only keep the anti-virus going. I have to turn it off when I do a mal ware scan, since it keeps picking FirstReboot.exe as a trojan horse.

I seriously never get anything worse than the occasional tracking cookie. Probably because I don't Internet Explorer.

[Akilae]

Three steps to succesful computer protection:

1) Mozilla/Netscape

2) Outpost Firewall

3) AVG

[Kin]

ok thanks people.. now I'm defenitely using mozzila!

(edit. Hmm mozzila seems to be a little bit slower with loading than Iexplore)

Edited September 7, 2004 by Kin

[Akilae]

oh yeah, Mozilla won't protect you from the likes of gaobot... only a firewall will.

Mozilla is slower because IE is already built into windows, and it loads whenever you boot up.

[valkyrietestpilot]

this is my favorite antivirus/worm/bot protection.i find it to be virtually bulletproof.

[valkyrietestpilot]

OS-X panther has a seemingly very effective built-in firewall & i choose to use safari(netscape) as my browser instead of IE.pop-up blocker is built in to safari & all you have to do is click it to turn it on & off,no extra software needed

the other pc's in my house spend 90% of the time they're on doing antivirus & spyware updates & that is hardly affective enough to even keep up with all the spywares & viruses that invade your machine.i think i counted like 20 warnings from my antivirus & spyware software during 1 session on that pc alone.surf the net for a few minutes,attend to the warnings for 10 minutes,then surf for a few more,then attend to more warnings for 10 more.........windows OS's are just pathetically insecure..........junk

[Max Jenius]

OS-X panther has a seemingly very effective built-in firewall & i choose to use safari(netscape) as my browser instead of IE.pop-up blocker is built in to safari & all you have to do is click it to turn it on & off,no extra software needed

the other pc's in my house spend 90% of the time they're on doing antivirus & spyware updates & that is hardly affective enough to even keep up with all the spywares & viruses that invade your machine.i think i counted like 20 warnings from my antivirus & spyware software during 1 session on that pc alone.surf the net for a few minutes,attend to the warnings for 10 minutes,then surf for a few more,then attend to more warnings for 10 more.........windows OS's are just pathetically insecure..........junk

Sounds like you don't know what you're doing...

No.... really.

[EXO]

oh yeah, Mozilla won't protect you from the likes of gaobot... only a firewall will.

Mozilla is slower because IE is already built into windows, and it loads whenever you boot up.

Mozilla Firefox seems to work faster for me than IE on both work and home PC.

[kidkorrupt]

i use firefox, spybot, firewall, and adaware on my work pc and i still have some problems too.

its probably from the internet live radio i listen to but i don't really care because its the companies pc, lol.

[Hurin]

Regarding Macs. . . they don't have as many problems with viruses and trojans because few people are going to want to write a virus/trojan/worm that will only be able to infect 5% of the computer population!

No, Windows isn't perfect. But pointing to an Apple and saying it doesn't have as many problems because it's simply better is. . . well. . . a bit naive.

H

[Hurin]

OS-X panther has a seemingly very effective built-in firewall & i choose to use safari(netscape) as my browser instead of IE.pop-up blocker is built in to safari & all you have to do is click it to turn it on & off,no extra software needed

the other pc's in my house spend 90% of the time they're on doing antivirus & spyware updates & that is hardly affective enough to even keep up with all the spywares & viruses that invade your machine.i think i counted like 20 warnings from my antivirus  & spyware software during 1 session on that pc alone.surf the net for a few minutes,attend to the warnings for 10 minutes,then surf for a few more,then attend to more warnings for 10 more.........windows OS's are just pathetically insecure..........junk

Dude. . . you've gotta be kidding. I don't even run Antivirus or AdAware on my home computer. The only thing I have recently done (in the last 18 months) is put myself behind a router which, of course, also serves as a firewall. I've never had a problem despite being online approximately six hours per day for the last ten years and using all sorts of "risky" software over that span (ICQ, Teamspeak, IRC, etc.). Never had pop-ups (unless web browsing). Never had a browser hijack. Never had a trojan installed. Never been hit by a worm.

So, I'm sorry that you have so much trouble with your machines. But I strongly doubt that your experience is typical. Indeed, between the 70 computers I manage at work, the twenty I manage privately as a consultant, and my own home experience, I can't even begin to fathom what the heck is going on in your environment that prompts so much anti-virus/adware activity.

If I seem a bit peeved, sorry. As an IT professional, I get a bit tired of hearing people blame the OS and Microsoft when, in most circumstances, the malicious software has arrived on the computer because the user has done something somewhat idiotic: "Why yes, Mr. Pop-up window, I would like to add those screensavers to my computer. Thank you!"

If, magically, the computing world could somehow be reversed, and Macintoshes were the 95% majority, I'd love to see how gummed up the average Mac users' computer would be when the malicious code writers out there directed all their attention towards Macs. . .

H

[Hurin]

Mozilla Firefox seems to work faster for me than IE on both work and home PC.

Me too. Firefox hauled @ss on all the rigs on which I tried it. I used it for a bit and liked it very much. But now I'm running XP SP2 and I sorta like the built-in pop-up blocking. So I'm back to IE now at least for a bit. I have to stay familiar with what most of my users and clients run.

H

[Agent ONE]

After I quit using IE I never had a problem again.

[Greyryder]

Mozilla is a little slower on start up, but it always seems to load pages faster. You couldn't pay me enough to use IE on a regular basis. I use it when I have to, (Windows update) and that's about it.

[Agent ONE]

oh yeah, Mozilla won't protect you from the likes of gaobot... only a firewall will.

Mozilla is slower because IE is already built into windows, and it loads whenever you boot up.

Mozilla Firefox seems to work faster for me than IE on both work and home PC.

YOU TURNCOAT!!!

This guy called me a 'unix dork' for using Firefox a few months ago! I have forced girlie men to drink my unine for less than that.

[Wes]

Like Hurin said, you people must know about as much with computers as I do on laundary. I've never had severe problems with any of my computers, and I've worked them like slaves. Just using the Norton Anti-virus and Firewall, Adaware, and no problems even with XP. Although, truth be told, the least problem-free OS I've had was 2000 - never crashed.

[Wes]

oh yeah, Mozilla won't protect you from the likes of gaobot... only a firewall will.

Mozilla is slower because IE is already built into windows, and it loads whenever you boot up.

Mozilla Firefox seems to work faster for me than IE on both work and home PC.

YOU TURNCOAT!!!

This guy called me a 'unix dork' for using Firefox a few months ago! I have forced girlie men to drink my unine for less than that.

Dude, you got issues.

[Chowser]

haven't had a virus or worm or nothing in a long time

i'm using win xp home, just updated to sp2.

i have zonealarm free firewall

vcom systemsuite (i just use this for the virus checker)

and about once a week, i run, adaware, spybot, and cws-shredder and they find nothing.

i used to use Tracks Eraser Pro everytime I finished surfing, but haven't bothered since i don't use IE or Netscape anymore. I've been using Mozilla Firefox as well, and I am not going back.

we've got norton at work, and every single day, somehow, we've got viruses popping up like crazy. don't know from where, we're not allowed to stick any disks in (be it floppy or cd), no flash drives, nothing. but somehow, our network keeps getting bogged down with viruses and spyware and we keep getting blamed.

ummm..we don't have internet access, you blocked us, it's the DB doing all the surfing, not us. get it right.

[valkyrietestpilot]

eh,reguardless of what you guys say,windows OS & pc's require WAY to much maintenance & fixing & babying to get them to even kinda work o.k.

since i've switched to a mac,it works 1st time,everytime & it works the way it's supposed to.no issues or problems what-so-ever for 4 years now.no drivers to download,no special software to get it to manage my music & photo libraries,it just does it.i'm sorry,but i'd just rather do LESS work when i use a computer.it's just smarter.i don't like to get headaches,so i stay away from the things that give them to me.i've yet to meet anyone who can show me how any pc or windows OS is even anywere close to the solid reliability,power & ultra-coolness of a mac.while your busy rebooting & fixing yours,i'm using mine.sorry,but i just call 'em like i see 'um.no evidence to the contrary yet.

[JsARCLIGHT]

Kind of a side topic to this but I was wondering what the thoughts of MW compu-folks are:

Here in Saint Louis there is a computer helper firm in town who run radio ads on the station I listen to in the car on the way to work and back. They seem to have a sales pitch for their debugging and de-spyware service in which they claim that things like viruses and spyware are "computer terrorism" and they really fixate on that. I and some of the techies at work got into a discussion a few days ago about whether or not things like viruses and spybots and the like should be considered "terrorism" or if the guys that run the marketing campaign for this local compushack are just trying to put the frighteners on sheeple (read = people sort of like me who know next to nothing about computers) to get them into their shop for quick and easy cleanout work then charge them beucoup bucks. They way they make it sound there is a huge market for the cleaning of "less inclined" people's machines.

And sort of also on topic: does anyone know why Sidesearch keeps coming up as a hazzardous item when my spyware program does it's sweeps? I know it is hotmail that keeps putting it there no matter how much I try to block it... is Sidesearch really a harmful thing?

[Kin]

I often got "tracker co" it's so annoying even when I'm not browsing I got spyware on my computer. I really wonder if p2p programs such as kazaa, edonkey and stuff also tribute to some problems.

[Greyryder]

eh,reguardless of what you guys say,windows OS & pc's require WAY to much maintenance & fixing & babying to get them to even kinda work o.k.

since i've switched to a mac,it works 1st time,everytime & it works the way it's supposed to.no issues or problems what-so-ever for 4 years now.no drivers to download,no special software to get it to manage my music & photo libraries,it just does it.i'm sorry,but i'd just rather do LESS work when i use a computer.it's just smarter.i don't like to get headaches,so i stay away from the things that give them to me.i've yet to meet anyone who can show me how any pc or windows OS is even anywere close to the solid reliability,power & ultra-coolness of a mac.while your busy rebooting & fixing yours,i'm using mine.sorry,but i just call 'em like i see 'um.no evidence to the contrary yet.

No problems getting and keeping the PCs here running. Didn't have to pay through the nose for them, either.

Did have a motherboard die on one of the comps here, Friday. Good thing it wasn't a Mac, we wouldn't have been able to get into the shop, untill today. No telling how long it would have taken them to repair it. The finances on are done on that computer, it had to fixed, ASAP. Being a PC we able to buy a new motherboard the next day, and have it up and running again that night.

Mind you, it's a good thing it wasn't made by any of the major brand name manufacturers: Dell, HP, compaq, Apple, et all. Proprietary hardware causes more problems than I can name, and doesn't solve a one.

[Greyryder]

I often got "tracker co" it's so annoying even when I'm not browsing I got spyware on my computer. I really wonder if p2p programs such as kazaa, edonkey and stuff also tribute to some problems.

Kazaa is known for coming bundled with all sorts of ad and spy ware.

[StealthLurker]

Macs are fine for the little bubble of a world they operate in. However, when you want more control, flexibility/options.. the more responsibility. Look at PC users vs UNIX based systems BACK IN THE DAY. People used to whine about how windows constrains you, but w/ UNIX you have more power to tune... however back in the day it look a heck of a lot more tinkering to get stuff running in 'NIX.

In short, not everyone fits a Mac, not everyone fits a PC. It depends on what your needs are. Stop this age old holy war.

[Hurin]

eh,reguardless of what you guys say,windows OS & pc's require WAY to much maintenance & fixing & babying to get them to even kinda work o.k.

since i've switched to a mac,it works 1st time,everytime & it works the way it's supposed to.no issues or problems what-so-ever for 4 years now.no drivers to download,no special software to get it to manage my music & photo libraries,it just does it.i'm sorry,but i'd just rather do LESS work when i use a computer.it's just smarter.i don't like to get headaches,so i stay away from the things that give them to me.i've yet to meet anyone who can show me how any pc or windows OS is even anywere close to the solid reliability,power & ultra-coolness of a mac.while your busy rebooting & fixing yours,i'm using mine.sorry,but i just call 'em like i see 'um.no evidence to the contrary yet.

That's all. . . just . . .

[valk1j]

I don't know if I would call spyware and viruses terrorism. This is a marketing ploy to reel in the less knowledgeable. They are becoming a serious problem though. I work part time for a small computer service company and the majority of calls are becoming spyware related.

Edited September 8, 2004 by valk1j

[EXO]

oh yeah, Mozilla won't protect you from the likes of gaobot... only a firewall will.

Mozilla is slower because IE is already built into windows, and it loads whenever you boot up.

Mozilla Firefox seems to work faster for me than IE on both work and home PC.

YOU TURNCOAT!!!

This guy called me a 'unix dork' for using Firefox a few months ago! I have forced girlie men to drink my unine for less than that.

HUH??? I'm using Firefox cuz you told me to...

It was you who called someone else a Unix dork... I just sent you an LOL...

And what's unine?

[Max Jenius]

eh,reguardless of what you guys say,windows OS & pc's require WAY to much maintenance & fixing & babying to get them to even kinda work o.k.

since i've switched to a mac,it works 1st time,everytime & it works the way it's supposed to.no issues or problems what-so-ever for 4 years now.no drivers to download,no special software to get it to manage my music & photo libraries,it just does it.i'm sorry,but i'd just rather do LESS work when i use a computer.it's just smarter.i don't like to get headaches,so i stay away from the things that give them to me.i've yet to meet anyone who can show me how any pc or windows OS is even anywere close to the solid reliability,power & ultra-coolness of a mac.while your busy rebooting & fixing yours,i'm using mine.sorry,but i just call 'em like i see 'um.no evidence to the contrary yet.

That's all. . . just . . .

I share that sentiment.

I also would like to know what the big deal with getting drivers is? Its so easy.

I suppose if all you do is word process, write emails, and want a hip computer to show to all your emo friends... then maybe a Mac is for you... (jk.. I do recognize Apple's supremacy in video/image editing... however that difference is growing smaller and smaller every day).