Category: internet security

Good Free Virus Scanners and Antiviruses?

Posted onAuthorTruXterLeave a comment

If you say you want “good and free” as you ask me for advice on a virus scanner or antivirus, don’t get mad at me if I tell you to remove your Avast, Kaspersky or AVG. I have zero faith in either one of those. ZERO. Simply because I have done my tests and the results were what I suspected. Garbage.
Microsoft Security essentials and Microsoft windows defender are the only antiviruses (virus protection) I recommend. Even though virus scanner and antivirus are two different things. One scans, the other monitors with a scan option.
If you want a good virus scanner then you must understand the maker of the program made it to scan and focused on scanning manually only. This is a good thing. Doesn’t bloat down your computer running scans when if it was a good virus protection, there’d be nothing to scan to begin with.
From a previous post here about virus scanners and antiviruses.
RogueKiller.exe  This will hunt down the deepest of virus.
ATF-Cleaner.exe helps clear up what’s on your computer in folders that you got locked out of in the attack. empties trash and cache and a bunch of stuff all at the same time
Spybot – weak these days but doesn’t kill you to give it a scan and let it clean a few things up too.
[Microsoft Essentials Windows 7] | [Windows Defender Windows 8]..Not a bad free Virus Scanner. Works pretty good. Works best if installed before you get the virus. Protects better than any other virus scanner. Free or otherwise.
unhide.exe will get your icons back if you lost them and your files back if they disappeared when the virus hit you.
Malwarebytes– free and good strong software
Super Anti-Spyware – Stupid name, great product. oh and it has a free version.
Emergency Kit Scanner – I use this one anytime a friend calls me for help
MVP’s Hosts – block your computer from accessing known virus site. Stops advertisements too. Not a virus scanner or antivirus in teh sense of realtime protection, but still a good addition.

The basic rule of internet safety is watching out for the b.y.c.a.k. virus. b.y.c.a.k. = between your chair and keyboard.
this means, don’t open weird emails. Don’t go to weird websites. Don’t click impulse click bait links on Facebook or twitter or the like.

Remember these and you have a better chance than 75% of the people on the internet.

Still no matter how safe you are, you can still get a virus from legitimate uses of your computer on the internet. If this happens, then be wise and either  wipe and reinstall windows, or take the time to run every  program in the link above (this is so much more fun and feels very accomplished in the end). Don’t forget to update the programs and do it again all week long, just to be sure.

Facebook has gone too far

Posted onAuthorTruXter3 Comments

*UPDATE* Facebook is definitely asking every single person for their identification, and making changes to your profile to match what you sent them
If you have a friend who had theirs changed but says they never sent their i.d., they are likely ashamed they sent it.
*end update*

facebooktoointrusive Facebook is now asking me to upload a copy of my Driver’s License to unlock my facebook page that I have kept for about 8 years now. Don’t they know that this is what killed Google Plus from the get go? Is the over intrusive nosy bodied “all up in yours” mentality that “This is my site you will not use my site without blah blah blah” Yeah I get that. You have your rules and you have your ways. but there is no way, ever on a rainy day in hell that I will upload my driver’s license to anyone on the internet. I value my privacy. Hence the use of the name I use. This name is well over 20 years. and I am known for this name with many people. I will not use my personal real name on a website. If the website requires I use my real name and verify myself by sending them a copy of my identification, then I am done with that website.

You will not get my driver’s license . You will not get my real name on a social media site.. It’s a fricken spam site. There is no damn way you will ever see me uploading that information to this random dude/female just so I can chat.

 

Until they release my account with an apology I will not be back and I will take my posts about their intrusiveness behavior to better social site. Such as Reddit and Twitter and wherever my friends from there will share them.

 

And if there is some weird way you see some other form of identification that I should use, no I will not. It’s just a chat site. Nothing more. No reason to verify myself other than by originating email.

Screenshot_2014-10-13-13-48-47

and here is a screenshot of the first computer I saw this come up on.

http://i.imgur.com/Om2zHWO.jpg

Here is what I get when I type in my password, the page I get redirected to

https://www.facebook.com/checkpoint/?next

If that page does not do the same for you as it does for me, it looks like this

http://i.imgur.com/M1TVSOB.jpg

Here is the facebook page explaining why and what form of i.d. is acceptable
https://www.facebook.com/help/159096464162185

I saw this at work, I am seeing this at home. No I am not hijacked. No I am not honey potted.

This is really happening. This intrusive High risk step to make sure we all “know who we are connecting with”.

Facebook is way too vulnerable for me to give my information to them. There is no way in blue hell that I will send a copy of my identification to them. No damn way. Maybe if you sent me the I.D. of every person looking at my personal information, maybe. but that isn’t likely. So … Nope. Screw that.

 

And here is the email notification from Facebook

facebookintrusive

and my response to facebook asking for a copy of my I.D.
facebookasksformyi.d

I will be waiting for their response.

 

 My only guess is the spammers I busted in this post all banned together and reported me as spam in retaliation. and since I am easier to beat than actual spammers, Facebook  has pulled this crap.

Receive a Free $250 Gift Voucher from Kroger – Fake Facebook

Posted onAuthorTruXter2 Comments

**Please find the friend that you saw sharing the link to the Kroger Gift Card scam, and post a link to this page for them to read and to share to the person they saw it on.** If you google “way back machine” you will find the internet archive that has a back up of what this page used to tell you. I myself will no longer pay the bandwidth it takes to help facebook.
Facebook post says “Receive a Free $250 Gift Voucher” and has a Kroger logo. Looks legit right?
It is fake.
kroger_gift_card
If you clicked it, log into Facebook and change your password now. You have just been bitten by a scam. This scam is not the doing of Kroger. You have no reason to be mad at Kroger for someone else’s hoax.
Here is Kroger trying to get a handle on the situation.
Kroger is aware and trying to stop it.
To prove this Kroger notice is a hoax, just hit refresh when you are on that page and watch the “remaining vouchers” counter start back over at 173.
Another thing to notice is the “comments” on that page on the left hand side “hansja” his comment says it happened 26 minutes ago.. and that comment stays with that count.
Most this is an advertising company that has crummy tactics and it is likely they are just getting their like and share counts up really high so that when the website changes it’s home page design and logo, it will look like a legit website, and will show in your friend feed to your friends as a page you like. Which in turn will scam your friends by this 100% hoax.

Fake kroger Gift card $250

Fake Kroger Gift card $250


Looks like the same people who have been doing this for years: I offer no more help
EXAMPLE 1 – EXAMPLE 2 – EXAMPLE 3
Via mass text message or mass social media spamming like this one.
I wonder if they get everyone’s address book if they go to that site on their phones.. hmmmmmmm

Ancestry Sites – Scam

Posted onAuthorTruXterLeave a comment

Scammers crawl these sites.
They get a number and track down the owner. locate their relatives, locate their numbers.
Call the relatives and start name dropping people in their family then say that one of them got a loan and used them as a reference. then threaten to send cops after them for a false made up “guilty by association” crime and then say they will not call the cops, if they pay off the family member’s loan amount.

Pretty much rip off your entire family.

Here is how Ancestry.Com is fake and gives fixed results.

ancestry TruXter is a made up word. Well sort off. It’s a misspelling of a real word that is no longer used. In the past 100 years or so it meant “Truck” . correct spelling is “truckster”. It’s origin means “traveler”. Click the image and see what the results I found were.

I tried “Bopanopski” next. Apparently they have a better contextual engine than what the spammers of ten years ago had, where they flooded Google with hundreds of pages. If you haven’t tried any names on Ancestry, please try “Bopanopski” and see what you get.

Look. Here’s the best advice I can give you about computers or the internet.
ANYTHING you see advertised on television, selling you stuff for computers or internet… It’s a scam. Penny auctions, virus scanners, websites or even computer deals. If it’s advertised on television and talks about either of these or sells it, it is a scam. ALWAYS!.

All of the Ancestry websites out today, are fake and do nothing but sell your information to scammers. Not everyone in the world can be related so extravagant person or famous person. So that should have been your red flag.
Problem is, once your information is on there, it’s on there for ever.
All of the real information that these sites have obtained, are from the users. No user will ever be able to see what the other users posts. What you see is fake and even if it was true, the information would go back only so far. Most of the older generations are passed on, or not as well connected with internet usage. So, not much information would be made available to you.

You have been advised. Good luck and happy internetting.

Your rights, internet and Privacy

Posted onAuthorTruXter13 Comments

These days are certainly different days of the past.
This isn’t about phobias or conspiracies or anything you can use to belittle this. This is about self respect.

In the past we took everything to the highest level of precaution to avoid giving away our personal information .  We refused to give up our date of birth, our names of any sort, and we kept our images to a minimum. In fear of identity theft.
We learned that there is a simple method of finding someone’s social security number simply by knowing where they were born, their name and the day they were born. Back in those days, a “security question” asking what your mother’s maiden name is, was a red flag. A darn good red flag. There is no reason for that question on any website. Especially banks. If they don’t need that information to give you credit, then they do not need that information for anything else, so they should never ask that question. even as a “security question”.

Today we give up everything and laugh at those who do not. We will post our face on the internet, our first and last name, pin our home address in public maps, we tag our family and share that information to the public as if it validates our love for one an other. We post pictures of people, without their consent and think it totally irrational for them to object. Don’t believe me? Ask someone not to post your picture and watch how they react. Typically they will act as if they agree with you, then they will fidget, and mock you for being weird or paranoid about it. They will then tell you that your are too attractive to not share your image, then they will erupt in anger to you. Then they will plea to you. Then they will disconnect themselves from you.

Try this. Take every photo of yourself offline. Request all of your friends to take down photos that contain you in them. If you think that part is too hard, then you might want to rethink your privacy thus far. Now next time you are a party, Avoid the cameras, because the person taking the pictures isn’t going to understand your wants of privacy. So it’s easier to just walk away from the pictures. When they notice what you are trying to do, it then becomes a sport to post your picture on the internet without your consent.

I have observed this for well on 18 years now. This is a fact. and it is very offensive the way people get with photos. and because I am so offended by it, it leaves me snapping at people who are actual friends or girlfriends when they just ask what they think is a very normal question. ” Why can’t I have a picture of us together online to show my friends and family what you look like”. Quite often they will assume you just don’t want to be seen with them. Which further proves how far we have sunken into just trusting things at the value they were described to you, instead of what we can see is really happening.

All of this, I blame on Facebook. In their methods of getting more information from you to sell to potential customers, they keep changing the way you use the site, and changing the rules to the site, so often you have no desire to read the rules and terms of use.ny allowing you certain features if ou give up other forms of privacy. They are the owners of Instagram and just announced a week ago that Instagram has the rights to sell your photos to advertisers who would like to use them in their advertisements. Offering you no compensation. Then with in hours they 360’d that claim and said they never would do such a thing. Just 4 years ago, Facebook made the same claim on it’s main site, and that option is still readily in their hands at all times. Just read the terms of service and see for yourself. Set private or public, those files are on Facebook’s servers and that server is their on their property. Last thing you want is your photo being misused by the highest bidder.

but none of that matters to you anymore. We have relaxed to a state that we now say ” I don’t care what you do with it”. as if Identity theft would be flattering, because you doubt it could ever happen. EVER!
Family tree websites that have you post information about your family heritage. It’s a group event to find our more about about your lineage and your family’s origin. It’s a way to find family members long lost and family members who didn’t even know they had cousins. but what is it really? It’s a spam farm. and that’s a it is. Those sites are created for the sole purpose of targeting spam. Sure you find a use for it that you believe you benefit greatly from but at what cost to you? to all of the family members you posted against their will or without their knowledge?

I for one, will not live my life that way. I have to much respect for myself, and I truly wish  that some of you would also.
Here’s a few articles to enjoy.
Convenience or Security?

Why Convenience Is the Enemy of Security

Convenience or security: Who decides which is more important?  (pssst, it’s not the end user)

 

 

 

Just How Safe is the Internet

Posted onAuthorTruXter

safety

safety

The internet is just like anything anywhere. You don’t go into strange places and just lay your wallet on the table and walk around talking to people. Do you? You don’t just let some person walk up to you and sale you stuff that you do not need do you? When you drive through shady parts of town don’t you roll up your window? You don’t just pick up a random soda can and tilt it to get the last drop to fall into your mouth, do you? If some random person walked up to you and said “Hey, the police have your spouse and told me that if I collect $300 from you they will let your spouse out, and give them a steak and ice cream for your spouse’s discomfort”, you don’t just hand them your credit card do you?

No, you don’t do that.

Think of the internet the same way you do being out in public. Give nothing away until you are at a trusted website, in trade for something you actually came for. Do not impulse buy on the web. Do not impulse donate on the internet. Do not just throw your credit card number on any random website.

Stay away from shady areas, don’t just give out private information, and make sure your security and defense is up to date. The internet is pretty safe, unless you are just goofy and think everyone has great intentions.

Leap Year Virus 2012 ??

Posted onAuthorTruXter1 Comment

It seems that one of the viruses that I reported in one of my previous posts, that obtained on my computer at work, has been bit by the Leap Year Virus 2012.
Everything is running slow.
First clue was I got a notice about “iteratorutils.jsm:117” failed to start. That of course is not a sign of virus, it is a sign that something is running slow, since script time for Mozilla is 10 seconds, The computer is running so slow, it exceeded the 10 second script load time . Not perfect science but enough to get me alerted. Yesterday was a busy day. My computer was running at full speed, smooth and nice. I never once searched anything on the web. I just worked on my drawings and records. Today, slow. Everything is loading at a crawl.

I am now running scans but it seems Microsoft essentials has locked up. And the only thing I have that will run, is spybot search and destroy, and Rouge Killer (linked below). Rouge Killer did find a couple registry anomalies that were labeled regular stuff you would normally overlook, I deleted the instances anyway. My machine might not boot back up because of that. but it’s worth a shot. I am sure the I.T. guy here and I can get the office computer back up and I will report back here as to do or not do what I did. I am sure I have to reboot because what regestry was showing, is that 3 items were loading on start of the computer. Since my computer is still running, then the items are still running and I only removed what starts them.If I don’t report back before you read this….. Don’t do it!.

Will report back when I find more to see if there is an actual virus that has been dormant waiting for Leap Year 2012. Possibly bundled with Antivirus 2012

If you notice the same issues, Please describe below, and check back often. I will be updating this as the day progresses.

**update** Microsoft essentials finally finished update. Scanning now. but so far nothing is showing up.

***Update. I have no idea what happened, 3 hours into my work day, and my computer just started working normal. Reboots really slow now, but it works again.
No virus scanners found anything. So I have no clue if they just don’t have the virus signature yet, or if it was a fluke bug, or what.

Google Or Comcast -Trust

Posted onAuthorTruXter

Who do you trust more? Google or Comcast?
One is in your phone and in your web browser and in your toolbar and in your operating system and is very well known for saving your data.
The other is known for throttling bandwidth (implies already capable of filtering your traffic), feeding you super high speeds but setting ridiculously low monthly download max.

Who seems more like they have a scary trick up their sleeve?

[poll id=”16″]

Sad Fact

Posted onAuthorTruXter

We live here. In a wonderful country of freedom and openness. Where the people speak their mind and the press has the freedom to report the truth and anyone can create a movie or a song and get it seen. Where no one’s rules govern us and we do not govern anyone else, since we are so open minded.
This is now false.
We now close down websites that are owned by people who allow people to upload files and download files. Such as different takes and cuts of personal project videos.

 

We now extradite people from other countries, for breaking laws in our country over the internet, and we take all of their belongings from their house.

 

Sopa and pipa were supposed to pass, and this was supposed to be the first bust. The machine was already in motion.

 

This country is going to crap. Eliminate etrade so the longest reigning selfish pigs can continue being pigs.

Want to talk about a depression.

 

 

Just wait.

 

When everyone starts outsourcing EVERYTHING. because to many uppity folks want everything regulated to meet their standards if made here, and then we pay full price though no one has a job anymore because everything is politically correct and outsourced like a good zombie of a country. Then those companies go under because no one is there to bail them out, we get a chance to invest what little bit of a tax money we have, to get them out of debt.

 

You see all of this right? not just what you are worried about… look at the dominoes as they ALL fall. not just the one with the mp3 player built in it… ALL OF THEM.

My clean pc

Posted onAuthorTruXter

You will not see me going to that website.
I know better.
Anyone notice that the “Stop Sign” commercials have stopped?
And then replaced with that veri what ever?
My personal computer will not have my clean pc installed on it.
No magic elixir. You can’t rub oil on your head and make your friends any smarter. and yes, you can install a program and have it check for specific command lines or executables to be on your computer, but will not check to see if the command line is correct, or if the executable runs the proper process.
Your safest bet is taking your computer to a proper technician, to get a proper diagnosis of your computer and a correct solution to ensure that your computer will be repaired correctly if needed, at it wont cost you every month.