12 replies to this topic

[Tekka]

As I write this, my first post on these forums, I'm sitting two feet away from the 4th machine I've had to fix today, spyware infections took up most of my working hours. I'm a full time PC tech at a small store that generally fixes home computers, and I can tell you right now, when i got into this game, I didn't do it to spend all my time fixing spyware.

I'm getting to the point where if you put me in a room with a person who writes this crap, one of us would be leaving feet first.

And what's worse, none of the "tools" out there are worth a damn anymore, Ewido, Spybot, Ad-Aware? they're glorified cookie removers, that's all. They started out as wonderful tools that would fix pretty much all the problems you'd run into, now not a single problem I see can be fixed by them, I have to sit there, deleteing the same registry entries machine after machine, reinstalling TCP/IP stacks, clearing out hijacks... and WHY?

Because some lazy bugger sitting half the world away can't be bother getting real honest work? That they have to make their money making my life, and the life of millions of people, a living HELL.

I long for the days when I'd have virues come into the store, at least then I could understand the motivation of the people making them, and it was fun to remove them... spyware... god. I've seen more porn working in IT then I ever did as a teen.

Disgusting horrible stuff shoved in my face as I work on little johnies computer, all the while his mother is telling me her sweet little hell spawn couldn't of found that on his own and how horrible a place the internet is... NEWS FLASH LADY, its not a babysitter and teenagers are pervs. I know I was one ten years ago.

How do the rest of you deal with working on this crap 6 days a week?

[Budfred]

One way that we deal with it is that we keep developing tools to fight it almost as quickly as they develop ways to get around the tools... A lot of people have turned the anger that you feel into ways to fight the criminals that create this stuff... It is frustrating at times, but it is like the reason I swat mosquitoes -- by the time I notice them, they have already bit me, but each one that I kill keeps that one from producing thousands more... I may not be able to wipe them out, but I can slow them down...

By the way, please don't be too quick to judge the teens that got the computers infected... Sometimes they were looking for porn, but probably not the incredible garbage that they find... Other times they are just looking for other teens to talk to and they get infected anyway... More than anything else, they are not putting proper protection in place...

Oh, most of us deal with it 7 days a week...

[Tekka]

Oh, most of us deal with it 7 days a week...

If I didn't have sunday off I'd end up in jail

I don't really blame the kids, its not their fault people pray on them really, and I don't even really mind porn, I'm not a fan of it myself, but what other people do with their lives so long as everyone is over 18 and willing I really don't care, but some of that stuff is just plain sick... What mostly annoys me is the parents who expect the Internet to be the new TV type babysitter, take some time with your kids and surf with them.

What also annoys me is the customers I get that are so self rightous about their lack of knowledge and wear it like a badge of honour, they are proud of the fact they know next to nothing about something they use everyday... I mean come-on I don't expect them to know everything, its like expecting me to know how to service my own car, but I do know what the little light showing low fuel is for and when to check the oil...

[DraconisCombine]

Ignorance on the part of parents is unbelievable. I know of kids of 9 and 10 playing Grand Theft Auto and Leisure Suite Larry while downloading gigs of dubious crap off warez servers. It's a disgrace.

As for fighting spyware, I kinda enjoy it, although I'm not a pro or anything and I only do it at the weekends or when I have some free time. I hate the porn though, it's usually just sick. Best thing to do against spyware: Format C:\.

[Chancellor]

Best thing to do against spyware: Format C:\.

Sadly it does come to that sometimes, but on the whole we prefer not having to taks such drastic steps!

It's certainly easy to understand the "I hope they burn" viewpoint and for anyone feeling that way, I would encourage them to have a look HERE.

As Budfred mentioned, we may not be able to eradicate this revolting stuff once and for all, but we can certainly make the lives of those peddling it more and more difficult as the tools and resources we have become more and more advanced . . . we at least have the chance to save the world one computer at a time

The graduates and trainees of Boot Camp are some of the most selfless people I have ever met - who willingly give of their time and expertise in helping others, if you would like to make a lasting difference . . . why not join up, we never close!

[jedi]

why not join up, we never close!

FYI, I close early on Wednesdays, for stocktaking.

How do the rest of you deal with working on this crap 6 days a week?

Someone's got to do it, or else the bad guys' win.

[hornet777]

Yeah, its irritating, but the days of having a clearly defined object of blame are over, for now that its pretty much in the hands of organised crime, neither script-kiddies nor teen porn surfers can take the burden of guilt. When one considers that its possible to get infected without even opening up a browser...

The insight that "traditional" methods of removal (scanners) are decreasingly effective only points to the changing nature of the malware scene, and this at a dizzying pace.

Personally I am beginning to depart the standard "logic" that how we have dealt with this situation is at all adequate, but what is new to my thinking is that I now have a definite, if incomplete, way out of it. I will admit that the chances of it being implemented as I see it are nil, but still it is more than I have seen anywhere else. This isn't as egoistic as it sounds, for nothing would please me more than to have someone listen to the thought, and rip it off.

[Tekka]

I'm more of a tech monkey, I know how to research, and how to use that research to fix a problem, part of the problem is really how hard it is getting to do research.

You google a bit of spyware you get a dozen sites pointing to what I call extort-ware, "anti-spyware" programs that are little more then spyware with a pretty cover that demand money once they are installed, and never do anything.

Without sites like this, I don't think I'd get anything off machines without a format.

[jedi]

List of good/bad Anti-Spyware prducts here:
http://www.spywarewa...nti-spyware.htm

[business1]

The internet is the best and worst things that has happened to us in a long time. It has a pelathora of knoledge in it, but we have so much of our personal info on it. It's literally everywhere. People are going to continue to have privacy problems for years to come. Hopfully they will brainstorm and come up with an idea to stop this maddness.

[sito-HPze4900]

The internet has become a very large part of growing up for children at the present time. During my school years, there was no such thing as a PC. Back then, computers were massive machines in a gigantic warehouse. Spyware has become prevalent throughout the WWW. When you have so many users who range from criminal elements to hackers, you are bound to come across malware eventually like a car accident. One "flaw" that makes programs such an easy target was the decision of PC makers to make nearly all machines IBM compatible (I know that there are Apple users out there). When you use a standard platform that is emulated by nearly everyone else, a miscreant can more easily develop annoying software targeting that standard platform. I've come across my share of suspect websites and infections myself. Although it has never reached the point of no return (such as a reformat of a hard drive). I try to limit where I go to (trusted sites) and don't try to wander into "stranger" sites, if possible. I also never use the PC to store sensitive personal or financial information. The PC was meant to be a convenience appliance for me. Sort of like a cell phone or power tool. Like those things if they break down, I will have them fixed. But if they can't be fixed, then I will get another one. One thing about the Internet for me besides the huge knowledge storage available is that you have the access to a wide spectrum of merchandise that you could never find via local stores or catalogs is incredible. Prior to the 1990's, you were limited to shopping with local retailers, agents, and mail order magazines. The internet allowed me to find things (especially outdated computer parts) at prices that I could never find through shopping at retail stores or even garage sales.

[LessThanJake]

The biggest problem is the spyware creators seem to be two steps ahead of the spyware defense. Most antispyware is reactive, they can't even fight the latest threats until thousands of computers have already been infected. I read an article that spyware is over a hundred million dollar business. There is little sign of it slowing down.