computer advice non boating

[Sarum28]

A virus has zapped all my Favourites. I learned of a computer site on this forum which operates exactly the way this one does but for computers. Does anyone know what it is please.

<hr width=100% size=1>Jonathan & Avril

 

[SteveGorst]

I found this post on the microsoft support forum for internet explorer 6.0
http://support.microsoft.com/newsgroups
the answer may be of use to you.
Steve

I was surfing the internet and it appears one of the web sites planted
> some software to run in my IE browser. It deletes all of my
> favorites. Even after I add back a few favorites, it will pop up 10
> or 15 minutes later and delete them again. After that it will put the
> link "http://qwertysearch123.biz/?id=1999" to my favorite. It also
> updates my home page to the same URL. I try a few things, such as
> emptying out all files and cookies in the temporary internet file
> folder, but nothing works. Anyone has any idea of how to remove this
> program? Thanks.
>
> Michael

Please see this web site:
http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/unwanted.htm

Do an online scan at Panda:
http://www.pandasoftware.com/activescan/com/activescan_principal.htm



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[LadyInBed]

Try <A target="_blank" HREF=http://forum.mvps.org/>http://forum.mvps.org/</A>

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[BrendanS]

If you mean the IPC computer forums they are <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.webuser.co.uk/cgi-bin/forums/wwwthreads.pl>http://www.webuser.co.uk/cgi-bin/forums/wwwthreads.pl</A>

<hr width=100% size=1> I asked an economist for her phone number....and she gave me an estimate

 

[Fill]

Try www.spywareinfo.com for lots of useful help.

Might be worth installing spybot -search and destroy to get rid of all this sort of thing. It's freeware and deals with hi-jacks like this and all the spy adware which reports back on your usage to advertisers etc.

Spybot got rid of searchxl for me which had hijacked my search program in the browser.



<hr width=100% size=1>Fill

 

[sailorman]

install Adaware its free, finds "trogan horses"
a lot of activity by "data miner" at the moment.

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[l'escargot]

When you have sorted out your favourites again save them to this site and you will always have a back up:

<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.bayden.com/FaveCave/>http://www.bayden.com/FaveCave/</A>

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[Heckler]

the definitive advice

if you get zapped by ANYTHING and i am only going to say this once!
hilight the error message or anything that identifies the prob, right click and "copy" to copy the message, go online to www.google.co.uk , right click in the search box and "paste" then do a search, i guarantee the answer to all your woes will come up on the first page.
from a man who makes a living from doing this to all the great unwashed public who dont know, couldnt care less, anti virus? updates? critical updates? i dont open attachments, i dont need that.
REALLY
that will be £40 plus VAT for getting rid of the crap you have allowed to enter your computer cause you didnt do any of the previous.
you didnt know?
oh sorry, uncle bill didnt tell you?
and so the world goes around
stu



<hr width=100% size=1>http://www.beneteau-owners-association.org.uk

 

[oldsaltoz]

As a Minimum, you should download and install the following; note, they are all FREE.

Zone Alarm A Fire wall to keep hackers and the like off your system.
AVG Antivirus by Grisoft, keeps the grubs out.
Adaware Removes data miners that send out information from your system, tho most are harmless.
Spybot S&D Removes spyware much the same as Adaware but this picks up more, use both.

The above MUST be up dated at least every other day or log on if more than 2 days.

Also look at:
Hijack this. Prevents your browser being taken over.
Start monitor. Will alert you when any program tries to register on your start menu.

Install all of the above and enjoy your time on the net.

Andavagoodnewyear




<hr width=100% size=1> Old Salt Oz /forums/images/icons/cool.gif Growing old is unavoidable. However, growing up is still optional.

 

[petery]

I keep a separate obsolescent computer only for access to the web . All other work and software (eg Office) is on another, more powerful, system. IMHO you can use a old computer that even your kids would throw away to access the web as it needs very little computing power.

I use a separate e-mail address, that I regularly change, to register with companies like e-bay - and that lets me leave the 90% of the spam mail behind each time I change it

I know that wouldn't have solved your problem of the vanishing favourites, but it does mean that I just reload Windows and Explorer if I have a problem that my virus checkers don't pick up.

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[Guest]

Because the way Windows works ...

You can actually copy your favorites directory from Windows directory onto disk or to another directory etc.

Windows actually is pretty stupid in its form, but that stupidity allows you to treat so much as a file or directory.

I have a floppy copy of my Favourites directory ..... updated regularly. I even use it to copy onto new machines / others - eg if a friend wants a url ...... load floppy - write protected of course !! and copy respective one across to the Windows - favourites .......

No need to lose 'em all again.


<hr width=100% size=1>Nigel ...
Bilge Keelers get up further ! I came - cos they said was FREE Guinness !
/forums/images/icons/cool.gif

 

[Sailfree]

Where can you unload skybot S & D (that you refer to as free) from please. The site I looked at advertised various software for $$'s.
Thanks

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[BrendanS]

<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_description/0,fid,22262,00.asp>http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_description/0,fid,22262,00.asp</A>

<hr width=100% size=1> I asked an economist for her phone number....and she gave me an estimate

 

[l'escargot]

This is thir home-site:
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.safer-networking.org/>http://www.safer-networking.org/</A>
Remember to update it regularly, as you would AV software

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[Guest]

http://spybot.eon.net.au/index.php?lang=en&page=download

<hr width=100% size=1>Nigel ...
Bilge Keelers get up further ! I came - cos they said was FREE Guinness !
/forums/images/icons/cool.gif

 

[MainlySteam]

A number of Spybot users posting, so can I butt in and ask the following?

I've noticed with Spybot last couple of weeks that it is letting some things through (even DoubleClick and HitBox, among a few others), even though updated, whereas before nothing got through.

Has anyone else experienced this, in which case the Botters must be trying to defeat it (and others), or not?

John

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[Guest]

I run more than just spybot ..... as another on a IRC asked me ... what do I use ....

Adaware
Spybot
Pest Patrol
Anti-Trojan
Trojan remover
Mcafee AV pro
Mcafee F/Wall pro
Mailwasher pro

With that lot - I still get odd crud get through ......

I am amused sometimes by what one picks up and another doesn't etc. They all seem to have their pro's and con's and none seems to be best, or at least better than other ..... so each day my Trojan Remover, Mcafee AV / F/wall start on boot, I check the system with each program, every two days average ... leaving the system to the running at start programs inbetween.

I would guess that I clean out 20 - 30 bots every two days .... occasionally the system goes unstable and I give it a zap with registry restore ..... and away I go again.

I have noticed once or twice the removal of system files .... nasty little one that !! So carry the emeregency start floppy and put 'em back ......

I know my post has widened outside Spybot - but feel they all connect and boundaries get very grey ... so cover 'em all !!!!



<hr width=100% size=1>Nigel ...
Bilge Keelers get up further ! I came - cos they said was FREE Guinness !
/forums/images/icons/cool.gif

 

[Sailfree]

I am a relative novice but have managed to download both adaware and skybot. Have used both . Skybot refers to an automatic update file but this was not downloaded nor could I find it on the PC world site that I downloaded from. In skybot there is a check for updates. I have tried to use this and it lists 3 updates but when I click on "download now" it states "downloading" but the program hangs. On Cnt- Alt -Delete it shows program not responding. Advice please. Can this be fixed or is it easier to uninstall and redownload. Any website I can visit to better understand the problems that Adaware and Skybot are trying to prevent would also be useful.
Thanks
Roger

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[BrendanS]

What sites are you visiting to pick up 20-30 bots a day!! I trawl the internet extensively, and I've never got one! Running just Zonealarm firewall and norton antivirus.

I run spybot to clear tracking cookies out, but those aren't bots.

<hr width=100% size=1> I asked an economist for her phone number....and she gave me an estimate

 

[MainlySteam]

What I found after Spybot introduced the immunization feature quite some time back was that no tracking cookies got through the immunization so none left to be found by "Search & Destroy" (I like that term!). Now, over the last few weeks, I find that a few are getting through the immunization - common ones like HitBox, DoubleClick and on one occasion Gator. Just a few a week though, certainly not like Nigel's count for which a dose of Cookie Soltron seems in order!

So something has changed recently and not sure if it is Spybot or the cookie monsters.

John

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