posted
Two months ago, I had never had any problems with spyware doing anything to my system. Then IE started getting hijacked, its homepage rewritten, and occasionally, something would open up the "My Documents" folder. Luckily, I'm on dialup so I was able to stop whatever it was from happening before it happened. I have always kept up with the Windows updates, and I now have both Ad Aware and Spybot on my system, as well as Earthlink's own blocker. And it hasn't made any difference! IE is still getting hijacked, and it just irritates the hell out of me. Last week, I downloaded Mozilla. I can't use Earthlink Accelerator anymore, but I'll take the slow connection over the irritation of spyware.
posted
Welcome to the dark side. Does that accelerator crap really make much of a difference? I don't use dialup, so I wouldn't need it; but I've always wondered if its users liked it, or cared about diminished image quality and such.
-------------------- Picard: Mr. Crusher, what's our maximum speed this week? Wesley: [checking manual] Uh, 9.4, sir. Picard: Very good. Take us to Warp 9.8 then. Wesley: Aye, sir. Warp 9.2 it is.
Registered: Mar 1999
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posted
I've always managed with the Network-->My Connection-->Properties-->Advanced-->Internet Connection Firewall checked, no virus scanner or anything else. I cannot say I have ever had a virus or anyone attempt to take over my computer in 6 years.
There is also a way to go into "regedit" and get rid of some otherwise unseen 'hack' programs. But that requires a bit more explaination that I can muster up.
I also suggest maybe trying some of the resources over at PCPitstop.com
-------------------- Hey, it only took 13 years for me to figure out my password...
Registered: Jan 2003
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posted
Yes, accelerator helped most of the time. Occasionally it would cause a minor error, but it was acceptable. If I wanted full resolution of a picture, you just right click and tell it so.
I also have the firewall checked, so I don't know what happened. The spyware scanners also check and fix the registry.
Cartman
just made by the Presbyterian Church
Member # 256
posted
Firewalls can't and won't prevent spyware from piggybacking onto your system (and relying on XP's built-in one as your only means of protection is like having wild sex with a punctured condom) when you install a program that is itself accompanied by it or download a browser plugin like Gator or hang around on a shoddy P2P network or...
What's IE getting hijacked BY, anyway? And what's its homepage being rewritten TO?
-------------------- ".mirrorS arE morE fuN thaN televisioN" - TEH PNIK FLAMIGNO
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted
I used a dialup accelerator for a bit and I hated it. I go to too many high image content websites for it to be anything more than a nuisance.
Registered: Mar 1999
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Or rather, has a "friend" of your got hold of your computer and gone to some porn sites (or warez sites), without your knowledge?
-------------------- Yes, you're despicable, and... and picable... and... and you're definitely, definitely despicable. How a person can get so despicable in one lifetime is beyond me. It isn't as though I haven't met a lot of people. Goodness knows it isn't that. It isn't just that... it isn't... it's... it's despicable.
Registered: Mar 1999
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quote:Originally posted by Cartman: Firewalls can't and won't prevent spyware from piggybacking onto your system (and relying on XP's built-in one as your only means of protection is like having wild sex with a punctured condom) when you install a program that is itself accompanied by it or download a browser plugin like Gator or hang around on a shoddy P2P network or...
Well I've had XP since it first came out (~Dec 01)and never owned any anti-virus software and I'm still clean, so I'm either lucky or uninteresting or sterile...
-------------------- Hey, it only took 13 years for me to figure out my password...
Registered: Jan 2003
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posted
I suspect all three.
Registered: Mar 1999
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Da_bang80
A few sectors short of an Empire
Member # 528
posted
Try Spysweeper, it works pretty good. And if you're still fed up, try switching to another browser. I just started using Mozilla Firefox. And I've had no problems @ all.
Registered: Feb 2001
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quote:Originally posted by Futurama Guy: Well I've had XP since it first came out (~Dec 01)and never owned any anti-virus software and I'm still clean, so I'm either lucky or uninteresting or sterile...
Or it means that you aren't the sort of idiot who thinks "Hmm, an email from someone I don't recognise, promising me naked pictures if I open that suspicially named file? Damn, I'm there!"
-------------------- Yes, you're despicable, and... and picable... and... and you're definitely, definitely despicable. How a person can get so despicable in one lifetime is beyond me. It isn't as though I haven't met a lot of people. Goodness knows it isn't that. It isn't just that... it isn't... it's... it's despicable.
Registered: Mar 1999
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quote:Originally posted by Da_bang80: Try Spysweeper, it works pretty good. And if you're still fed up, try switching to another browser. I just started using Mozilla Firefox. And I've had no problems @ all.
Yes, Spysweeper is good! I had been using adaware for like 6 months and then i used Spysweeper and it picked up like - i kid you not - 700 EXTRA 'suspicious' items that Adaware didn't pick up!
-------------------- "Bears. Beets. Battlestar Galactica." - Jim Halpert. (The Office)
Da_bang80
A few sectors short of an Empire
Member # 528
posted
Only problem i had with spy sweeper, were that some of the adware/spyware files came back 2 m,inutes later, had to find another file that always re-created them. also, it sometimes begins running when you leave it on, and start a game. so turn it off id you don't want bad preformance.
I also found a little program called cwshredder. It deletes the Cool Web Search browser hijacker, and all it's forms, because CWS is one of the most prolific and hardest to delete, cuz there's so many variants. I don't remember where i found it tho, but it works.
-------------------- Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change. The courage to change the things I cannot accept. And the wisdom to hide the bodies of all the people I had to kill today because they pissed me off.
"Yes, Spysweeper is good! I had been using adaware for like 6 months and then i used Spysweeper and it picked up like - i kid you not - 700 EXTRA 'suspicious' items that Adaware didn't pick up!"
Are you sure the things it was finding were actually problems? I mean, Ad-Aware often turns up a long list of results, but that's because it catches most of IE's cookies, which probably aren't really causing any problems.
I mean, how can you end up with 700 bits of ad- and spyware plus whatever Ad-Aware had already found? I mean, I maintain public-access Internet computers at a library, and Ad-Aware and Spybot combined don't find that much crap. And, trust me, these things end up with plenty of ad- and spyware on them. Clean them up, and, within hours, they'll already be performing like shit again because of all the junk that's found its way onto them.
Registered: Mar 1999
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posted
I just ran Spysweeper and it found cdilla, which is required to run some of my software. It might be finding other things like that
Registered: Mar 2004
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