Malware / Trojan / Virus Part Three
By Heather - Page 1
More background malware information
This new instalment was prompted by finding some sort of identity theft had happened on MSN Messenger. MSN Messenger actually held a conversation between me and two people on my list, without any of us actually taking part, or even being at the PC. The best bet that I could find as a possible culprit was a piece of malware that Spybot Search and Destroy identified as a Proxy redirect. This type of malware seems really difficult to find out about, not least because it's hard to know what sites to trust not to take a search for "proxy server spyware" to mean "Please instal as much spyware as you can on my PC NOW".
I found some advice on Tenebril.com. Basically, it says a silent proxy server will let your PC be used as an unwilling proxy for an attack - DOS attack; send emails, and so on - and make you a party to someone else's crime.
Wikipedia has some really good current information on spyware. Wikipedia on Examples of_spyware The list of programs currently or formerly distributed with spyware is pretty helpful. Peer to peer software is predictable, given that you know somebody is going to have to pay for its development at some point. Sony's extended copy protection remains the most notorious.
www.doxdesk.com also seems a very useful resource. It doesn't just list and discuss various items of malware. It also identifies reputable cures and warns you against non-reputable cures. That is, these are spyware solutions that will not work; will try to extort money from you with fake threats; or may even install their own spyware.
One messenger Virus you might come across is Kelvir.r. See Symantec.com/ for advice on dealing with it, though this advice is really most useful if you have Symantec products. Sophos describes it as a spyware worm http://www.sophos.com.
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