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https://www.askthetrades.co.uk/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl DIY Forum >> Alarms, Phones, Aerials, CCTV & Datacomms >> Any advice https://www.askthetrades.co.uk/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1291386935 Message started by cumbriahandyman on Dec 3^rd, 2010, 2:35pm

Title: Any advice
Post by cumbriahandyman on Dec 3^rd, 2010, 2:35pm

I have been receiving strange emails from a friend, so asked her what it was about, below is her reply. Anyone got any solutions for her?

Quote:

Hi John
Sorry but somehow my address book has been hacked into and is sending these emails, I am even receiving them too. Would welcome any ideas you have on how to stop it? Its not a virus as I have checked that out a number of times !!!!
Elaine x

Title: Re: Any advice
Post by Joiner on Dec 3^rd, 2010, 3:16pm

Sounds like a virus to me. Not all antivirus programs are fully up to speed with all types.

A friend of mine had this problem a couple of years ago and had to contact Symantec to have it cleaned up. She only found out she had a virus when a number of her friends asked her why she was inviting them to dinner on a date some weeks past. I contacted her because my brother in Canada wanted to know if I knew someone called 'Steph' because she was inviting him over to eat at her address in Edgbaston and I was also on the address list!

The virus had got into her system and was sending out copies of her emails to everyone on her contacts list and also everyone who'd forwarded emails to her and left the original addressee's details on that. It was that incident that stopped me forwarding emails without erasing all the original addresses.

Might not be the same virus, but probably a variation.

Title: Re: Any advice
Post by CWatters on Dec 3^rd, 2010, 4:16pm

Google some of the text in the emails it's sending. Might lead you to pages on an antivirus web site or other people with same problem.

Never use programs that add emoticons to your email program. These effectively give away your address book to the author of the program.

Perhaps worth checking the email headers to see if her machine is really sending them... or if her address book has been sent to another machine that is pretending to be her.

If Norton can't find it try a free program like AVG or an on-line scanner like Housecall from Trend Micro. Do not use any old free antivirus program without cheching who it's from. There are fake antivirus programs out there.

There is a program called HiJackThis which will generate a comprehensive log of what's running or installed on your PC. However you need an expert to look at that log and tell you what's likely to be the problem and how to remove it. That's because if you blindly remove everything it reports it will mess up your computer.

HiJackThis can be found here..

http://free.antivirus.com/hijackthis/

Perhaps post the HiJackThis log here with a brief explanation of the problem...

http://www.security-forums.com/viewforum.php?f=48

Usually they like you to take a step by step approach. eg they may suggest removing something and then posting a new log. Repeating the process if necessary. It's best not make other changes at the same time or post your loge to more than one forum at once.

Title: Re: Any advice
Post by Lectrician on Dec 3^rd, 2010, 5:08pm

The virus has already done it's work - it has accessed her machine, retrieved all her contacts and now has all her firends email addresses to spam.

Even after removing the original virus, the people who placed the virus originally will still hold these email addresses and will continue to use them to span until they get bored.

Title: Re: Any advice
Post by Joiner on Dec 3^rd, 2010, 5:26pm

Actually Lec, Symnatec killed it dead and it's never returned.

The problem with those deep-cleaning anti-virus programs, as we all know, is that once installed they virtually take over the machine and slow it down.

I've got AVG on this machine now and it's effing brilliant. As I'm with BT, McAfee comes free anyway, and I just let that work quietly in the background and it only makes itself known occasionally to tell me that it's checked the system and everything's fine.

Trouble with these bastard virus writers is that they're hardly ever caught. Pity, 'cos I'd cut their fcuking fingers off and push them into every one of their orifices.

Title: Re: Any advice
Post by londonman on Dec 3^rd, 2010, 10:35pm

CWatters wrote on Dec 3^rd, 2010, 4:16pm:

.....

Never use programs that add emoticons to your email program. These effectively give away your address book to the author of the program.

......

Not on my Mac, they don't ! ;D

Title: Re: Any advice
Post by londonman on Dec 3^rd, 2010, 10:37pm

Joiner wrote on Dec 3^rd, 2010, 5:26pm:

.... Pity, 'cos I'd cut their fcuking fingers off and push them into every one of their orifices.

Letting them off lightly. You need to fill their orifices first with expanding foam.

Title: Re: Any advice
Post by perry spanyol on Feb 10^th, 2011, 11:45am

First thing would be to change her email address password as a precaution. Then download a good anti virus software (AVG is free, works brilliantly and does not slow down machine like others!!) and do a couple of scans.

I would also recommend deleting all temporary files, internet cookies etc. Check services to see if anything untoward is running (If you do not know how to do this I can explain) and disable anything that shouldn't be.

I would also download a good registry tool such as AVGs system cleaner - it lets you run it once and fix all errors which usually solves alot of problems.