25% of pcs are botnet infected - bit-tech.net Forums

WilHarris · 26th Jan 2007, 10:52

http://www.bit-tech.net/news/2007/01...tnet_infected/

r4tch3t · 26th Jan 2007, 10:57

Very little chance of me getting infected... unless bit is infecting me, I don't stray too far. Helps to reformat every so often as well.
That number is quite high, a bit worrying when you think about it.

p3n · 26th Jan 2007, 11:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by r4tch3t

Very little chance of me getting infected... unless bit is infecting me, I don't stray too far. Helps to reformat every so often as well.
That number is quite high, a bit worrying when you think about it.

your solution to anything *ware is formating ?!

kinda backs up the statistic when people think fixing a problem is better than preventing it

r4tch3t · 26th Jan 2007, 11:07

Nah, I prevent it too. It just cleans all the extra crap that accumulates when you install things. But when I have two HDDs, one is for the OS, the other is storage, I usually reformat once I finish a couple of games before I install the next. Down to one HDD so havn't done it in a while.

ChromeX · 26th Jan 2007, 11:14

Quote:

Originally Posted by p3n

kinda backs up the statistic when people think fixing a problem is better than preventing it

Yeah well at least it doesn't back up the statistic of people having a malware infected computer! I was having a similar discussion yesterday with specofdust and my argument is that you can never be too sure with malware/virii these days they're getting more and more complex and can hide quite well, I feel safer just formatting the lot and having piece of mind. Plus a good ol format keeps things running smooth

BioSniper · 26th Jan 2007, 11:27

Yep, try as you might by using anti-virus/anti-spy/anti-malware software it's unlikely that you'll ever catch it all.
As ChromeX says, a format helps to keep thing running better too. My install must be atleast 6 months to a year old now and it's starting to run pretty badly, which reminds me; it must be time for a re-install

It's pretty sad though that its possible that so many machines are infected due to essentially people just not knowing what they are getting themselves into/running as an admin account all the time or other similar security breaches.
I could only hope that none of my family are suffering from it but it's people like my dad who are likley to be the cause of such issues, he called me up lastnight because the "virus checker was slowing the system down so I un-installed it and the problem went away", yet it was AVG which is totally un-obtrousive and was functioning fine after I installed it and was playing with the system.
Some people never learn

dullonien · 26th Jan 2007, 11:51

The way to keep a well running pc in my opinion is :

1. Antivirus and Antispyware realtime scanning.
2. Be careful where you go on the web.
3. Registry scan at least once a week or after installing/uninstalling anything. (I find it to be the biggest reason for a slowing down machine)
4. Virus and spyware scan once a week at least. (I'm sometimes a bit lazy here and do it once a fortnite, done no harm here)
5. Keep things tidy, delete files you don't need, delete shortcuts that aren't needed etc.
6. Reformat once every 6 months to 1 year.
7. For those confident enough (most on here) use nLite to get rid of most c**p in windows (movie maker, outlook, drivers for endless devices, games, fax etc.) before starting.

Dunno if that actually helps someone, but meh.

orb · 26th Jan 2007, 11:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by dullonien

The way to keep a well running pc in my opinion is :

1. Antivirus and Antispyware realtime scanning.
2. Be careful where you go on the web.
3. Registry scan at least once a week or after installing/uninstalling anything. (I find it to be the biggest reason for a slowing down machine)
4. Virus and spyware scan once a week at least. (I'm sometimes a bit lazy here and do it once a fortnite, done no harm here)
5. Keep things tidy, delete files you don't need, delete shortcuts that aren't needed etc.
6. Reformat once every 6 months to 1 year.
7. For those confident enough (most on here) use nLite to get rid of most c**p in windows (movie maker, outlook, drivers for endless devices, games, fax etc.) before starting.

Dunno if that actually helps someone, but meh.

..Do you even know what a botnet is?

Idioteque · 26th Jan 2007, 13:34

I consider myself pretty safe... Whenever I'm away from the computer my screensave runs... my screensaver happens to be an Avast antivirus screensaver. I happy.

I also make sure not to go on dodgy pr0n sites...

mattyt · 26th Jan 2007, 14:05

I last checked about 2 years ago. Right before I got a mac

When I get a new intel mac and install windows on it for testing websites, i'm gonna have it strictly fire-walled so it can only access the domains I specifiy.

bilbothebaggins · 26th Jan 2007, 14:07

In my experience there's a few things that help me not even needing an antivirus program:
1.) Not using outlook
2.) Not using IE
3.) Being behind a NAT device. (that trusty router that keeps me online)
4.) Don't click on weird stuff.

It just so happens that I'm better of without any antivirus this way.

OC, in a don't-try-this-at-home way my parents place as well as my brother's notebook have got installed some antivir

(would never trust them with esp. 4

)

HugoB · 26th Jan 2007, 14:41

I remember my next door neighbour complaining about the slowness of his system a year or so ago, "Ad-Aware found 20,000 critical items"

I actually almost died from laughter! There's no greater risk to PC security than a 15 yr old female sister!

Adam-Mck · 26th Jan 2007, 14:47

well what are you going to do when vista comes out as a serial key is only open for 10 installs/reinstalls after that you need to buy new. and i think it wont be long after vistas launch of people developing malware/virus's ect for vista probs trying to develop it now on the vista RC2

DougEdey · 26th Jan 2007, 14:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by Archangel

I actually almost died from laughter! There's no greater risk to PC security than a 15 yr old female sister!

As opposed to a male sister

ralph.pickering · 26th Jan 2007, 15:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by Adam-Mck

well what are you going to do when vista comes out as a serial key is only open for 10 installs/reinstalls after that you need to buy new. and i think it wont be long after vistas launch of people developing malware/virus's ect for vista probs trying to develop it now on the vista RC2

Symantec Ghost... or similar. Make an image after a clean install, and when you reapply it after a malware infestation, the computer is none the wiser. Unless of course you use the sysprep option to run the mini-install after ghosting. But you only need that in the one image, dozens of computers scenario.

furqan · 26th Jan 2007, 17:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by DougEdey

As opposed to a male sister

meh.. I was just thinking the same thing

oasked · 26th Jan 2007, 18:01

I find its fairly easy to stay safe online, just don't visit too many dodgy sites and don't download dodgy email attachments.

Of course a hardware firewall (as well as Windows built in one) also helps.

Cthippo · 26th Jan 2007, 18:01

Only my lappy still runs WIndows, but I use Opera and Spybot with Teatimer, plus it's all behind the hardware firewall, and have never had a problem. Both desktops are theoretically dual boot (win / nix) but in reality never get booted to Windows.

This is the result of making computers user friendly for the masses, masses of people using computer who aren't competent to do so.

zero0ne · 26th Jan 2007, 18:44

I look at this stuff differently, to be honest.

My priority is patching, 100%, if there is a new hotfix for XP, its on my machine (assuming it warrants it; and i have to look at them all for work anyway)

If your machine is patched, you can be connected to the internet, and not worry about anything getting though, even without a firewall. (assuming a secure password)

I also have a smoothwall install on a crap machine acting as my router which offers a firewall, and SNORT (along with other features, but these are really the most relevant)

Firewall supports uPnP, so utorrent is setup for random ports.

MS windows XP firewall disabled, though i feel that it is the best firewall out there (assuming you keep your machine patched, and know how to safely browse websites; if you are a beginner at computers, the windows firewall won't cut it though)

I usually don't bother with AV or anti-spyware programs.

Everything important is done on the actual XP install (e-mail, C++ dev, web dev, gaming, schoolwork, simple/safe web browsing)

anything else i feel would clutter my main OS will be done in a VMWare instance, so that if anything gets messed up, its a 2 minute process to clean up.

once said shady program has either proved to me that I like it enough to put on my computer, or use it enough to warrant putting it on my actual OS install, I will then copy it over.

downloading torrents and such will be done on the main computer, unless the file is really sketchy. From my personal experience, torrents are extremely safe, and I have never gotten infected from running a movie/music/app/game that was grabbed from torrents.

Generic42 · 26th Jan 2007, 19:34

I'm not infected I hope... all I know is that I get a lot of spam and gmail blocks it all, hooray! I think even colleges are spamming though (they know my name and send out a weekly email

)

Stoopid malware, why do people have to be so mean?

26th Jan 2007, 10:52	#1
WilHarris Just another nobody Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Oxford Posts: 2,671	25% of pcs are botnet infected http://www.bit-tech.net/news/2007/01...tnet_infected/

26th Jan 2007, 10:57	#2
r4tch3t hmmmm.... Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: New Zealand Posts: 2,883	Very little chance of me getting infected... unless bit is infecting me, I don't stray too far. Helps to reformat every so often as well. That number is quite high, a bit worrying when you think about it. __________________ Fight my Brute The quantum limit of reality might be scaled up because we're all holograms. Obviously. Once more we see that sufficiently advanced physics is indistinguishable from getting really stoned. From here

26th Jan 2007, 11:07	#4
r4tch3t hmmmm.... Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: New Zealand Posts: 2,883	Nah, I prevent it too. It just cleans all the extra crap that accumulates when you install things. But when I have two HDDs, one is for the OS, the other is storage, I usually reformat once I finish a couple of games before I install the next. Down to one HDD so havn't done it in a while. __________________ Fight my Brute The quantum limit of reality might be scaled up because we're all holograms. Obviously. Once more we see that sufficiently advanced physics is indistinguishable from getting really stoned. From here

26th Jan 2007, 11:27	#6
BioSniper I Mod, Therefore I Own Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Somewhere in the south Posts: 3,454	Yep, try as you might by using anti-virus/anti-spy/anti-malware software it's unlikely that you'll ever catch it all. As ChromeX says, a format helps to keep thing running better too. My install must be atleast 6 months to a year old now and it's starting to run pretty badly, which reminds me; it must be time for a re-install It's pretty sad though that its possible that so many machines are infected due to essentially people just not knowing what they are getting themselves into/running as an admin account all the time or other similar security breaches. I could only hope that none of my family are suffering from it but it's people like my dad who are likley to be the cause of such issues, he called me up lastnight because the "virus checker was slowing the system down so I un-installed it and the problem went away", yet it was AVG which is totally un-obtrousive and was functioning fine after I installed it and was playing with the system. Some people never learn __________________ My Flickr :: Bit-tech Flickr Wii: 1792 1527 2926 7945 :: Xbox Live: BioSnipr :: PSN: Biosnipr

26th Jan 2007, 11:51	#7
dullonien Master of the unfinished. Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Lincoln, UK. Posts: 311	The way to keep a well running pc in my opinion is : 1. Antivirus and Antispyware realtime scanning. 2. Be careful where you go on the web. 3. Registry scan at least once a week or after installing/uninstalling anything. (I find it to be the biggest reason for a slowing down machine) 4. Virus and spyware scan once a week at least. (I'm sometimes a bit lazy here and do it once a fortnite, done no harm here) 5. Keep things tidy, delete files you don't need, delete shortcuts that aren't needed etc. 6. Reformat once every 6 months to 1 year. 7. For those confident enough (most on here) use nLite to get rid of most c**p in windows (movie maker, outlook, drivers for endless devices, games, fax etc.) before starting. Dunno if that actually helps someone, but meh. __________________ Intel Core2Quad Q6600 @ 3.0GHz, Abit Fatal1ty F-I90HD (uATX), 4GB Corsair XMS2-6400C4, Sapphire HD4870 Vapour-X 1GB, Hiper 580W Type R, 4.1TB of Seagate Storage, Antec 300 + Lian-Li V300 (Lian-Li to be modded shortly).

26th Jan 2007, 13:34	#9
Idioteque Telephasic Mongoose Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: UK Posts: 528	I consider myself pretty safe... Whenever I'm away from the computer my screensave runs... my screensaver happens to be an Avast antivirus screensaver. I happy. I also make sure not to go on dodgy pr0n sites... __________________ “There's sparrows in my mind!” "I have just received the lamest high five ever. It was like woo, are we high five-ing? wait are you?, no, ye, no, maybe just a five then” "Have you noticed how all the contestants for Miss Universe all come from Earth?" -Glorious Ross Noble

26th Jan 2007, 14:05	#10
mattyt Minimodder Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: soton Posts: 45	I last checked about 2 years ago. Right before I got a mac When I get a new intel mac and install windows on it for testing websites, i'm gonna have it strictly fire-walled so it can only access the domains I specifiy.

26th Jan 2007, 14:07	#11
bilbothebaggins Multimodder Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Austria Posts: 113	In my experience there's a few things that help me not even needing an antivirus program: 1.) Not using outlook 2.) Not using IE 3.) Being behind a NAT device. (that trusty router that keeps me online) 4.) Don't click on weird stuff. It just so happens that I'm better of without any antivirus this way. OC, in a don't-try-this-at-home way my parents place as well as my brother's notebook have got installed some antivir (would never trust them with esp. 4 )

26th Jan 2007, 14:41	#12
HugoB H to the U to the G to the O to the B Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: ThrustingReviews HQ Posts: 1,194	I remember my next door neighbour complaining about the slowness of his system a year or so ago, "Ad-Aware found 20,000 critical items" I actually almost died from laughter! There's no greater risk to PC security than a 15 yr old female sister! __________________ TrustedReviews.com - things I write about for a job

26th Jan 2007, 14:47	#13
Adam-Mck Multimodder Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Middlesbrough \| UK Posts: 124	well what are you going to do when vista comes out as a serial key is only open for 10 installs/reinstalls after that you need to buy new. and i think it wont be long after vistas launch of people developing malware/virus's ect for vista probs trying to develop it now on the vista RC2 __________________ Ride-The-Fire

26th Jan 2007, 18:01	#17
oasked Stuck in the Mud Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Bromley, Kent Posts: 2,551	I find its fairly easy to stay safe online, just don't visit too many dodgy sites and don't download dodgy email attachments. Of course a hardware firewall (as well as Windows built in one) also helps. __________________ Intel i7 920 @ Stock \| 6GB Corsair DDR3\| Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5 WD640 AALS \| POV 8800GT \| Lian-Li PC65 \| Enermax 600W SLI \| Dell 2408WFP

26th Jan 2007, 18:01	#18
Cthippo Can't mod my way out of a paper bag Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Bellingham, WA Posts: 4,461	Only my lappy still runs WIndows, but I use Opera and Spybot with Teatimer, plus it's all behind the hardware firewall, and have never had a problem. Both desktops are theoretically dual boot (win / nix) but in reality never get booted to Windows. This is the result of making computers user friendly for the masses, masses of people using computer who aren't competent to do so. __________________ Notice: If we see you flaming we will assume you are on fire and take appropriate measures - The Bit-Tech Fire Brigade.

26th Jan 2007, 18:44	#19
zero0ne Multimodder Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Buffalo, NY Posts: 112	I look at this stuff differently, to be honest. My priority is patching, 100%, if there is a new hotfix for XP, its on my machine (assuming it warrants it; and i have to look at them all for work anyway) If your machine is patched, you can be connected to the internet, and not worry about anything getting though, even without a firewall. (assuming a secure password) I also have a smoothwall install on a crap machine acting as my router which offers a firewall, and SNORT (along with other features, but these are really the most relevant) Firewall supports uPnP, so utorrent is setup for random ports. MS windows XP firewall disabled, though i feel that it is the best firewall out there (assuming you keep your machine patched, and know how to safely browse websites; if you are a beginner at computers, the windows firewall won't cut it though) I usually don't bother with AV or anti-spyware programs. Everything important is done on the actual XP install (e-mail, C++ dev, web dev, gaming, schoolwork, simple/safe web browsing) anything else i feel would clutter my main OS will be done in a VMWare instance, so that if anything gets messed up, its a 2 minute process to clean up. once said shady program has either proved to me that I like it enough to put on my computer, or use it enough to warrant putting it on my actual OS install, I will then copy it over. downloading torrents and such will be done on the main computer, unless the file is really sketchy. From my personal experience, torrents are extremely safe, and I have never gotten infected from running a movie/music/app/game that was grabbed from torrents.

26th Jan 2007, 19:34	#20
Generic42 Supermodder Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: P to the O, Washington Posts: 567	I'm not infected I hope... all I know is that I get a lot of spam and gmail blocks it all, hooray! I think even colleges are spamming though (they know my name and send out a weekly email ) Stoopid malware, why do people have to be so mean?