Warning to all hubbers:

1. 93

   habeeposted 13 years ago

   Twice in the past two weeks, I've had malicious viruses/worms/spyware on my computer, even though we had protection. Last week, we took the puter to the computer store, and it took the geek squad hours to get rid of the monster. That was $100. We spent another $80 on more protection. Yesterday, we got a brand new virus - another $100. We just got the computer back. According to the geek squad, they've been seeing a lot of this new spyware/virus, and they say it's coming from Facebook, Twitter, and Myspace. Facebook is the only one of these I visit, and I was told not to go on Facebook until these demons could be slayed.
   
   Just wanted to share this with fellow hubbers!

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      sophsposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks Habee! I will steer clear

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      G Miahposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Are you sure it wasn't x-rated sites you went on?

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         AnimalLover17posted 13 years agoin reply to this

         That is true,it could have been....

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      IzzyMposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Habe, did they tell you the name of this new virus?
      
      I'm just wondering because with the name you could google it and maybe find out why your antivirus hasn't been finding it, especially you new one.

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      Manna in the wildposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Use Ubuntu instead.

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      Veronica Allenposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks habee, I actually use facebook on a regular basis, and we've been having some problems ourselves even though we have protection as well. Thanks for the headsup!

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      mailxpressposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Hi,
      
      Yes, I heard Facebook is having problems.  I only sign into Facebook once a week or so and I only spend a minute viewing my wall.  I only use it to keep up to date with the few people who I have as friends.
      Facebook from my point of view is like a swamp of worms.  I hear regularly from friends who have HUNDREDS OF FRIENDS  always seem to have a problem.
      Thanks for the heads up.
      mailxpress

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      Cathi Suttonposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I was infected last week with the BlasterKeylogger worm, and finally managed to go onto my control panel, performance and maintainace, then system restore to remove it.  But it took me about 70 -80 hours all toll to do this, as I was blocked by the worm from access to my own computer programs!  It was very frustrating.  But I did as IzzyM suggested and googled the keywords and found step by step instructions on fixing this problem. 
      Also, rather than paying for your protection, there are several places online to download free, or "trial" software to protect your computer.  Just make sure you trust the site before you download anything!  I went to microsoft and got my new protection for free.
      Also make sure you have your computer doing the schedualed maintainance to keep it updated without having to sit down and do the regular updates manually. 
      But what I would like to know is.... why do people who are surely very smart out there creating these nasty problems for the rest of us?   I just don't get it!
      Also, make sure you have your restore disk/disks.  If your computer didn't come with it, call the manufactor and they will usually send you the first one free.  Then if your computer gets infected beyond repair, you can "fix" it with the disk.  You will loose all the info, etc you have stored on your computer, but it will work again, which is cheaper than buying a new computer!
      You might even consider putting anything important onto flash drives too.  Then if you do have to replace your computer or completely restore it, loosing all your saved info, you will have it on the flash drives, which you can use with the new or restored computer.  The flash drive just plugs into a port and you're off and running again!  Flash drives vary in price and memory capacity.  So you can get what is specific to your needs and budget.
      Good luck, and I hope you aren't attacked again!

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      brianzenposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      try downloading ad aware on mozilla firefox it works really well and it has a free version (not free trial version)

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      nadpposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks Habee.

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   Colebabieposted 13 years ago

   Thanks for the warning! Do you add apps to your facebook? Or is it merely just visiting others profiles? What kind of computer do you have?

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   habeeposted 13 years ago

   Both, Colebabie. We have a Dell.

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      Colebabieposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks habee. Well I hope everything works out!

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   Faybe Bayposted 13 years ago

   habee, my daughter told me, and I saw on the news< Not to hook your cell phone up to the computer as a new virus is getting in that way as well. I didn't know of the others. But everyone stop plugging the phones into the computer if it hasn't been resolved. The virus doesn't affect the phone, just the PC.

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   habeeposted 13 years ago

   Thanks, Faybe. I don't even know how to do that!

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   marcel285posted 13 years ago

   I had a bf whom was a computer genius. For a while he ran a private business going to peoples places and fixing their computers.. You have to watch out for computer geeks..Because a lot of them will deliberatly upload viruses to your computer. Because if they fixed it, they would loose you as a client. it's best to learn computer stuff for yourself, and fix the problems your self. It is complicated, like learning another language, but it will save you money, and the life of your computer.
   
   If your computer has problems, and you don't know much about them. The best way is to re-install windows, to clean up any crap that might be there.

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      yenajeonposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      That is the exact thing my bf says! I recently also had a virus on my computer and he got rid of it himself.
      Sorry Habee Write more hubs!

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         marcel285posted 13 years agoin reply to this

         yeah, and try to keep up to date with what is actually on your computer. Many people have unnecessary programs the effect the performance of your computer. Go to my computer, E:drive, intallers. Uninstall anything that you don't know what it is and why it's there. My computer is super fast, because i don't have any unnecessary crap on it.
         
         ..Hmmm this gives me an idea for a hub..

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            RedElfposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            Good idea, Marcel. That would be an excellent topic for a hub - or a series of them.
            
            Trouble is I'm not sure what is safe to get rid of - like a lot of us, I think. Systems are not and transparent as they used to be, and I find it harder to find things, these days.
            
            Sorry for your troubles, habee, but get a second opinion, and cultivate a geek friend I just reloaded Windows and dumped a few things off the start-up, and things are much better now. But virus scans are very important to keep up, and not all ant-ivirus programs are created equal.
            
            

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      Cly Walshposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Unfortunately the same goes for some mechanics to.

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      David P Shirkposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      In my past life is was a system administrator - rather then spend another 100 bucks, let me know when you have another such problem and I will help out - this is one of the few times I offer things for free!

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      mailxpressposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Hi 285,
      You are so right.  It takes time and can be frustrating learning how to fix your own computer but in the long run it is so worth it.  Saves time and saves a ton of money.  You give good advice.  Smart girl.
      Have a good day.
      mailxpress

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   Cagsilposted 13 years ago

   Thank you Habee. Very much appreciated. I've recently been spending more time on Facebook and I've not encountered any virus' as of yet.

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   Dale Mazurekposted 13 years ago

   My friend just got a virus while being on Facebook.  however it was determined that he got the virus from clicking on an ad and not directly from Facebook.
   
   Dale

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      livewithrichardposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Facebook accounts are often hacked to get a hold of the users friends list and send a message like you were so funny in this video, I'm passing it on to everyone"  natural curiosity would often lead the person to click on the link to the "video" but it would be to a virus that does some havoc and also steals your friends list and continues the mess. 
      
      Never open a video that is sent to you in a message on facebook, If it is real then the video will just be placed on your wall.

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      Red_Dragonposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Really? I tried to put an advertisement on facebook and they wouldnt let me do it ;/
      
      I have  a affiliate marketing site but i dont sell my products in fact everything i have on my site is free for user to use

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      darksideposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I avoid ads and apps. I'm just there to keep in touch with friends and family.

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   lang58posted 13 years ago

   I'm glad you brought that up and not my wife Susan and I. We have had to have our pc debugged many times as well. Currently, It's clean and we have taken steps to keep it that way. One thing you sure should know about facebook, many of their bugs are getting in through their game apps. Also, watch out for their app. known as the family tree builder. It's been reported many on facebook are using that one the most besides the farmville apps and 3 bugs were found and had to be removed. So yes..thank you for sharing Habee!

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    Rafiniposted 13 years ago

    thanks for the info!  I just started on facebook and myspace (just before starting here)  I'll be sure to be careful.

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       Rod Marsdenposted 13 years agoin reply to this

       yes thanks for the info.

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    habeeposted 13 years ago

    I've never played a game on FB or clicked on an ad there. We have a friend who's a professional computer nerd, and he couldn't remove either of these viruses. Neither could our tech support people. They told us these new viruses from social networks were incredibly nasty. They're started in foreign countries where authorities either don't have the capabilities of ferreting out the guilty parties, or either they don't care. They target FB, Myspace, and Twitter because these sites have so many members.

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    lovelypaperposted 13 years ago

    Thanks, Habee. I appreciate the heads up. My dinosaur computer is always getting infected.

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    Andrew0208posted 13 years ago

    It's a pity that viruses won't cease to exist on the Internet. Always a Big business for virus and antivirus makers. One could avoid clicking on some unsolicited apps poping up on Facebook or any other online communities. Just be mindful of your clicks...All that gliters is not gold...Life goes on.

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    AEvansposted 13 years ago

    Thank you!

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    sunbriteposted 13 years ago

    Oh wow! Thank you so much for the heads up.

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    Jane@CMposted 13 years ago

    This has been going on for months.  My computer geek told us not to play any games, load any apps, etc on Facebook & for awhile, not to use the chat feature.
    
    Habee, sorry this happened to you!  I had a friend who got one too.  I'm putting the sticky note back on the 'puter "NO FACEBOOK OR YOU PAY FOR COMPUTER REPAIR" - son hates it, but it works!

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    ddsurfscaposted 13 years ago

    actually the viruses that you can get on your cell phones are only the new phones with all the new gadgets, and they do effect the phones, my friend lost all her contacts, well actually she found her phone stripped of everything that could be, and she found she couldn't do anything, like go online.  She had to go and get another phone.

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    khmohsinposted 13 years ago

    Thanks for the warning, but I think that unless you want to download something from these sites, your is not compromised

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    yoshi97posted 13 years ago

    We just had a ton of PCs come in for this latest round of computer bugs ... me sooooooooo busy

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    heart4thewordposted 13 years ago

    Good Information, thank you for passing it along!

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    Smiley_Snehaposted 13 years ago

    Oh it's too bad

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    skyfireposted 13 years ago

    Use good antivirus software. NOD32 or Kaspersky will do if you want commercial software. Komodo AV is free software. Other than antivirus, you need to have anti-malware, anti-spyware software for that use (malwarebytes anti-malware software and spybot search & destroy software).
    
    Oh don't click on links from facebook.

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    DanPowersposted 13 years ago

    Spending money to fix a computer? Noooooooooo!
    
    Just install malwarebyte's antimalware and let it remove the monsters. Although sometimes the monsters stop you installing the antimalware!
    
    You MUST have your PC protected though - I got a malware bug once and it stole my website's FTP password!!!

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    David P Shirkposted 13 years ago

    Dan posted some good ideas up - easy to follow and use. If that fails, feel free to send me a line and I will help you out - no need to waste another 100 to pay someone for something you could easily do yourself with the right information!

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    china manposted 13 years ago

    We can't get Facebook here in China unfortunately - but viruses are a way of life here.  Everyone I know here has the reinstall windows come up as "hit f11" in the load up pages of windows. Everything else is loaded on D: drive. When a virus gets in now I can just hit f11 and then spend 20 minutes connecting back up any 'other' programmes that didn't like it.  This seems to work ok for me as i am almost computer illiterate.

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    Dao Hoaposted 13 years ago

    I've been getting many emails from facebook and I just deleted them. It seem to be working. We use Window Live One Care and it working great. Norton is fine too, but ... malware is not (you see it a lot, but the name just escaped my mind)
    
    I agree with others that if it too bad, you just have to reload your window.

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    Jane@CMposted 13 years ago

    I use CC Cleaner too to clean my registry. Malwarebyetes is good.  I always check CNet.com for the latest & best rated software.  Thanks for the idea of checking your "E" drive, I just checked and my laptop is empty

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    theirishobserver.posted 13 years ago

    Thanks for that Habee, no problesm at this end so far

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    rebekahELLEposted 13 years ago

    I haven't experienced any virus problems. I don't stay on FB long and always log out if I'm not active, unless I forget.  I've heard it's the apps that cause the problems.
    
    also I use firefox and it updates often. I highly recommend switching browsers if you're using IE.

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       MyWebsposted 13 years agoin reply to this

       I think your right rebekah. I don't use FB much either but I've always heard its the 3rd party applications that are infected, not FB itself. Ditto for Twitter. I have actually seen viruses embedded into a Myspace profile page before.
       
       IE anything is one massive security hole with a big invitation to every nasty online to come on inside your PC and have a block party.
       
       Firefox or Chrome are much safer.

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          Marcus Jamesposted 13 years agoin reply to this

          Absolutely, I prefer Firefox over Chrome, but I'm actually using Chrome now because it's significantly more safer for browsing due to the way it handles memory allocation

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    Iðunnposted 13 years ago

    Yet another reason I don't use any of those sites.
    
    Nice of you to heads up others, habee.  Yeah anything that has downloads I avoid.

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    chinweikeposted 13 years ago

    My Antivirus blocked some virus from FB yesterday, and i immediately closed the window.
    Soon after, i scanned my laptop for possibles virus and noticed that one of the nasty stuff sneaked. Though, i handled it immediately.
    Like someone said earlier in this thread, working knowledge of basic computer security is an essential skill.

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       Iðunnposted 13 years agoin reply to this

       being a programmer helps some too :p 
       
       I know what can do what to my computer and I trend to avoiding spots that make trojan horses and viruses more likely.  plus I have excellent watchguards.

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    Manna in the wildposted 13 years ago

    If you only use 'typical' Internet stuff - like browsing, email, social networks, youtube, music, drawing, documents... etc, and no applications that ONLY run on windows - then consider finding someone that can set up Ubuntu for you. I've been using linux now for over 10 years and never had a virus on it. Over that time, my old hardware seems to get faster as Linux gets more efficient. In contrast any windows install seems to go slower as you use it until in desperation it gets reinstalled. See http://how2forge.org/the-perfect-deskto … rmic-koala for example. This gives very explicit instructions. You can also keep your Windows on the same disk and choose to boot one or the other.

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    sagbeeposted 13 years ago

    Hey, thanks for the information. may be this is teh why I am getting so many porn pop-ups lol

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    ChristinaScibonaposted 13 years ago

    I have gotten a few of these....this is what happens and I don't know how...one of my friends will send me a link to a you tube video and when I click on it bam! I get a notice from AVG..that is what I use... that I have a virus.  The link comes from my friend but they do not send it...it is a virus on their computer that sends out the links.  THere are other ways that virus come about on there but that is the one that has effected me.  Thanks for sharing.

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       adrienne2posted 13 years agoin reply to this

       I am glad you mentioned this. I just bought a touch screen HP computer with full virus protection.  The computer is not even 3 weeks old, and acting strange already. Good-bye Myspace, but I can't live w/o twitter.

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    thisisoliposted 13 years ago

    If you are using facebook but no facebook apps it is unlikely that this is where you got the virus from.
    
    Most malware now comes from sites which popup a message saying something like 'malicious software detected on your PC, press ok to install your malware cleaner' of curse it is the malware cleaner which is the adware itself.
    
    A lot of the bad adware is now a bugger to get rid of.
    
    I repeat though, unluss you visit a facebook application (you can see a list of installed applications somewhere in facebook) then you cannot contract a virus from facebook itself.

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    Lynda Garyposted 13 years ago

    I used to use the free anti-virus apps, too -- and tried probably a dozen of them over the years.  Also used the pay-for version of AVG, Norton, and something else I can't remember. Still, problems.
    
    I finally switched to ESET and haven't had a single virus, worm, yadda yadda, that's managed to get through the security system.  When one tries, ESET whams it immediately.  I've been using it for a year now, and won't have to give it a second thought when it's time to renew.
    
    Just an FYI:  I have teenage boys who spend their time on FB, Myspace, youtube, and whatever porn sites that my security settings don't catch.  (They are the masters of figuring ways around those dang settings, in spite of Mom's rule that they'll be banished and  voted off the Island by visiting porn sites...)
    
    So, big kudos to ESET for protecting my computer for all the malice these two teens try to let in...

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       adrienne2posted 13 years agoin reply to this

       Oh ESET, will have to try that one, currently using stopsign. You are right about Norton, AVG, they don't stop those pesty viruses.

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    thisisoliposted 13 years ago

    Get a legit key logger, then you will be able to see exactly what they type in!

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    Chaotic Chicaposted 13 years ago

    Thank you for the heads up!  Much appreciated!

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    Greg Cremiaposted 13 years ago

    Run all 3 of these three programs and you should be able to get just about everything.
    
    malwarebytes
    avast
    combofix
    
    do not google these names and download, the virus a$$holes will be there waiting for you.
    
    go to bleepingcomputer (dot) com and search their forums for the links to download these programs.

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    bojanglesk8posted 13 years ago

    Thanks for the awaring me.

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    adehidtposted 13 years ago

    thank you for the information.
    
    I am every day to open facebook. hopefully not happen on my computer.

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    SandyMcCollumposted 13 years ago

    I know someone who plays the farm all the time and she gets hit frequently. I got one from FB once, but I don't do the games on there. I use the free AVG now and haven't had any problems since.

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    ciscokid13posted 13 years ago

    Try Avast virus protection. Its free for home use and its one of the best out there. Very few people are aware of it. It also has a very nice scan that you can set that will scan your boot partition and memory on reboot, eliminating those nasty creatures in the resident system memory.

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    WoWGuidesposted 13 years ago

    Don't open private messages that give you a youtube link that you get from your friends. Their account probably got compromised and a program sends out "youtube links".  A teacher at my school had her account hacked and sent the virus to the whole student body....

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    The_best_helpposted 13 years ago

    I don't know wich anti Virus you use. But I use AVG. Works all the time

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    Lynda Garyposted 13 years ago

    thanks for the heads up.
    
    I use Eset and haven't had a problem even though I have a house full of teens who live on Facebook.  So far so good...

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    susanlangposted 13 years ago

    Thanks alot habee

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    GeneriqueMediaposted 13 years ago

    Am I glad I never surf in Windows.
    
    I personally use avast! antivirus on my parents, my step daughters, and my clients computers. It's free for home use, and does a good job at keeping everything up to date and making sure nothing funky is going on in the background.
    
    Also, if in Windows--don't use IE. Especially not on sites like MySpace, FB, etc.

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    jossecarrposted 13 years ago

    Thanks for this very helpful information. At least we can now be very vigilant.

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    goldenpathposted 13 years ago

    POOP!!

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