malware muddle
One of the most common complaints by new users of the library computers is that their home pcs are 'broken.' This is more frequent than we more savvy users might be aware of. I say savvy but I could also say 'fortunate' or 'lucky.' It astounds me how many people click bad links and fu@k up their home computers. It amazes me more that there are so f''ing many bad links out here. The malware people have gotten very sophisticated, and it's scary.
I've opened infected email, and luckily I had antivirus software that jumped all over it before anything seeped out. For the most part I can generally spot junk prior to clicking, but there are those mouse over nasties and redirects that sneak in regardless. And then there's that CryptoWare running around the net extorting users to retrieve pictures and files.
I've been backing up my system more frequently and keeping programs patched and updated, but I don't feel as secure as I could. I'm considering buying Faronics Deep Freeze for home (we use it at work, and it is one of the best tools in my kit. And it has that cute bear!).
I spent approximately five hours this week trying to clean up my sister's pc. Spybot, MSE, System Restore, and good old fashioned sleuthing still didn't pull everything out that I would have wanted to eliminate, but it runs faster and cleaner than before. After the first round of cleaning she made the error of clicking a damned java look-alike link and flooded the system with redirect programs and the like. I got to the point of googling every unknown file in the processes and tossing out what files would allow me to dump them. Nasty, invasive stuff.
But I got a nice gift out of it for my helping (aside from some gas money): a Wilton Cake Decorating kit! I also got a bunch of cookies and candies she didn't want as she is on a diet.
I've opened infected email, and luckily I had antivirus software that jumped all over it before anything seeped out. For the most part I can generally spot junk prior to clicking, but there are those mouse over nasties and redirects that sneak in regardless. And then there's that CryptoWare running around the net extorting users to retrieve pictures and files.
I've been backing up my system more frequently and keeping programs patched and updated, but I don't feel as secure as I could. I'm considering buying Faronics Deep Freeze for home (we use it at work, and it is one of the best tools in my kit. And it has that cute bear!).
I spent approximately five hours this week trying to clean up my sister's pc. Spybot, MSE, System Restore, and good old fashioned sleuthing still didn't pull everything out that I would have wanted to eliminate, but it runs faster and cleaner than before. After the first round of cleaning she made the error of clicking a damned java look-alike link and flooded the system with redirect programs and the like. I got to the point of googling every unknown file in the processes and tossing out what files would allow me to dump them. Nasty, invasive stuff.
But I got a nice gift out of it for my helping (aside from some gas money): a Wilton Cake Decorating kit! I also got a bunch of cookies and candies she didn't want as she is on a diet.