Computer knowledge?

K

Kathy02

Cathlete
Ok, quick question. I am highly bugged right now. Over the past two weeks I have been getting more than my share of pop up adds. They are driving me nuts. I never used to get them except when I went to certain websites, like my recipe website that I like to frequent. Now, what could be causing this problem for me? Does anyone know more about this stuff than I do. I cleared my history on the web, I've emptied all the folders in explorer, what more can I do? I've even raised my security to the next to highest that it can be to not accept any cookies. Could it be that my hotmail account has changed? But I'm noticing these even on this website and i know that shoudn't happen. What's going on?

Kathy
 
Hi Kathy,
You may have hidden programs on your computer which were put there without your knowledge. These are called spyware. They keep logs of where you go on the internet also so that makes them especially devious. Plus they slow your computer down.
I paid for some software called "spyhunter" which I run every so often and has done the trick for me. Some of the harder ones to remove I have had to do manually.
You can sometimes get lucky and find free fixes online in computer tech forums if you are technically savvy. Spyhunter was like 25.00 I believe for a year's worth of updates, support, etc. It came with a popup blocker too.
Just as a side note. McAfee and Norton do NOT keep these off of your machine. Or if they do, only partially.
Good luck! I know how you feel concerning these pests!!!
Trevor :)
 
Hi Kathy,

We're seeing a lot of this in my office. Some utilities that also work well are:

Spybot Search and Destroy - you can get it at www.download.com
AdAware - www.lavasoftusa.org

Both have free versions available and professional versions that cost. If you use them, the first thing you'd want to do is run their updaters. They update their spyware definitions regularly like antivirus software does.

We generally run both utilities on problem machines and they do a decent job of finding and removing spyware and scumware. Good luck.
 
Well, I read Trevors reply before this second reply. I did end up going to Spyhunterinfo.com or something like that, I just google searched for spyhunter and found it. They also have a free version that you can download, so I'm running a search right now. I dont' know if it will clean it out for me or not, but it's found quite a few things already.
How scary is that? People can get on your computer and put software in it with out your knowledge, eek! But I suppose it is possible and it makes sence that people can do that.
Well, I'm going to go check out the results of my scan.
Thank you for your help I really appreciate it!

Kathy
 
I agree that the solution is to remove the spyware. Lavasoft's Adaware is what I use, but for a popup-stopper try the free utility from panicware.com.
 
Hey Kathy!
Actually these are trojans that come onto your system via some portal. It is possible in certain cases for people to "see" your system and mess with it but these trojans get on your computer automatically, like viruses.
There are many many spyware/adware killers out there, some better than others, so just do a little research before buying :)
I have one on my system right now that is in the restore files and the sucker has write protected itself! No clue how to get that off of my system! LOL!
Good luck!
T. :)
 
One more thing...

Hi again Kathy,

Jcrew's reply reminded me of one more thing to add. A lot of trojan's will install themselves via security holes in the Windows operating system or IE. I'd recommend doing a "Windows Update" on a regular basis - that way you'd get newly released security patches (hopefully) before a black-hat has had a chance to write an exploit for the hole.

HTH - and yes this is scary...and infuriating! x(
 
Hi Kathy I know what you mean until I was watching the news on Sunday morning where their is this Tech Guru on every week to give you tip, I believe it was him not sure but go here http://toolbar.google.com/ and download the google toolbar. I had it for a few weeks now and no more popup and it is free:)
 
Hey Barabra, I'll give that a try first here. Then I may end up ordering Trevors deal too. I am not sure. Because if this works, heck it saved me $25, right? Thank you all for your help on this, i was getting ready to throw my computer through the window earlier today. That's how nuts this is making me. I just don' tlike to be interupted when I'm inthe middle of typing up something or trying to print something up for work. And then if I walk away from my computer and leave it on line I would come back to around 5 or 6 pop ups, grrr. Hopefully that will all go away now. And the frustrations will end.

Kathy
 
Kathy I don't think you will regret this google. Also Trevor is right about shareware being hidden on your drive. I remember having Kazaa when it was Legal at one time and that is a shareware. Now my only problem is that this past 2 months I have been getting so much spam junk mail and i keep reporting it but it seems it just won't stop:(. I just got one that says Sadam is dead click on this link, I know not to click on it because that is where the viruses comes in.
 
Sorry you all are having these kinds of problems. I have gone down this road too and it's frustrating. Aware/huntbar is a big one making the rounds. My oldest son I think started this mess by playing with Kazaa and other similar sites. Please remember that no anti-virus or anti-spyware program is foolproof. Also remember that you can pick up tips on manually removing some of these by just perusing some computer techie forums and such. Some are very helpful.
Just as an FYI I am running McAfee online on my system along with the spyhunter and popup blaster programs. They have done a good job of keeping me clean. I have also removed a few manually by changing some IP numbers in sys32 that had been altered by one of the trojans without me knowing it. That one had re-directed my MSN search engine to a search engine that gives x-rated sites. That really pissed me off. Apparently that is a well-known method of attack that the techies are aware of.
Anyway, make sure all of your anti-virus and anti-spyware software is updated and I suggest scheduling weekly automated scans at some time in the middle of the night when no one is using your computers. If everyone does these things it will at least prevent some of the disasters we read about.
Good luck ladies! :)
T.
 
FYI for anyone who read the above message and is worried: SHAREWARE is copyrighted software that you willingly use for a limited period of time before you are asked to purchase it. If it has come from a reputable source, it will most likely be free from the nasties discussed here.

SPYWARE is the nasty stuff. Make sure you clean your temporary internet files (or cache) and your cookies regularly and invest (free, shareware, freeware or retail) in an application that will rid your system of these programmes that track your Web usage. You will invariably find your computer runs more smoothly after you have got rid of all the spyware.

If you're online using a PC, you should have an up-to-date anti-virus programme (and keep it up to date!); an anti-spyware tool like Adaware or Spyhunter; if you use broadband, DSL or cable modem: a firewall and a lot of common sense. You don't have to be a computer expert to use any of these programmes although you can get complex versions of any of these applications. Your ISP will be able to tell you more either through their online help areas on the WWW or over the 'phone.
ATB,
- Lisa :)
(happy, sociable, eccentric computer geek)
 
>Anyway, make sure all of your anti-virus and anti-spyware
>software is updated and I suggest scheduling weekly automated
>scans at some time in the middle of the night when no one is
>using your computers. If everyone does these things it will at
>least prevent some of the disasters we read about.
>Good luck ladies! :)
>T.
Heya Trevor,
I never thought this would happen but I agree with you here 100%!
I will add, this extra piece of advice for those of you who correspond with people who do not use anti-virus software or keep it up-to-date: set Norton, McAfee, PC Cillin or whichever to check dailly! Whether you do it manually or automatically, do make sure you update it *before* you check your e-mail. There are so many viruses flying around that it is easy to be caught out. If your anti-virus product comes out with a new update designed to thwart another new virus threat, you will not be protected from it until your next automatic update or your next manual update.
ATB,
- Lisa :)
 
Wow Lisa- you're good! How do you go about clearing cache? I using go to the control panel and delete temp files under Internet Options- is that the same thing?

Thanks so much!

Gina
 
>Wow Lisa- you're good! How do you go about clearing cache?
>I using go to the control panel and delete temp files under
>Internet Options- is that the same thing?
>
>Thanks so much!
>
>Gina

Yes it is :) If you click on "Settings" in that same area (it will vary according to the version of Windows you use), you can choose how much space to devote to temporary internet files. By default this will be set to something far larger than you'll need so to free up some space on your hard drive, change the number to something around the 60MB mark or lower. If you use broadband and empty your cache frequently, you can set it to a much lower number to free up even more space for the important stuff like workout rotations and Cathe's filmshoot photos etc. ;)
ATB,
- Lisa :)
 
Hi...just wanted to add my 2 cents! I always hated pop-ups myself...I use an alternative browser "Mozilla" which has its own pop-up blocker, so when you get the regular sites you go to up then you can block the pop-ups. I rarely ever get them now. I like the other posters use Adaware and also Spybot Search and Destroy to remove spyware, they are free and I scan and update about once a week. Even though I am on very slow dial-up I also got a Firewall. Just to keep the bad guys out. I tried a free one Zone Alarm and didn't like it and stuck with one called BlackIce PC Protection. It was $40 at office Max. it amazes me that these hackers try anything to get inside your PC...Carole
 
Just did this a few weeks ago myself and actually increased my speed a bit.
Great advice Lisa!
Trevor :)
 
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