Windows Activation trojan.kardphisher - Be Very Careful - Trust Nobody

There is a new and particularly nasy trojan in the wild at the moment. It was discovered by Symantec and is called trojan.kardphisher.

The trojan tries to fool you into thinking your copy of windows has been compromised and activated by another user. To correct this problem you are asked to enter your card details on the premise of not been charged any fee. Obviously this would not be the case if you fall victim to the trojan.

The trojan.kardphisher screens are also pretty convincing.

screenshot 1

screenshot 2

For more on this story see below

It was bound to happen - Trojan impersonates Windows activation by ZDNet’s Adrian Kingsley-Hughes –

This was so bound to happen - A Trojan which impersonates the Windows activation process and asks the users to enter their credit card details.

Free Spyware Protection From AVG

The nice people at AVG are helping to protect the innocent masses again with their free anti-spyware software. The software is actually a full featured 30 day trial after which certain features are disabled.

The software will however remain effective protection for your pc.

Key points about the software:

• Easy to use

• Daily database updates

• Heuristics to detect unknown threats

• Automatic Cleaning Engine

The official line from AVG reads as follows:

This setup contains the free as well as the paid version of AVG Anti-Spyware. After the installation, a free 30-day trial version containing all the extensions of the full version will be activated. At the end of the trial, these extensions will be deactivated and the program will turn into a feature-limited freeware version. The purchased license code can be entered at any time.

AVG consistently release simple to use , effective anti-virus products and this product only reinforces their arsenal against internet nasties.

You can get your copy here

Uniblue Spyeraser - Rogue Antispyware software?

I downloaded a new spyware remover yesterday to try it out. The software carries the name of “Spyeraser” and is distributed by a company named Uniblue. The download is easy enough and installation went without a hitch.

After checking for available updates I proceeded to perform a full scan of my system. I was horrified to see that my computer was infected with nearly 200 items of spyware! Spyeraser had identified components of certain software as spyware or potentially dangerous.

On trying to remove the “infected” items, I was not surprised to find that this is only a trial version which allows scanning only. To actually remove any “infected” items you have to pay for the software. Not a chance!

Many of the items appear to be false positives aimed at encouraging unsuspecting internet users to part with cash and card details. I performed full scans with Adaware and Spybot

Both programs found no infections on my system. I have removed Spyeraser and will stick with the applications I know and trust. Obviously the choice is yours but I would not recommend using the product Spyeraser until it has been fully tested and confirmed as ok by the guys at spywarewarrior

Example of spoof page alert by Google

Google are very kindly warning internet users if they are about to visit a fake or “phishing” page. This is a very useful service because not all internet users are net savvy and could quite easily be taken in. The service is provided in conjunction with Stopbadware.org

Quoted from stopbadware website

StopBadware.org is a “Neighborhood Watch” campaign aimed at fighting badware. We will seek to provide reliable, objective information about downloadable applications in order to help consumers to make better choices about what they download on to their computers. We aim to become a central clearinghouse for research on badware and the bad actors who spread it, and to become a focal point for developing collaborative, community-minded approaches to stopping badware.

The service is provided free of charge and can surely only be good news for internet users.

The screenshot is an example I received myself in my email masquerading as a contact from Ebay. I clicked on it to see what happened and voila, up came this warning.

Ewido Antispyware - Another Excellent Product from Grisoft

Ewido anti-spyware is relatively new to me. To be honest, I only discovered it from using the free AVG Anti-virus software on the Grisoft website. The software claimed to be an effective tool for the detection and removal of spyware, adware, dialers, keyloggers and worms. I downloaded it and tested it out on a few pc jobs.

Well, it turns out to be a very effective spyware scanner and can indeed detect and remove infections from your computer. Only yesterday, I scanned a computer with this software and after several hours of scanning, the spyware total on the system was nearly 65,000 items. I am aware that some less scrupulous software vendors will actually create phantom spyware to encourage purchasing of the software package. Grisoft and ewido anti-spyware are not guilty of this trick and only report true infections.

After scanning you are given recommended actions for the items found. For most users the best option will be to click the option apply recommended actions. This will remove the spyware for you with minimal effort and confusion on your part. Most pc users are not that interested in the how and why of spyware, wishing to be rid of it being far more important.

The software is actually a trial version lasting 30 days. During the 30 day trial period you receive full auto updates and any program updates. Purchasing a licence code allows continued premium updates and support. If your pc is in a mess with spyware, I strongly recommend you download this software and see what it can do. I have been very impressed with it and will continue to use it in the future.

If you wish to purchase the full premium package from ewido the cost is £19 for one full year. The licence gives you:

• During the license period you will receive free updates and full product support. It includes free 24 hour a day e-mail access to a professional support team of technical experts.
• Free program and spyware updates are provided via Akamai’s industry leading world-wide network of high speed servers. ewido anti-spyware updates itself automatically whenever updates are available. Alternatively you can update manually, or configure ewido anti-spyware to download updates at a scheduled time that suits you.
• Multiple language support in one package. No need to buy a special language version as all available languages are included in the one product. A simple click on the mouse and the entire interface (including help files) will instantly change to your required language.
• ewido anti-spyware has many more features that make it the best value anti-spyware protection available

However you can just download the trial and use it to clean spyware infections from your pc for free. But doing this will only give short term peace of mind and after the trial expires you will most likely end up back where you started. You can purchase full versions of AVG Anti-virus and ewido anti-spyware together for a package price of £28 for one year.
This product is Highly recommended!

Available to purchase from Grisoft website

Please ensure you select the correct currency for your country when ordering.

Google to warn you about bad websites

Apparently search engine king Google are to warn users of potentially damaging websites. If you are about to visit a site known to contain or redirect to spyware and other badware you will see a warning screen advising against you to not visit the site. The choice is still yours but it would be foolish to disregard the advice.

The warning screen you will be shown

The service is provided in association with www.stopbadware.org who are responsible for investigating reported sites. They compile a report on the files on the sites and compile a report explaining the bad content and why it should be avoided.

Excellent idea! Should help people stay spyware free!

Avoid Winfixer!

While surfing the Internet you may suddenly be interrupted by a small popup box which looks very like a standard windows box. It will claim that your machine is either infected already or is at risk of infection. It will then go on to suggest that you download and install Winfixer to protect and repair your system.

Do not click yes or ok or download now. Click the x at the top right to close the window and ignore it. You may be subject to another popup or even a fullscreen insisting you are at risk. Again, ignore and click the x in the top right corner.

Winfixer is available in two versions Winfixer 2005 and 2006. Please do not download or purchase either version. This software has been known to report up to 1000 severe system threats when in reality none exist at all. The user is then encouraged to purchase the full version of Winfixer claiming that it will clean up your pc, make it faster and provide continued protection. It does not.

Please avoid this software if at all possible. It may also appear as errorsafe. This is exactly the same program and should also be avoided.

Avoid if possible!

For a more detailed report see Stopbadware.org

Virus Software - AVG Free Edition By Grisoft

Grisoft offer a free antivirus program that provides realtime virus protection for your computer. If you are on a tight budget and do not want to purchase antivirus software this could be for you.

The program is available for windows and Linux and is updated regularly. It has all the essentials, including a resident memory scanner, on delivery e-mail scanner, and scheduled hard disk scans. The software offers you the protection from internet related viruses for the low low price of zero!

If computers come in to the workshop to be cleaned up, I always install AVG Free Edition if they do not wish to purchase antivirus software. Surprisingly, many people still do not realise the threat of infection from the internet and what it could mean to them. If you know someone who has no virus protection on their computer, please tell them to try the free version.
There is also a purchase version that gives better support and help available from Grisoft

Prevent the spyware getting on your pc with Spywareblaster

SpywareBlaster is a free program so we are off to a good start! The program is provided by a company called Javacool Software who are based in Pittsburgh, USA. The program is provided free because they value peoples privacy and want to help protect it. They also believe people should have access to software and technology to protect them.

Spyware, adware, browser hijackers, and dialers are some of the fastest-growing threats on the Internet today. This is the tag line from the description of spywareblaster. The program is very simple and easy to both install and use.

After downloading it takes a matter of minutes to install and setup spywareblaster. Double clicking the downloaded .exe file begins the install for you. Follow the very user friendly prompts and you are done!

You should now be looking at the spywareblaster program in action.

On the left hand side of the program window you will see an option to update. This should be your first stop as updates are vital to the programs effectiveness. Clicking check for updates will automatically download and install any available updates for you. After the updater has finished you will see a text message telling you if there are any unprotected items. Clicking enable all protection will restore you to full strength protection.

People sometimes complain that they ran spywareblaster and it didn’t do anything. It does not function in the same way as a virus program. It prevents spyware and adware, etc from being installed onto your pc. It does not remove it.

I have used spywareblaster for a long time now and swear by its effectiveness.

I also like the price!It is freeware

If you use the software and like it, you may donate money to Javacool via the website.

Typing error could be a messy mistake - Googkle.com

No, I have not spelt it wrong. Some nice person has registered a domain that is very close to google.com with the sole intention of wreaking havoc on pc users who make typos.

If you are unfortunate enought to end up at this site, your pc will be blasted with a large amount of spyware and viruses! Please check your typing or use a bookmark to google. The site will attempt to install malicious software via various methods such as creating fake alerts on your desktop telling you that your pc is infected. If you see these popups you should always close them using the top right x. Usually if you click anywhere else you allow the software to be installed.

Make sure you have up to date antivirus software on your pc to protect you. It need not cost anything to protect your pc from virus attack. A free version of AVG Antivirus is available from Grisoft. This software provides adequate protection and will auto update as well. If you like the software you could always purchase the upgraded version later.

Javacool software also offer a free program called spywareblaster. This does not remove spyware but instead prevents it from being installed. Always check for updates.

Spywareblaster is available for free download here.

If you want more detailed information you can find it at the F-secure website