Is That a Real Anti-Malware Product?
In all our discussion of Trojans, PC Health Advisor, malicious spam and more than 700 rogues, it’s easy to forget that a lot of folks out there using the Internet simply can’t tell the difference between a rogue and a legitimate anti-malware application. They become the victims of scareware. They pay $49.98 for software that doesn’t do anything but pop up frightening warnings. To boot, they may have their credit card information stolen.
To light a small candle in this vast darkness, Sunbelt Software has produced a guide to help non-technical Internet users recognize rogue anti-malware products.
“How to Tell If That Pop-Up Window Is Offering You a Rogue Anti-Malware Product” is available here.
A Spam Crisis in China?
We are well past time for someone to declare a “Spam Crisis in China”.
There are three components to the Spam Crisis:
1) Certain Registrars in China who refuse to cooperate with abuse complaints and who let domains “live forever”, even when they are involved in criminal activity. We do not believe these companies are criminals. We believe that these companies have provided “reseller services” to criminals, and do not engage themselves proactively in stopping the criminal activities of their resellers. We look forward to helping in any way possible to identifying and stopping the criminals who are tarnishing the names of the companies listed below. I specifically name:
Sponsoring Registrar: 易名中国 ENAME Corporation, http://www.ename.cn/
Sponsoring Registrar: XIN NET TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
2) Certain Network operators in China refuse to cooperate with abuse complaints and who let bad computers “live forever”, even when they are clearly involved in criminal activity. We invite the companies who are allowing criminals to continuously use their networks to take action so that they can be an International Success Story similar to our friends at HKDNR. We do not believe that these network companies are criminals. We believe that criminals use their network, and these companies have not yet found a way to effectively receive our complaints and remove these criminals from their networks. There are many companies, but I specifically name:
ASN 4837 CHINA169-BACKBONE CNCGROUP China 169 Backbone
ASN 4134 CHINANET-BACKBONE No.31, Jin-rong Street
ASN 9929 CNCNET-CN China Netcom Corp.
3) Law Enforcement activity. It is unacceptable in the International Community to allow one’s country to continue to serve as a haven for spammers of illegally counterfeited pills, illegally counterfeited software, and illegally counterfeited watches and handbags. It is also unacceptable to provide hosting services for numerous international criminals to place their servers on networks in your country. We invite Chinese Law Enforcement to become engaged in being part of the solution to this problem, and through dialogue with the International Community learn more about interacting with other countries about these issues.
Latest Security Threat: Antivirus System Pro
Antivirus System Pro is classified as a rogue anti-spyware application because it uses misleading methods in order to scare you into purchasing this program. Usually, the rogue uses false scan results and fake security warnings. It states that your computer is infected with Trojans, adware or malware and that you should purchase Antivirus System Pro to remove these infections. Of course, these infections are all fake and don’t actually exist on your computer.
This parasite is advertised through the use of Trojans, such as notorious Zlob or Vundo. It might be also promoted on various malicious websites. Once active, AntivirusSystem Pro will ostensibly scan your computer and list various fake infections or security issues. It will also flood your computer with very annoying pop-ups and security alerts. Here’s an example of a fake Antivirus System Pro alert:
“Windows Security alert
Windows reports that computer is infected. Antivirus software helps to protect your computer against viruses and other security threats. Click here for the scan you computer. Your system might be at risk now.”
Obviously, these alerts are also fake. If your computer is infected with Antivirus System Pro, please use the removal guide shown below to remove it immediately. Removal delay will only worsen the situation, because Antivirus System Pro will download even more malware onto your computer.
If you think your computer is infected with this or other spyware/malware I suggest a free spyware scan from XoftspySE
Stay tuned as an: “ANTIVIRUS SYSTEM PRO REMOVAL GUIDE” will be available soon.
