How do you get rid of multiple viruses?

NorthStar

Member
Feb 8, 2011
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Vancouver Island, B.C. Canada
In the last week or so, I had few major alerts of viruses into my computer. One just 20 minutes ago, with a sirene sound and red lights flashing all over like if all the cops were at my door!!! :mad:
They are now everywhere! I got about two dozens of them, in the hardrive, my files, my network, etc.

* It says to click here to run a program, but are you sure you want to run it!!!

Then I click on RUN, but then it says "We don't know that server and it can 'screw' your computer"!!!

I am at a total lost!

HELP!

Bob

P.S. I know nothing about computers! I'm running Microsoft Windows XP and Avast as Antivirus.
And how do I check back to see those viruses??? It is extremely irritating for the last seven days or a bit more! And where the heck are they coming from? And what do they want with me? I didn't do anything to them! So why are they after me? :( (cry)
 

amirm

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Apr 2, 2010
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Well, if you are not comfortable with computers, I am not confident that you can deal such an infested machine.

For starters, keep your computer isolated from your home network. Disconnect from your wireless network.

Then boot into "safe mode." Restart the machine (power cycle it if you have to) and hit F8 before the first Windows screen shows up. You can keep hitting the button as the machine powers on until you see the menu of choices. Select safe mode and let it run. See if you get a system that seems to act normal. Note that your machine will run a lot slower this way. That is OK. We are trying to see if the core of the OS is healthy right now.
 

NorthStar

Member
Feb 8, 2011
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Vancouver Island, B.C. Canada
Amir, my PC is wired! It is from a router that is connected to my phone line.

What should I do?

And I don't wanna lose anything either! Because I would never know where to start all over.
What is "Safe Mode"? How do I restart, by turning everything off? Or just doing a restart at my router box?

If my "machine" as you say is so infested, should I buy another one that is bug-free or just go play outside for the rest of my life like I'm so used to do? But then, I'm older and not as in shape as I used to.

Amir, you have to be very clear with me, and use words that I can understand.
Just imagine that I'm 9 years old, and a total novice. :)
...Be a good teacher. :)

* I'll try a Reset from my router.
 

amirm

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Apr 2, 2010
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Disconnect the wire.

Safe mode is a special way the operating system starts where it doesn't attempt to run software at start-up. Viruses and such embed themselves to get started every time you boot your machine. Safe mode usually avoids that giving you an opportunity fix things. If safe mode is compromised, then you have to re-install the OS and lose all your applications. I am hoping to avoid that.

Nothing has happened to your hardware. So right now you don't have to do anything. That said, your XP machine is pretty old I suspect so if you can spare the change, an upgrade may be good on multiple levels.
 

NorthStar

Member
Feb 8, 2011
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Vancouver Island, B.C. Canada
If I disconnect the wire I'm going to lose all my registrations, and I don't remember all my various passwords!

And which wire are you talking about by the way? There are few of them.

Alright I'll by another computer before I die; but for right now I luv my IBM ThinkCentre. :)

What is OS? ...And no thank you very much, I don't wanna lose all my applications; it'll be like the end of the world! ...Could be good though! :)

I'm such a knob!

________________

My PC is working right now; how do I check for those viruses that I saw before?
Are they hiding somewhere?

What is Life? ;):D
 

amirm

Banned
Apr 2, 2010
15,813
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Seattle, WA
Oh boy :). Bob, given our interchange, this is not something you can resolve on your own. The level of knowledge needed is not going to be imparted with an interchange like this (and at any rate, not all infections can be resolved even by skilled people). It is a serious problem and can damage other people's machine. My suggestion is to a) find someone comfortable with computers to go after it or b) buy a new computer.
 

NorthStar

Member
Feb 8, 2011
24,305
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435
Vancouver Island, B.C. Canada
Ok, I'll talk to the PC expert of my area tomorrow.

* By the way Amir, those last instances of virus' infections were when I clicked on some Birthday cards! ...You know pictures to send to your friend's birthdays.

But I've been doing that for quite a while and it is only recently that it has become 'epidemic'!
Whoever is trying to get your credit card's information on the Internet should be banned! Permanently!

And guess who gets banned at the end? :)

Thank you for your time Amir, you've been a real gentleman!
 

DaveyF

Well-Known Member
Jul 31, 2010
6,129
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La Jolla, Calif USA
Bob, about a year ago, my youngest daughter was on a web site that is designed for children. She gets a pop-up that says something like...click here for your free 'whatever'... My little one comes over to me and says "what's this Dad?" I decide to click out of the box and close the window....BIG mistake:mad:....System crashes!! After I have taken the PC to my friendly neighborhood tech, he tells me that ANY click at all, once this little virus shows up, wipes out my hard-drive. Cute eh?:mad: The ONLY way to stop this infection was to immediately hit- Ctrl ALt Delete and halt the program!!( who would know that?:confused:)So, this little beaut cost me a new PC and a lot of money:(.... Where was this virus initiated...apparently in Russia and spread worldwide in just over one month!:mad:
The moral of the story... There are some code writers out there that will get past just about any virus software and will wreak havoc on your PC machine...Therefore, get a MAC...FAR less likely to occur, as these lads aren't into Mac and the OS is much more secure, IMHO.
 

DaveyF

Well-Known Member
Jul 31, 2010
6,129
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La Jolla, Calif USA
Steve, in my case, I had a well known current virus detection program beginning with Ma**** that was completely written around by the virus!:mad:
According to my tech that day, this particular virus was virtually unstoppable and he was inundated with work due to it!:eek:
I think even the best anti-virus software is not going to help if you have someone with enough knowledge to write that kind of destructive code...Oh, my IP host was Time Warner--road runner services!! They told me the same thing as my tech...in a pleasant enough way:(
 

Steve Williams

Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
interesting Davey. I use comcast (grrr) and they scan with Norton which is free to all members. I often find messages that it has detected a threat and eliminated them but as you say, any new virus needs the code to get rid of it, so if you are infected before the fix, then sadly it may be irreparable
 

amirm

Banned
Apr 2, 2010
15,813
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Seattle, WA
Maybe we could have a thread on "What is the Best Defense Against Computer Attacks"?
I have been using computers for 35 years now. Other than work computer, I have never had any type of virus checker on my machines. And not once have I been infected. Not sure my method is applicable to everyone but here it is:

1. Be very careful which web sites you visit. This is how computers are getting infected these days. The previously held notion that viruses come as a result of downloading programs is no longer true and all manner of devices are vulnerable from PCs to Macs and iPads. If you only go to proper, commercial web sites, you simply will not have any problems. Period.

Now go looking for sex advice and viagra, and the game changes :).

2. This one is hard but you need to have some computer knowledge. One was mentioned before. When seeing something fishy, bringing up task manager (control+shift+escape on PC) and killing that session. I have had to do this once or twice. Learning how to use that tool takes a bit of skill and detecting what might be problematic, a lot more.

That's it!
 

DaveyF

Well-Known Member
Jul 31, 2010
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La Jolla, Calif USA
Steve, I used to use Norton... way too many issues and always seemingly 'buggy'. I have a friend who works in IT...he is one of the top guys in the US in this field,tells me that there are shops in India and Russia that use code writers to just write virus. Guess who owns these shops!!:eek:
Sounds a little paranoid, BUT also seems to make perfect sense.:eek:
Which is why I now use a Mac...How often have you heard of a Mac going down due to a virus:D
( I'm not saying it cannot happen to Mac, just a whole lot less likely as IMO the OS is so much more secure).So, if anyone asks me as to which computer to buy...Mac vs Pc...the answer for me is a 'no brainer'.
I think there was a thread on this issue somewhere else on the 'Forum'.. Plenty of Pc followers here,
.......never had their Pc taken down yet:cool:

BTW, Amir, my daughter was on a VERY well known and innocent child's web page ( " a proper commercial web site') when this incident occur'ed, can you really tell which web page is going to initiate the code? I think not:(
 

DaveyF

Well-Known Member
Jul 31, 2010
6,129
181
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La Jolla, Calif USA
Steve, I think it relates to the # of Pc's in the world vs. Mac's. Also to the fact that Mac OS is more controlled by Apple than Windows code, which any old 'hacker' can get hold of:eek:.
Could it happen to Mac, sure, but I think the Snow Leopard OS is just more stable than Windows...( although the 7 OS is a better platform IMHO than any previous one from Microsoft) The OP was using XP, which is like having a piece of 'Swiss Cheese' these days. My down'ed Pc was also using XP at the time.:(
 

amirm

Banned
Apr 2, 2010
15,813
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Seattle, WA
On Mac vs PC, the landscape is changing rapidly as I noted due to attacks coming in different ways, especially through the browser and related (Adobe Reader, Flash, etc). Here is a good article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2010/feb/03/mac-or-pc-security

Another theme is that attacks are moving to target the browser and other software rather than the operating system, and this may not turn out quite as well for Apple. Frank Heidt, CEO of Leviathan Security, says:

"The risk landscape for consumers (and enterprises) has changed over the last few years. Operating systems as such are no longer the primary target of consumer-targeted attacks; applications are. In light of that fact, I'd say each operating system has its benefits and liabilities. The real risks lie in the consumer's browser choice, and security habits. From a browser standpoint, I would choose Firefox over IE, and IE over Safari."

Nitesh Dhanjani, researcher and consultant, says:

"I know Internet Explorer has had a considerable share of vulnerabilities, but the Safari Web browser also has a lousy reputation in the security community -- it almost seems a child's play to locate an exploitable condition in Safari. Apple really needs to get its act together with Safari since OS X is enjoying a healthy market share climb at the moment."

In the end, however, a big part of the problem is the bit between the chair and the keyboard. As Graham Cluley from Sophos says: "Social engineering is the unifying threat that puts all computer users at risk, regardless of operating system. And that's what most threats exploit."

Steve Manzuik, senior manager of security research at Juniper Networks, says:

"Regardless of the operating system, the easiest way for an attacker to compromise a system is by going after the application level and causing the user to click, open, or run something they should not. The trend of patches over the last couple of years from Microsoft, Adobe, and even Apple supports this. Unfortunately, you cannot 'secure' user behavior."

The article ends with Mac still having an advantage but the safety that Mac users used to enjoy and take for granted, is no longer there.
 

Steve Williams

Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
On Mac vs PC, the landscape is changing rapidly as I noted due to attacks coming in different ways, especially through the browser and related (Adobe Reader, Flash, etc). Here is a good article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2010/feb/03/mac-or-pc-security



The article ends with Mac still having an advantage but the safety that Mac users used to enjoy and take for granted, is no longer there.

well then let me ask the question which is a valid one, " to all Mac users, has your computer ever sustained a viral attack?"

My bet is none
 

audioguy

WBF Founding Member
Apr 20, 2010
2,794
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1,635
Near Atlanta, GA but not too near!
Maybe we could have a thread on "What is the Best Defense Against Computer Attacks"?

Not a guarantee but "Get a Mac" is a great start. Since Apple has such a small market share, the virus initiators tend to ignore Apple Computers. In the many many years that I have had a Mac I have not had any kind of virus but have had on my PC's.
 

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