So now I run another anti-malware program that catches what my first one missed.
SIXTEEN infections, not including suspicious files.
Most are ad-ware, but several were very dangerous trojans and back-doors.
Now, there’s the explanation for my disabled wi-fi suddenly starting up without my doing anything.
The spoof email to my account was probably a test. It seems more than one were sent from my email account.
Certain other things happened which show that someone/bot had been able to take over my account and/or computer.
Meanwhile. one of my readers, despite my clear statement that I do not email to private addresses or on private forums any longer (unless I know them reasonably well) insisted on using my old account to cc me, while filing complaints against the government.
What, not enough of troubles of my own without dragging me willy-nilly into another mess?
Then there’s the recent invitation sent my way to run a web-site to defend some people being targeted by the government.
It looked interesting until I saw it intended to solicit funds from other governments.
I don’t know if this person was serious or not or just didn’t think things through.
But I wouldn’t touch such a thing with a twenty-foot barge pole.
Voluntarily doing something, or working as a community, is one thing.
Asking for the assistance of a foreign government makes you an agent of that government.
And yes, I know there are many registered foreign agents doing just that kind of thing in this country, many prominent lobbyists and lawyers included.
But that’s not my cup of tea and never has been.
Voicing one’s constitutionally protected right to political dissent, criticism, and debate is one thing. Suing the government using funds derived from another government is another.
Now why would a lawyer ask a stranger to get involved in such a thing?
And why, after such a solicitation, as well as the invitation I blogged about, does my computer go down to serious malware, my email get spoofed and my account used to commit TOS violations?
Hi Lila, on your computer woes, consider getting an Apple? I have a MacBook Pro and it runs NO anti-virus sw. I do the following which I have evloves as “best practice” for the web”:
1) Regardless of the web browser, default to no javascript; turn it on only as needed for specific web pages. Also true when surfing from your smart phone, ipad, Apple, Windows, etc. Incidentally, Firefox after version 20 or 21 has made it difficult to turn javascript off (in about:config toggle javascript on or off — if you don’t know what that means, ignore — I don’t use add-ons because I don’t trust unknown authors who often write useful code, but you don’t know what else they may write).
Comment: It is with javascript turned on, which enables a website you visit to run arbitrary code on your computer, which often permits many of the trojan malware to get planted. I say often, but that is not the only sourse of implantation of viruses and malware. Your temp files in windows which often contain your cut-and-paste from your files under edit, is easily available to any web-browser with javascript turned on. with javascript off no arbitrary code can be run on your machine.
Only for trusted websites turn on javascript. It limits useability, but to my style of work, it hasn’t really impacted me at all. your mileage may vary.
2) don’t click on weblinks sent to you in email, or left in comments. as you noted, accidents do happen, I am not sure what to do about it ex post facto. so don’t click links which do not take you to well-known websites without some due diligence.
3) don’t use windows for websurfing unless you have to. Normally use Apple and MacOS.
4) in your present predicament, it may be best to reformat your harddrive, and clean-install your windows version. This will obviously destroy your existing data — so, if I were you, I’d just shell out about $60-70 for a new harddisk, take your existing one out and use it for data-only in an external enclosure, install the new harddisk in your computer, and clean install your os. You now have a new machine (almost), with an external usb connected old harddrive from which you copy over what you need, or all the data if that’s pertinent, and archive that harddisk as a backup only to be used if your new one dies. Harddisk have limited life, and it is good to replace harddisks every few years, I do that every two based on my useage, where the previous one becomes read-only archive and I copy over the data I need to the new one.
anyway, this is my best practice. your mileage may vart. just fyi.
good luck,
z.
Hi Thanks a lot Zahir
I do usually turn off javascript. I think I might have had it on for some particular reason but it’s usually off.
I cannot take out the hard disk, may try to clone/
I don’t click on links. But might have from reader’s handle. It happened that the trojan disabled my security and encryption and I didn’trecognize that was happening. Just thought it was a connectivity or software issue.
Apple is not something I’m comfortable with.
I should go to linux. Will do that. Too many other issues.
And besides, I think I am a target. This has gone on for a while now and it never happened to me before 2007. I have way too much evidence and have seen way too many coincidences for me to believe anything else.
Without discounting that we should all be a bit paranoid with respect to government.
Your computer woes are not a reason to beleive you were specially targeted.
You might be, but your computer problems are not evidence.
I beleive that the current estimate is that a bare ass naked windows computer connected to the internet lasts about 15min before getting infected.
I have even heard credible arguments that a windows computer is safer AFTER it has been infected.
Once a hocker gains control of your computer it is in their interest to prevent competing hackers from taking over your computer. Many rootkits and viruses expose your system to ONE villian who shuts the doors on all others.
Regardless, a windows system infected by viruses trojans adware etc. is close to meaningless.
Even if you practice safe hex, you provide passwords, email addresses etc. to websites all over the world, these too get cracked regularly. Unless you use unique passwords and emails for every place you create an account it is likely that your email and passwords will become readily available to blackhats every 18months or so.
I run Linux on my laptop. It has never been infected.
But my most commonly used public email acount gets cracked and used to send spam every 9 months or so.
You may be right.
Yes, I should switch. Just haven’t got around to figuring out all the technical stuff and steeling myself to delete my operating system. I hear trying to run two OSs using a partition makes the system unstable. And then you’re on your own for drivers too.
I am quite willing to believe you about normal viruses.
But getting roped into a botnet is different.
I don’t go on any dangerous sites and am careful of where I download stuff. The targeting isn’t from the government.
It’s from a bunch of people who use fog to disguise their involvement.
There have been enough things offline to make me think this.