Malware Attack Again

[billethkid]

Today will be the third day in a row that my computer has come under attack while in the TOTV forum.

Twice I can believe coincidence.

Three times makes me now wonder.

I suppose it could in reality be the 4th time since I was infected a week or so ago.

Thank goodness I have the Malwarebytes Pro on my desk top computer as a result of the first attack.

btk

[memason]

Today will be the third day in a row that my computer has come under attack while in the TOTV forum.

Twice I can believe coincidence.

Three times makes me now wonder.

I suppose it could in reality be the 4th time since I was infected a week or so ago.

Thank goodness I have the Malwarebytes Pro on my desk top computer as a result of the first attack.

btk

Now, I'm really glad I have a Mac!

This malware nonsense is good reason to own one....

Do you really think it's something on TOTV that's causing it? The site uses Google Ads [I think], so wonder if they are infecting the site there?

Admins ?????

[kathy and al]

After having Norton Antivirus for the past 11 years, I have never had a "high risk" security attack reported. In the past week while always logged onto the TOTV website, I have had 7 high risk security attacks reported to me. Although the Administrator has said that everything in the site has been checked and rechecked, I find it too coincidental that many participants to this site continue to have security breach problems. There is definitely a problem within the site but apparently no one knows how to correct it. It's going to cause lots of problems for those who don't have the right antivirus/malware installed on their computers. Again, this occurs only while on the TOTV website!!!! We need a resolution and sooner rather than later.

[Mudder]

I too have been infected.....can it be something within this site?

[starflyte1]

A real "dummy", but very serious, question. How do you know if your pc has been infected?

[Barefoot]

Yikes, I don't have any anti-virus at all. Maybe I'm infected and I don't know it. How can you tell?

[Xavier]

Now, I'm really glad I have a Mac!

This malware nonsense is good reason to own one....

Do you really think it's something on TOTV that's causing it? The site uses Google Ads [I think], so wonder if they are infecting the site there?

Admins ?????

(yawn) The Mac Myth debunked yet again: https://www.talkofthevillages.com/forums/showpost.php?p=425986&postcount=14

[billethkid]

Barefoot there are some very good programs for free available...Microsoft offers Microsoft Security Essentials...another is AVG Free...

Then you will need to get a Malware program and here again there are several free ones like Malwarebytes....and Iobit Advanced System Care...

With no protection you are a PRIME target for invasion. There are some virus that will be quite happy hiding in your PC and then hitch hicking on your emails to infect those you email to or you will eventually get something that will just shut you down.

You are vulnerable.

btk

[KayakerNC]

I have Webroot anti-virus, and run the Malwarebytes once a week, and I've NEVER had any indication that there was an attempt by spyware on my computer form TOTV.
So far, so good, I guess.:bigbow:

[TOTV Team]

We have had the hosting company run scans as well as an independent contractor scan and review all files and there have not been any detections of Malware or other viruses on Talk of the Villages. There are over 1,000 unique users a day on the site, so if there were in deed malicious infection we would hear from many more people as well.

[Xavier]

Yikes, I don't have any anti-virus at all. Maybe I'm infected and I don't know it. How can you tell?

Go here for a free download of Windows Live Security Essentials http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/products/security-essentials

You won't need anything else.

Xavier

[schotzyb]

I have experienced 3 attacks this week. One I am relatively sure was from something on TOTV.I leave my computer on 24-7 (Magic Jack requirement) and one morning when I got up it had been infected without going to any site. Malware took care of it and this is my second day with no issues.

[Barefoot]

Go here for a free download of Windows Live Security Essentials http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/products/security-essentials

You won't need anything else. Xavier

OK, I will download this, thanks. Oh, I'm just so stupid about this stuff, which I guess is obvious! I will download it on my Acer Laptop.

Does this mean I don't have to worry about downloading a Malware program? I think Billiethkid recommended also downloading Malware?

Is there anything I need to do to protect my iPad?

[TOTV Team]

We have had the hosting company run scans on the server and the site files and we have also had an independent contract experienced with these issues review and there have been absolutely nothing found in this process coming from Talk of the Villages. We have over 1,000 unique users a day on the site so if there was something originating from here we would have many more reports than there has been.

Also, if someone puts a link to another site and the link is corrupt that can cause these issues if you click on it. Be cautious of anything you click on unless you are sure of the user or source.

[oot]

Just happened to me as well. My norton said it blocked an attack just now.

[tpop1]

I reported this issue to TOTV mailbox last Monday when a friend in CT was attacked while on the TOTV thread re: Facebook -Hate TV .

No feedback in a week!!!!!!

I stopped going into that thread and close the TOTV site when done browsing!

[TOTV Team]

We did reply to your email. Perhaps it went into your spam or junk folder. Please see above information regarding the question on this issue.

Regards

[tpop1]

Admin..... Thanks for posting....but....

If you are referring to my email, I have not received your reply....not in inbox, junk mail or deleted messages.

I know I can receive email from TOTV as I receive notification on Private Messages.

Have been looking each day in TOTV PM's but nothing there????

Tpop1

[LOU924]

We did reply to your email. Perhaps it went into your spam or junk folder. Please see above information regarding the question on this issue.

Regards

I'm the friend of TPOP1 whose computer was infected while on the thread haters TV .. At my request he notified you of the attack so you might get a handle on this problem .. He sent you my cell number to contact me if you had any questions .. As of this writing you have not contacted me...


LOU924

[TOTV Team]

I'm looking at an email on 12/13 from tpop1 that I replied to. We have had the hosting company run scans on the server and an independent security consultant scan the site. There have not been any viruses or malware found. I've been on the site using BOTH a mac and a pc with IE and I have not been able to replicate the issues reported. With over 1,000 unique visitors to the site a day and a limited number of users reporting an issue combined with all the measures we have taken, this appears not to be originating on Talk of the Villages. We will continue to monitor all feedback and continue to take any and all preventative measures. Feel free to email us with any concerns at talkofthevillages@gmail.com.

[njbchbum]

We have had the hosting company run scans on the server and the site files and we have also had an independent contract experienced with these issues review and there have been absolutely nothing found in this process coming from Talk of the Villages. We have over 1,000 unique users a day on the site so if there was something originating from here we would have many more reports than there has been.

Also, if someone puts a link to another site and the link is corrupt that can cause these issues if you click on it. Be cautious of anything you click on unless you are sure of the user or source.

admin - have you asked the hosting company and/or the independent contractor what their opinion is re what is causing the attacks to visitors here?

i do not click on links that posters provide, nor do i look them up directly...yet my norton anti-virus has also blocked intrusions while i have been on the totv site. i verify the time that i check in to and out of totv and can identify that the intrusion took place while i was here. so i also have my suspicions - am just g lad that my norton is doing the job it is supposed to do!

[Xavier]

OK, I will download this, thanks. Oh, I'm just so stupid about this stuff, which I guess is obvious! I will download it on my Acer Laptop.

Does this mean I don't have to worry about downloading a Malware program? I think Billiethkid recommended also downloading Malware?

Is there anything I need to do to protect my iPad?

I've been using the Security Essentials Anti-Virus program since the first day it came out and have never had the need for anything else. Adding a Malware program won't harm anything, I just haven't seen the need so I haven't wasted my time. It would just slow things down running in the background.

I really can't help you with your iPad. I don't own one. You may try to Google "iPad Security" and see what comes up.

As an aside, to the Administrators (and anyone else), I have NEVER had anything hit my computer from TOTV. ... and if I had, I certainly would have contacted you. My theory is that whatever these folks are carrying around on their computers wasn't cleaned up by whatever they are using for protection.

Xavier

[villages07]

I spend way too much time on TOTV and have not had my Norton (Comcast-provided) alert me on any malware or instrusions. On my desktop I run Firefox browser almost exclusively.

So, for those of you who have had an alert...what browser are you running? Internet Explorer, firefox, safari, etc? Do you all have Norton or some other antivirus/malware protection software?

Just trying to figure out if there is a pattern here.

[janmcn]

Nothing showing up on my McAfee firewall. I use internet explorer powered by Bright House's road runner.

[Skybo]

I spend way too much time on TOTV and have not had my Norton (Comcast-provided) alert me on any malware or instrusions. On my desktop I run Firefox browser almost exclusively.

So, for those of you who have had an alert...what browser are you running? Internet Explorer, firefox, safari, etc? Do you all have Norton or some other antivirus/malware protection software?

Just trying to figure out if there is a pattern here.

I have had 6 intrusion attempts in the past few days. I run IE and have Norton. Two of the attacks came from IP address 178.17.163.189, three of them came from 178.171.63.115 and one came from 95.168.185.234.

All of these events took place while I was on TOTV, on various different threads. A couple of them popped up immediately after I entered the site, before I clicked on any specific thread.

It could just be a coincidence that I’m on TOTV when it happens, but this is an unusually high number of attempts. I normally only see this kind of thing 2 or 3 times a year, and that’s usually when I inadvertently follow a link to a hoakey website.

[schotzyb]

I spend way too much time on TOTV and have not had my Norton (Comcast-provided) alert me on any malware or instrusions. On my desktop I run Firefox browser almost exclusively.

So, for those of you who have had an alert...what browser are you running? Internet Explorer, firefox, safari, etc? Do you all have Norton or some other antivirus/malware protection software?

Just trying to figure out if there is a pattern here.

Running Internet Explorer on my desktop; Have both Malwarebytes and Avast Anti Virus. Have been hit 3 times ; none since I ran Malwarebytes in Safe Mode and cleaned it.

[oot]

I'm running IE 9.0 with Vista operating system. Use Norton360 for protection. The only thing I hit today was a Utube video that was titled "Have you seen this in the Villages" with some cute dog full of static electricity. It happened right at that time. Could have been a coincidence and not TOTV.

The norton site said the intruder was from zouriz.com?

Just hit me strange as a few days ago I was on TOTV and somehow my browser got messed up. Once I closed it I could not use it again. Thankfully I have firefox also installed and was able to go back out there and fix it. Just figured it was something stupid I did.

[Mikeod]

My wife and I run Firefox with Norton on our computers with Windows 7. We are regularly on TOTV. My wife viewed the video with the dog and static electricity. I just checked the history in Norton for both computers and there is no evidence of any threat blocked, nor have we experienced the red screen or other disturbance. Perhaps it is an IE risk.

[Virtual Geezer]

I have had 6 intrusion attempts in the past few days. I run IE and have Norton. Two of the attacks came from IP address 178.17.163.189, three of them came from 178.171.63.115 and one came from 95.168.185.234.

All of these events took place while I was on TOTV, on various different threads. A couple of them popped up immediately after I entered the site, before I clicked on any specific thread.

It could just be a coincidence that I’m on TOTV when it happens, but this is an unusually high number of attempts. I normally only see this kind of thing 2 or 3 times a year, and that’s usually when I inadvertently follow a link to a hoakey website.

178.17.163.189 is from Moldavia
178.171.63.115 comes back Russian Federation
95.168.185.234 comes back Hong Kong

What I am willing to bet is that people are getting a tracking cookie that is getting by the malware and anti virus programs. Years ago I played around with a program that I found on a bulletin board (that was before the Internet became popular and browsers even existed) that would cause your computer to do weird things after you hit a certain key so many times. For example you could set so that after you hit the "Z" key 37 times it would change the background color on your screen. You could set it to any key and any number of hits at that time none destructive things to happen to play a joke on your friends.

Now that the world has changes and things have become more complex it would be fairly easy to use a tracking cookie to do the counting and then when it hits the magic number execute the virus / malware warning. Registry entries are also made and tied to the tracking cookie.

Now the OP stated he is using the purchased version of Malwarebytes and it is stopping the attack but he is still getting hit. Again I am betting on the tracking cookie as the problem. There is a program called Spy ?????? that will clean the cookies on your computer. I do not have it here on my lap top but do have it and use it all the time on my desktop (up north). The program was recommended in a TOTV post many months and is very good. It is NOT CCleaner that is recommended by many at TV computer club.

Not one program will catch everything so in some cases you will have to run Malwarebytes along with Microsoft Security Essentials and then a registry cleaned and a cookie cleaner.

I will try to find the Spy something program and post the link to this thread.

VG

[tpop1]

There is a program called Spy ??????

SPYBOT is freeware I have been using for years to clean spyware.....if that's the one of which you were thinking???

[jojo]

I just ran my Malware Bytes and my computer is clean. I've been on TOTV daily.

[TOTV Team]

It is good advice to clear ones cache in the event what users are fighting with is tied to their cookies.



178.17.163.189 is from Moldavia
178.171.63.115 comes back Russian Federation
95.168.185.234 comes back Hong Kong

What I am willing to bet is that people are getting a tracking cookie that is getting by the malware and anti virus programs. Years ago I played around with a program that I found on a bulletin board (that was before the Internet became popular and browsers even existed) that would cause your computer to do weird things after you hit a certain key so many times. For example you could set so that after you hit the "Z" key 37 times it would change the background color on your screen. You could set it to any key and any number of hits at that time none destructive things to happen to play a joke on your friends.

Now that the world has changes and things have become more complex it would be fairly easy to use a tracking cookie to do the counting and then when it hits the magic number execute the virus / malware warning. Registry entries are also made and tied to the tracking cookie.

Now the OP stated he is using the purchased version of Malwarebytes and it is stopping the attack but he is still getting hit. Again I am betting on the tracking cookie as the problem. There is a program called Spy ?????? that will clean the cookies on your computer. I do not have it here on my lap top but do have it and use it all the time on my desktop (up north). The program was recommended in a TOTV post many months and is very good. It is NOT CCleaner that is recommended by many at TV computer club.

Not one program will catch everything so in some cases you will have to run Malwarebytes along with Microsoft Security Essentials and then a registry cleaned and a cookie cleaner.

I will try to find the Spy something program and post the link to this thread.

VG

[CarGuys]

Was given to me by a NT guy that used to be Gateways top on line service tech.

Now a head trainer for BMW of North America

Majorgeeks has it for free ware.

It works in the background you never know what it is doing. Stealth. This is sometimes a problem because unless you make yourself a reminder you forget to maual update.

As my Mac sales tech said what are you going to do with the extra hour or so of not maintaining Windows on all your computers at home

Herv

[billethkid]

I use Firefox 7.01, Windows XP, Microsoft Essentials, Malwarebytes, Spybot, Ccleaner and Advance System Care.

I use multiple cleaners as there is no one that gets it all. Even after using Malwarebytes when I run Advance System care it always finds some things to fix/remove.

btk

PS I was using Firefox 4.0 and just upgraded today to 7.01

[tainsley]

My computer was infected over the weekend...CRASH! I too was on TOTV! Coincidence? My computer is in the emergency room...:sad:

[kathy and al]

There are way too many incidents here to be a mere coincidence. Along with a couple of other posters, I, too can add dates, times, attacking computer URL, and attacking name of website. I now have a total of 7 and they are all different. If the Administrator would take all of this info and refer it to a professional computer security person, they might be able to tie this together to come up with a solution. Not sure enough is being done to resolve the issue.

[rubicon]

I use Firefox 7.01, Windows XP, Microsoft Essentials, Malwarebytes, Spybot, Ccleaner and Advance System Care.

I use multiple cleaners as there is no one that gets it all. Even after using Malwarebytes when I run Advance System care it always finds some things to fix/remove.

btk

PS I was using Firefox 4.0 and just upgraded today to 7.01

Well for the first time ever since owning a computer from 1983 while on TOTV I got hit with an attack on Saturday 12/17. My AVG was documenting four to five infections and I keep getting messages to block attempts to breach my firewall and to allow to block them. a message came up telling me if i wnated protection for $192 I could get. so I wondered if some company was pushing for a sale????

Anyway I closed out and used my malware and it found 4 infections which it cleaned. i tried it today again and the scan was clean. never thought about cleaning disk, etc.

thanks btk I do a complete clean now

[VillagesFlorida]

I have been using Norton Internet Security for some time and it automatically scans several times a day and removes "tracking cookies" as routine cleaning. If you do not have a program installed that will do this for you, you can follow these instructions to do it yourself:

Delete cookies in Internet Explorer 8
1.Open Internet Explorer by clicking the Start button , and then clicking Internet Explorer.

2.Click the Safety button, and then click Delete Browsing History.

3.Select the check box next to Cookies.

4.Select the Preserve Favorites website data check box if you do not want to delete the cookies associated with websites in your Favorites list.

5.Click Delete.

In Google Chrome follow these directions:

Click the wrench icon on the browser toolbar.
Select Tools.
Select Clear browsing data.
In the dialog that appears, select the checkboxes for the types of information that you want to remove.
Use the menu at the top to select the amount of data that you want to delete. Select beginning of time to delete everything.
Click Clear browsing data.

[TOTV Team]

All information has been provided to the hosting company as well as a security expert with the software the forum is on and there have not been any malware, viruses, trojans, or anything originating from Talk of the Villages.

We take site security very serious and have not held back any expense in investigating the reported issues. We will continue to take any information provided and continue to have any issue reported to us investigated.

[Xavier]

I've been pretty secure in my opinion that my computer hasn't been compromised in any way. After reading all of these posts about being attacked time after time I decided to use the "Microsoft Live Security Essentials" program that has been on my system since the day it was released to do a full scan. This takes quite some time as over 1,000,000 items were scanned. I was feeling left out because my computer hadn't caught some nasty virus, malware, spyware, worm or trojan horse. Guess, what? Nothing was there. So, following the example of others, I downloaded Malwarebytes and did another full scan - nothing. Then I download something with the word "Spy" and "Pro in it and did the full scan - nothing. I guess I'm clean. I've uninstalled the Malware and Spyware and am now depending totally, as I have been doing for years, on the FREE solution software "Microsoft Live Security Essentials."

Now I'm feeling smugly secure! My mama always told me to be careful who I hung out with and where I went to meet friends! I declare that TOTV is on-limits.

Xavier

[Jakel]

My computer went down on 12/16, and TOTV is one of the few sites that I frequent. Staples charged $127 to bring it back to life, including a year of Norton. Coincidence??

[Barefoot]

I keep seeing an ad on TV for mycleanpc.com. Does anyone use it?

[villages07]

I keep seeing an ad on TV for mycleanpc.com. Does anyone use it?

Bare... A quick google search produced a lot of negative reviews and "beware" so I would say stay away from it.

[graciegirl]

I have had malware ride in on some very innocent applications over time. But haven't had the problem that you are all discussing from this site...yet.

And heavens knows I am on here a LOT.:evil6:

[skyguy79]

http://i409.photobucket.com/albums/pp177/scrappinkym/Smiley%20Emoticons/Ditto.gif

[Barefoot]

Bare... A quick google search produced a lot of negative reviews and "beware" so I would say stay away from it.

Thanks, Seven. I should have googled it myself. Except I've grown lazy and I rely on comments from TOTV! I'm a sucker for TV ads, except I don't order vegetable peelers and foot washers from the Shoppping Channel.

[Number 6]

I had a malware attack (Microsoft XP Securtiy) while on this site yesterday, so it hasn't gone away.

[schotzyb]

I too had another attack yesterday while visting TOTV. I have Vista as my operating system and my browser is Internet Explorer. This one was harder to clean. Could not even run Malwarebytes in Safe Mode. Had to right click mouse and Run as Administrator. Between running it and Avast Anti Virus and SuperAnti Spyware, I am back up and clean but for how long;who knows?

[Virtual Geezer]

I too had another attack yesterday while visting TOTV. I have Vista as my operating system and my browser is Internet Explorer. This one was harder to clean. Could not even run Malwarebytes in Safe Mode. Had to right click mouse and Run as Administrator. Between running it and Avast Anti Virus and SuperAnti Spyware, I am back up and clean but for how long;who knows?

Running the programs as administator is a function of the operating system and NOT the malware.

VG

[schotzyb]

Running the programs as administator is a function of the operating system and NOT the malware.

VG

That me be true but left clicking only brought up the virus notification. No actual programs would open left clicking.

[graciegirl]

How does this act? Does a red sign stop every windows change?

Does it take forever to shift?

[kathy and al]

Just experienced my 8th "high level" security attack in the past 10 days while on TOTV. This one represents the 8th different originating attacking site and the problem goes on without anyone taking any corrective action. Easy to say that the TOTV site is not the problem (as quoted by the Adminstrator) but I can assure you that this problem is embedded somewhere within this site.

[schotzyb]

I have changed browsers from Internet Explorer to Firefox to see if it helps. was using Internet Explorer exclusively during the 4 or 5 attacks I have experienced.

[kathy and al]

schotzb---please let us know if switching from Internet Explorer to Firefox helps this security attack problem. May take a couple of days in order to evaluate but it would be interesting to see if this resolves the problem for you. Thanks.

[zcaveman]

schotzb---please let us know if switching from Internet Explorer to Firefox helps this security attack problem. May take a couple of days in order to evaluate but it would be interesting to see if this resolves the problem for you. Thanks.

Unfortunately switching browsers is not an option for me (and probably many others). I have tried Firefox and Chrome and neither of them have the features that keeps me with IE9.

This is my personal opinion and I am sticking to it. Please do not start posting the positives of Firefox or Chrome sand the negatives of IE9 in this thread.

BTW: I have had three attacks on TOTV and Norton NIS caught all of them so I am just as concerned as the rest of you.

Z

[schotzyb]

Unfortunately switching browsers is not an option for me (and probably many others). I have tried Firefox and Chrome and neither of them have the features that keeps me with IE9.

This is my personal opinion and I am sticking to it. Please do not start posting the positives of Firefox or Chrome sand the negatives of IE9 in this thread.

BTW: I have had three attacks on TOTV and Norton NIS caught all of them so I am just as concerned as the rest of you.

Z

I'm not a huge fan of Firefox or Chrome either but just thought I would make the switch as a test to see what happens. I still use Firefox as my primary browser and I basically am only using Firefox for TOTV.

[schotzyb]

schotzb---please let us know if switching from Internet Explorer to Firefox helps this security attack problem. May take a couple of days in order to evaluate but it would be interesting to see if this resolves the problem for you. Thanks.

I will let you know. Only switched for about 4 hours now.

[kathy and al]

Thanks, shotzyb. I'll be real interested in your test results. Thanks again.

[Mudder]

I'm still getting attacks also when on this site......maybe it's something I said????

[CaptJohn]

I have changed browsers from Internet Explorer to Firefox to see if it helps. was using Internet Explorer exclusively during the 4 or 5 attacks I have experienced.

Don't count on Firefox to save you. That's what I was using when attacked 2 weeks ago. I always use Firefox and am real happy with it. I've only had two attacks that malware had to shut down the computer. Here and the AARP site about 6 months ago. I'm probably going to buy Malwarebytes Pro. That seems to work best. It might not be in the TOTV site but it's certainly coming THROUGH it. I haven't had this problem anywhere else on the internet except AARP and I no longer accept their emails or go to their site.

[CaptJohn]

How does this act? Does a red sign stop every windows change?

Does it take forever to shift?

On mine as I recall, about 3 screens popped up saying I have a virus or something and wanted me to click a button to download a fix for it. Then it started listing the viruses and things it found. You might want to read the other 2 threads on this as someone made a better description than I'm doing from a 2 week old memory and they posted an image of the page. I took a photo of one screen and I'll try to remember to post the image when I get home.

On my Dell at work (a university with good security network) where I am now I have noticed sometimes the computer locks up and won't change pages and I have to shut it down to get it going again when on the TOTV site.

[schotzyb]

Don't count on Firefox to save you. That's what I was using when attacked 2 weeks ago. I always use Firefox and am real happy with it. I've only had two attacks that malware had to shut down the computer. Here and the AARP site about 6 months ago. I'm probably going to buy Malwarebytes Pro. That seems to work best. It might not be in the TOTV site but it's certainly coming THROUGH it. I haven't had this problem anywhere else on the internet except AARP.

That is good to know. You are the first person I recollect stating they were using Firefox when attacked. It took me three hours last night to get "cleaned' and back up and running. Just as another trial , after I got back up , I did a system restore to a month ago. Just something else I thought might help.

[philnpat]

Yesterday I got a message from Norton informing me of a problem. It was while I was on TOTV. It blocked "malicious tool kit website 9" Source address: 178.17.163.115.80
I'm using IE.
Googled "malicious tool kit website 9" and found that it affects several other browsers.

[Mikeod]

OK. Another thought. I am running Firefox with Adblocker Pro. I've had none of the problems listed when on this site and others. Norton scan shows no attacks and Malwarebytes full scan also shows nothing. Could this be coming in a pop-up ad from outside of TOTV?

[CaptJohn]

Could this be coming in a pop-up ad from outside of TOTV?

I've said this before that it may be a link or ad on TOTV. I'm interested in your adblocker program. Does it block all popups?

[ajbrown]

I got the same malware hit again just now. It is really hard to determine what I was doing. It was the same signature I saw on 12/15 the last time it happened. Sandboxie prevented it from infecting my computer. I was definitely on TOTV, but that may not mean anything as far as the root cause. Working in computers most of my life, the root cause is always hard to find. In a strange way I find it very interesting and fun to be part of the community to try to provide enough information to try and to solve this puzzle...

[renielarson]

I just posted a new thread about Costco and was hit hard with malware warnings! I had multiple threats.

I'll tell you this for sure. If after this post I get those warnings again I'm outta here and not posting again until this problem is fixed. I read that the administrators said all checked out fine and nothing was amiss. Well, there IS something definitely wrong!

I like reading TOTV but not to the point of compromising my computer security. BTW, I use AVG and trust it totally. It has never let me down.

[Xavier]

I just have a simple question. For all of you who are getting attacked, where are you getting your Internet Service. I'm looking for commonality. I have spent quite a bit of time at TOTV and I haven't gotten anything, not even a pop up whimper, from anything. The Administrator says everything is clean on his end. Just saying ... the commonality may be the Internet Provider. My Internet comes from Verizon Wireless 4G Broadband.

Xavier

[renielarson]

I just have a simple question. For all of you who are getting attacked, where are you getting your Internet Service. I'm looking for commonality. I have spent quite a bit of time at TOTV and I haven't gotten anything, not even a pop up whimper, from anything. The Administrator says everything is clean on his end. Just saying ... the commonality may be the Internet Provider. My Internet comes from Verizon Wireless 4G Broadband.

Xavier

I'm Comcast.

[schotzyb]

Comcast.

[VillagesFlorida]

I just posted a new thread about Costco and was hit hard with malware warnings! I had multiple threats.

I'll tell you this for sure. If after this post I get those warnings again I'm outta here and not posting again until this problem is fixed. I read that the administrators said all checked out fine and nothing was amiss. Well, there IS something definitely wrong!

I like reading TOTV but not to the point of compromising my computer security. BTW, I use AVG and trust it totally. It has never let me down.

This is getting scary......several intrusion attempts on my computer, all blocked by Norton Internet Security. Here is the info on the one that just happened around 9:08 p.m.

Web attack: Oracle Java Rhino Script Engine CVE-2011-3544 3

Intrusion attempt blocked www.hoxtrand.com/lampore/0877677567

Attacking computer 212.95.55.24, 80

[swimdawg]

I just have a simple question. For all of you who are getting attacked, where are you getting your Internet Service. I'm looking for commonality. I have spent quite a bit of time at TOTV and I haven't gotten anything, not even a pop up whimper, from anything. The Administrator says everything is clean on his end. Just saying ... the commonality may be the Internet Provider. My Internet comes from Verizon Wireless 4G Broadband.

Xavier

The last time it happened to me (a few days ago), I was on my laptop writing a TOTV post. I'm using my iPad now.

I'm up north now and my Internet Provider is Time-Warner.

[Mudder]

Comcast on my laptop, no trouble with pc. Strange, very strange. And annoying too.

[Mikeod]

I've said this before that it may be a link or ad on TOTV. I'm interested in your adblocker program. Does it block all popups?
It's an add-on to Firefox, called Adblock Plus. I don't know if it's available for IE or other browsers. I haven't used IE in many years. Yes, I don't get any pop-ups. If a site uses pop-ups, I get a window asking if I want to allow pop-ups on that site for that visit and I can always add an exception to allow pop-ups for a site all the time. But I don't get advertising pop-ups at all.

I also use another add-on called NoScript which prevents any site from running a script. It is a bit more intrusive in that a lot of sites won't function normally unless you allow certain scripts to be run. But the program will show a list of scripts and allow you to allow one or more to be run.

[Larry Wilson]

Yesterday I got a message from Norton informing me of a problem. It was while I was on TOTV. It blocked "malicious tool kit website 9" Source address: 178.17.163.115.80

The same just happened to me. I use Century Link.

[VillagesFlorida]

I use Comcast. I use IE8 and sometimes Google Chrome. I'll keep track of which browser I am using if I get anymore intrusion attempts.

[CaptJohn]

I just have a simple question. For all of you who are getting attacked, where are you getting your Internet Service. I'm looking for commonality.

Good question. I'm on AT&T (old Bellsouth) in Alabama, direct wire, no wireless, Firefox browser. Dell computer at time of attack.
I'm starting to notice several have said they were posting at the time. The same is true for me. That may be a commonality but not everyone has said that.

The great thing is we're all able to communicate to try and find the problem. Think of all the people who don't communicate like we do and will probably never know what happened. I'll bet there are a lot of computers in the shops with people not knowing the source of their problems. We may not know yet but we're getting there. PS. I'm on my ibook and have been using it solely at home since it happened.

[CaptJohn]

It's an add-on to Firefox, called Adblock Plus. I don't know if it's available for IE or other browsers. I haven't used IE in many years. Yes, I don't get any pop-ups. If a site uses pop-ups, I get a window asking if I want to allow pop-ups on that site for that visit and I can always add an exception to allow pop-ups for a site all the time. But I don't get advertising pop-ups at all.

I also use another add-on called NoScript which prevents any site from running a script. It is a bit more intrusive in that a lot of sites won't function normally unless you allow certain scripts to be run. But the program will show a list of scripts and allow you to allow one or more to be run.

Thanks for the info. Sounds like what I've been looking for. I hate popups and ads but other programs have slowed my computer so I dropped them. I always use Firefox, so no problem. Do you download the program from Firefox?

[TOTV Team]

We are continuing to monitor all feedback. With over 1,000 users a day this feedback is obviously isolated to a small number of users. We are getting daily confirmation that the TOTV server is clean and nothing is originating from the site. We recommend running your anti virus and clearing your cookies and cache after this is ran to see if your problems persist.

[KayakerNC]

A possible explanation.:Screen_of_Death:
"Security Monitor 2012 is a rogue anti-virus program that mimics genuine security software and gives false warnings about viruses. What's the aim of this malware? To make you think that your computer is infected with spyware and other bad stuff and to trick you into paying for bogus software. In other words, to make tons of money for cyber criminals. It's a clone of Security Solution 2011, so it's not a new rogue anti-virus but just a slightly modified old one.
Security Monitor 2012 pretends to scan your computer for viruses, spyware and Trojans. Of course, it finds numerous critical infections."

http://deletemalware.blogspot.com/

[Virtual Geezer]

Comcast, IE9, Microsoft Security Essentials and Malwarebytes (free version).

After the one and only attach on this lap top I also installed Galey Utilities. This program was mentioned TV computer club meeting to speed up the computer. It has a module that will clean the registry that needs to be run 2 or 3 times to make sure it get everything (2 in my case). It also cleans spyware and history files along with a few other things. I like to have my history on the lap top so I did not run that module.

Now I have not had any follow up attacks and I am off and on TOTV a dozen times a day.

For those who are getting hit try just power your computer off at the first sign and do not click on anything. Also if your anti virus or other program gives you any information such as IP addresses just write them down and after rebooting Google the address and it will tell you where the attach is coming from. I have done this with any address that has been posted and it is no surprise that they have been from Eastern Europe.

I also read a number of other vBulletin forums and have seen reports of people there also getting attacked. Could it be a common link is somewhere in the vBulletin software as it has been hacked before and the current version running here is not the latest. Just a little brainstorming here.

[kathy and al]

I just have a simple question. For all of you who are getting attacked, where are you getting your Internet Service. I'm looking for commonality. I have spent quite a bit of time at TOTV and I haven't gotten anything, not even a pop up whimper, from anything. The Administrator says everything is clean on his end. Just saying ... the commonality may be the Internet Provider. My Internet comes from Verizon Wireless 4G Broadband.

Xavier
Century Link. 8 separate attacks in the past 10 days while on TOTV.

[kathy and al]

We are continuing to monitor all feedback. With over 1,000 users a day this feedback is obviously isolated to a small number of users. We are getting daily confirmation that the TOTV server is clean and nothing is originating from the site. We recommend running your anti virus and clearing your cookies and cache after this is ran to see if your problems persist.
When logging off of the TOTV site a screen says that "All cookies have been cleared" Do I need to clear cookies again????

[renielarson]

That is good to know. You are the first person I recollect stating they were using Firefox when attacked. It took me three hours last night to get "cleaned' and back up and running. Just as another trial , after I got back up , I did a system restore to a month ago. Just something else I thought might help.

I am using Firefox also.

[renielarson]

Comcast, IE9, Microsoft Security Essentials and Malwarebytes (free version).

After the one and only attach on this lap top I also installed Galey Utilities. This program was mentioned TV computer club meeting to speed up the computer. It has a module that will clean the registry that needs to be run 2 or 3 times to make sure it get everything (2 in my case). It also cleans spyware and history files along with a few other things. I like to have my history on the lap top so I did not run that module.

Now I have not had any follow up attacks and I am off and on TOTV a dozen times a day.

For those who are getting hit try just power your computer off at the first sign and do not click on anything. Also if your anti virus or other program gives you any information such as IP addresses just write them down and after rebooting Google the address and it will tell you where the attach is coming from. I have done this with any address that has been posted and it is no surprise that they have been from Eastern Europe.

I also read a number of other vBulletin forums and have seen reports of people there also getting attacked. Could it be a common link is somewhere in the vBulletin software as it has been hacked before and the current version running here is not the latest. Just a little brainstorming here.

Are you referring to Glary Utilities and not Galey? I found Glary but not Galey so am just wondering.

[Xavier]

I've linked an article regarding Comcast written by Tom Woolf and published on line by The PRagmatist on October 12, 2011. The interesting part starts with paragraph 5.

:click: (http://www.woolfmedia.com/wordpress/tag/comcast/)

Xavier

[Mikeod]

I've linked an article regarding Comcast written by Tom Woolf and published on line by The PRagmatist on October 12, 2011. The interesting part starts with paragraph 5.

:click: (http://www.woolfmedia.com/wordpress/tag/comcast/)

Xavier

Interesting. However, I have had Comcast for 5 years here and never got one of those pop-ups. I agree their Constant Guard program is horrible, but you can select just Norton and avoid the Constant Guard part. No attacks on any of our 5 systems to date. All running Win 7 except an old laptop with XP. All using Firefox, Norton, Malewarebytes, CCleaner, and Spybot.

[Virtual Geezer]

Are you referring to Glary Utilities and not Galey? I found Glary but not Galey so am just wondering.

It is Glary, sorry for the fat fingers and the spelling checker did not pick it up.

VG

[billethkid]

while I was on TOTV earlier an attempt was again made by a rogue malware.
This time Microsoft Security Essentials caught it.

With all the different programs I have run to either reset or clean my computer, I am left with the following common denominators:
Comcast
Windows XP
Microsoft Security Essentials
Malwarebytes Pro
Mozilla Firefox
TOTV

for each attack or attempt.

I did get the Glary program and it did find several "things" to be fixed. It is now part of my arsenal to run periodically.

btk

[zcaveman]

while I was on TOTV earlier an attempt was again made by a rogue malware.
This time Microsoft Security Essentials caught it.

With all the different programs I have run to either reset or clean my computer, I am left with the following common denominators:
Comcast
Windows XP
Microsoft Security Essentials
Malwarebytes Pro
Mozilla Firefox
TOTV

for each attack or attempt.

I did get the Glary program and it did find several "things" to be fixed. It is now part of my arsenal to run periodically.

btk

I run Windows 7 so take Windows XP out of your mix. If fact the only common denominators for me are Comcast and TOTV. And I doubt if Comcast is the culprit as I would have attacks from all of the other sites I go to.

I am happy I am running Norton NIS to stop the attacks from damaging my PC.

[swimdawg]

I run Windows 7 so take Windows XP out of your mix. If fact the only common denominators for me are Comcast and TOTV. And I doubt if Comcast is the culprit as I would have attacks from all of the other sites I go to.

I am happy I am running Norton NIS to stop the attacks from damaging my PC.

Definitely take Comcast out of the equation. I have Time-Warner and have been hit on two occasions. Both while I was on TOTV and using this laptop. Never while using iPad or iPhone.

I immediately shut down everything.........and unplugged the computer. No damage.........but I'm not happy.

[VillagesFlorida]

After watching Brad Meltzer's "Decoded" last night these attacks may only be the tip of the iceberg. Organized crime all over the world is out to invade our privacy, steal personal information, (mainly our identities) and using that, steal us blind. Hubby and I are very aware of hackers and spammers but this program left us shaking in our slippers. They are taking billions of our dollars every year and there isn't much any of us can do about it except to monitor our bank accounts and credit cards for unauthorized withdrawals and purchases. Even if WE have the very best internet security on our computers some of us are going to be affected in huge ways. The problem isn't only us and OUR security, it is the fact that the corporations, banks, etc. that we do business with can not keep up with the threats that are being created every day. If you missed this program last night I urge you to try to find a repeat of it. He starts out by talking about the "mafia" and organized crime as we knew it in years past. It is what it has evolved into that we should all be very worried about. VERY worried.

[Bogie Shooter]

After watching Brad Meltzer's "Decoded" last night these attacks may only be the tip of the iceberg. Organized crime all over the world is out to invade our privacy, steal personal information, (mainly our identities) and using that, steal us blind. Hubby and I are very aware of hackers and spammers but this program left us shaking in our slippers. They are taking billions of our dollars every year and there isn't much any of us can do about it except to monitor our bank accounts and credit cards for unauthorized withdrawals and purchases. Even if WE have the very best internet security on our computers some of us are going to be affected in huge ways. The problem isn't only us and OUR security, it is the fact that the corporations, banks, etc. that we do business with can not keep up with the threats that are being created every day. If you missed this program last night I urge you to try to find a repeat of it. He starts out by talking about the "mafia" and organized crime as we knew it in years past. It is what it has evolved into that we should all be very worried about. VERY worried.

what is my being VERY worried going to do to solve the problem?

[swimdawg]

what is my being VERY worried going to do to solve the problem?

:agree:

[VillagesFlorida]

what is my being VERY worried going to do to solve the problem?

I didn't say anything about solving this problem but we ALL should be worried enough about the "cyber mafia" to be extremely vigilant. Those who choose not to worry may be surprised to find their bank accounts cleaned out one of these days. These crooks are very smooth and will find a way to get your social security number, thus your identity. It's a free ride for them after that. Watch the program. I guarantee you will be VERY worried after that. And, you will feel helpless. To NOT be worried about this very scary activity that is going on in this world now is to have our heads in the sand. Information is power and the only way we can hope to save our identities and our money is by making it as difficult as we can for the thieves to get in. Even then, we are at the mercy of all of the businesses and services we do business with, hoping and praying that THEY can keep the criminals out. The program pointed out that this "mafia" has computer programs that they are using that can do something similar to a "Google search" that we all do, at times. They enter your name and they have at their fingertips everything there is to know about you, including your social security number. It's just a few steps from there to your bank account. With a social security number they can get mortgages , new credit cards, etc. all in your name. Not one of us is safe. If the experts in this field are worried, and they are extremely worried, WE should all be worried. I am not asking everyone who reads this to agree with me. I am only relaying information that felt very worrisome to me and my husband. Those who choose to ignore this very real warning are entitled to do so. Would you be worried and would you attempt to protect yourself if a tornado was bearing down on you? There is a very large "storm" brewing in cyberspace that is wreaking havoc at this very moment. All you have to do is click on a link in an e-mail and you may have downloaded one of these identity-stealing programs. The e-mail will look legitimate. This is just one of many ways these thieves can get our personal information. You won't even know what happened until you start getting bills from accounts you never opened and you check your bank account balances to find out you have been cleaned out. Knowing about this won't solve the problem and I never said it would. But knowing about this got my attention in a very big way. I worked pretty hard all of my life to get what I have and I will go to my death keeping it out of the hands of some crook in Mexico or China. This is where a lot of the cybercrime is originating, right across our own borders and in a country we are supporting by buying all of the mostly inferior products they make. If they don't already own us it won't be long before they do, and they won't have to fire a shot to do so. It is entirely possible that the "attacks" we have been subjected to here on TOTV are coming from a faction that we can not defend against.

[KayakerNC]

what is my being VERY worried going to do to solve the problem?
Maybe Brad should be on the SciFi channel.:popcorn:
Leads from Brad Meltzer's shows.
UFO: What if I told you the government had proof of alien life but was actively covering it up?

Vatican: What if I told you that the Vatican--seat of the Catholic Church--may be responsible for the murder of one of its own popes?

2012 The Beginning: What if I told you the apocalyptic prophecies of 2012 were coming true?

[VillagesFlorida]

Maybe Brad should be on the SciFi channel.:popcorn:
Leads from Brad Meltzer's shows.
UFO: What if I told you the government had proof of alien life but was actively covering it up?

Vatican: What if I told you that the Vatican--seat of the Catholic Church--may be responsible for the murder of one of its own popes?

2012 The Beginning: What if I told you the apocalyptic prophecies of 2012 were coming true?

What if I told you that it is the experts in internet security, and NOT Brad Meltzer, who are warning us about these threats?

[VillagesFlorida]

At 3:11 p.m. today Norton Internet Security blocked an intrusion attempt while I was here on TOTV. In case this will help to figure out where these attacks are coming from here is the information on the Norton Security History page which is part of my Norton program:

HIGH RISK

Attacking computer myrses.com 178.18.242.189, 80

url myrses.com/news

Malicious Toolkit Website 9

[kathy and al]

At 3:11 p.m. today Norton Internet Security blocked an intrusion attempt while I was here on TOTV. In case this will help to figure out where these attacks are coming from here is the information on the Norton Security History page which is part of my Norton program:

HIGH RISK

Attacking computer myrses.com 178.18.242.189, 80

url myrses.com/news

Malicious Toolkit Website 9
I have 11 additional ones to add to this. If and when anybody is interested in seeing these, please let me know.

[VillagesFlorida]

I have 11 additional ones to add to this. If and when anybody is interested in seeing these, please let me know.

Kathy and Al, I hope your internet security has blocked all of these intrusion attempts? 11 of them? Yikes! I WILL say that I was on some other site on the net last night and my Norton blocked another potential attack. In all of the years I have owned a computer I have never seen anything like this.

[Xavier]

Kathy and Al, I hope your internet security has blocked all of these intrusion attempts? 11 of them? Yikes! I WILL say that I was on some other site on the net last night and my Norton blocked another potential attack. In all of the years I have owned a computer I have never seen anything like this.

...and I still have zero, zip, zilch, nada. I'm waiting for an explanation for that difference. Go figure!

Xavier

[TOTV Team]

There are very isolated reports of this issue. We are monitoring all feedback and continue to run daily scans to ensure nothing is originating on TOTV.

If you have an issue that you notice and would like us to look at specifically, please email us the page you were on when this occurred as well as the Google ads displayed in the lower left tower, bottom of page, or in a thread that appear at the time. Do not post but email to us.

Site security is our top priority and we will continue to do everything we can to assist.

[skyguy79]

Interestingly, after this thread began I started getting the dreaded blue screen with a reboot following in about 10 seconds afterward. I've been getting them 3 or 4 time a day so far. I seriously doubt this site has anything to do with getting it, but I wonder if this has also happened to anyone else on here this past week. I've already been on with HP support for more that two hours yesterday, but have not determined the problem yet. I will be calling again after the weekend so the can try some advanced means of trying to identify the problem.

[kathy and al]

Kathy and Al, I hope your internet security has blocked all of these intrusion attempts? 11 of them? Yikes! I WILL say that I was on some other site on the net last night and my Norton blocked another potential attack. In all of the years I have owned a computer I have never seen anything like this.
VillagesFlorida-yes, all 11 were blocked by Norton and if I did not have that antivirus/malware protection with them, my computer would be toast right now!!!
And like you, I have had Norton for over 10 years now and have never once had a
a "high risk" security intrusion attempt on my computers. To have 11 in a twelve day period while exclusively on TOTV surely makes me a believer that this site has a real problem.

[Barefoot]

...and I still have zero, zip, zilch, nada. I'm waiting for an explanation for that difference. Go figure!
Xavier

I usually use my iPad for surfing TOTV, so I've never had a problem. However I just downloaded Microsoft Security Essentials to protect my Acer Laptop. Thank you to Xavier for helping me!

[skyguy79]

During my session with HP the other day, the possibilities of viruses was discussed. We both thought that a virus might be the source of my blue screen problems. I told him that I've had a few higher risk intrusions blocked by Norton and he told me that that's not unusual. Everybody gets several attacks on a regular basis. (the tech rep was from the mid-west and not a sourced out location)

I had 13 attempted intrusion on just one day that I checked out. Fortunately most are low level and pretty much benign. This fact alone tells me the importance of having a good virus protection and firewall on your computer and frequent updates.

I cannot attribute a single intrusion attempt to be associated with this web site and I'd even bet that if I didn't log in to TOTV for a day or two, I'd still have similar results with the attempted intrusions.

BTW, I have had one and only one issue with using the site. When I preview a posting I get a text only preview and have to click the preview button again to have a normal view. However, I have no idea if it's the site or on my side. I believe it is on my side because it seems to happen on IE only and not Firefox or Chrome.
:Screen_of_Death:

[TOTV Team]

VillagesFlorida-yes, all 11 were blocked by Norton and if I did not have that antivirus/malware protection with them, my computer would be toast right now!!!
And like you, I have had Norton for over 10 years now and have never once had a
a "high risk" security intrusion attempt on my computers. To have 11 in a twelve day period while exclusively on TOTV surely makes me a believer that this site has a real problem.

If you are exclusively on this site, then it isn't fair to say the problem is with this site. With over 100,000 visits per month and over a 1,000 unique visitors a day there obviously would be a significantly higher number of reported issues other than the small % here. There have not been any viruses/malware originating from the site found and we continue to scan daily.

Feel free to email us any information you notice and we will continue to monitor.

[memason]

VillagesFlorida-yes, all 11 were blocked by Norton and if I did not have that antivirus/malware protection with them, my computer would be toast right now!!!
And like you, I have had Norton for over 10 years now and have never once had a
a "high risk" security intrusion attempt on my computers. To have 11 in a twelve day period while exclusively on TOTV surely makes me a believer that this site has a real problem.


If I had as many attacks as you state from a single website, I don't think I would be on that website any longer... Why do keep coming back to get infected ???


Just saying....

[Xavier]

I usually use my iPad for surfing TOTV, so I've never had a problem. However I just downloaded Microsoft Security Essentials to protect my Acer Laptop. Thank you to Xavier for helping me!

I've been happy to help.

X

[Barefoot]

...and I still have zero, zip, zilch, nada. I'm waiting for an explanation for that difference. Go figure! Xavier

I just ran Security Essentials (thank you Xavier) which did a complete scan of my laptop with no infections. And I didn't have any security on my computer previously, none at all. And I'm on TOTV a lot. That makes me question if the infections are really coming from TOTV.

[HelenLCSW]

There are very isolated reports of this issue. We are monitoring all feedback and continue to run daily scans to ensure nothing is originating on TOTV.

If you have an issue that you notice and would like us to look at specifically, please email us the page you were on when this occurred as well as the Google ads displayed in the lower left tower, bottom of page, or in a thread that appear at the time. Do not post but email to us.

Site security is our top priority and we will continue to do everything we can to assist.

This is very reassuring --thanks. No problem here so far but I have all Apple products-iMac, iPhone, iPad, and MacBook and have accessed TOTV from all of them.:bigbow:

[kathy and al]

If I had as many attacks as you state from a single website, I don't think I would be on that website any longer... Why do keep coming back to get infected ???


Just saying....
I have taken a "Snapshot" of each of the 11 high risk intrusions and can document time, date, attacking computer site, and more for each and every one of them. All have been while on TOTV only. I visit hundreds of websites every day without problem. And I keep coming back to the TOTV site because I enjoy reading everyone's insights into many different subjects. As far as being infected by the intrusions, Norton Antivirus has blocked every intrusion attempt, thus no infection and no harm done. Norton is sophisticated enough to immediately report to me the "attempt" with substantial documentation to support their action.

[TOTV Team]

We at Talk of the Villages take reports such as this very seriously. Thank you for bringing it to our attention and keeping us updated.

Currently there are the about .01% of all users that are seeing such an issue, we have tried to reproduce it but are not seeing what you are. To be safe we have ran a scan daily on the server looking for any malware or potential injections of nefarious code as well as employ a security specialist. Our scans and efforts did not reveal anything that would point to this issue as originating from TOTV. In addition, we have checked Google’s Webmaster Tools where they scan our site daily for Malware, there is no indication that Google has found anything either.

We recommend that you scan your PC with software known as Malware Bytes or other anti virus/malware that you are comfortable with. Clear all cookies and cache after your scan. Once an anti virus is ran feel free to send us the log file. Also feel free to email us the page that you were on when this occurred as well as any of the google ads (lower left tower, bottom of page, between post) that may have been displaying when you receive the warning and we can try to assist you individually.

We will reopen this thread if there is any change in the status of our scans or security findings and again we will assist you individually as much as possible to help you with your issues. Our email is talkofthevillages@gmail.com.