There's a discussion on Chat
this morning about malware and viruses. I'll
copy the posts below, as they have good
information. Hugely popular reputable sites
like Amazon.com, Coupons.com, etc., do not
put malware or viruses on your computer.
I had a bad experience on my
personal computer with malware. When I tried
to open a pdf file, I got a very
real-looking pop up telling me I needed to
update my Adobe.com software. I knew I
hadn't updated it in awhile, so I clicked it.
BAD MISTAKE!!!! Immediately my computer
changed its look, ads popped up everywhere,
etc. I thought I had a virus, but our
computer guy hurried over and told me I had
opened a malware file. I can't stress enough
that the pop up looked exactly like a real
Adobe message. Anyway, it took an hour to
get it cleaned off my computer and to
install a better anti-malware program.
I now
ignore any pop up that tells me I have to
update the terms of service or my password
or my software or whatever. I never click
any of them. Our computer guy told me
there's no way to know how I got the
malware; it could have been hours, days,
weeks, even months ago. Malware can lie in
wait on your computer to surprise you when
you are on a legitimate website. It probably
has nothing to do with the website you
happen to be visiting. The malware I opened
laid (lay? lain?) in wait until I tried to open a pdf
file, which was its trigger to pop up and
tell me I needed to update Adobe --- pretty tricky when you think about
it. In reality, the pop-up is a trojan horse
to make you click the terrible button that
will release the malware in all its fury. It
would be a mistake to blame this on Adobe.
Bad people simply used the Adobe reputation
and logo to make me think it's okay to
click. The same is true of Coupons.com,
RedPlum.com, Amazon.com, Yahoo.com,
Groupon.com, Paypal.com, Swagbucks.com, etc.
Malware creators will use those names/logos
to trick you.
Here are the Chat posts;
thanks ladies for your knowledge.
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86529
Not
Coupons.com (11/5/2014
5:30:05 AM): To Frances: The virus
you talk about didn't come from
coupons.com If it did, half the
computers in America would be
affected since millions of people
print coupons there. You got malware
or a virus somewhere else and it
popped up while you were on
coupons.com The same thing happened
to me but not with coupons.com. I
was on amazon and a pop up told me I
needed to update my adobe file to
the latest version. I clicked on it
and WHAM! Pop ups galore!! Ads
everywhere!! It looked totally legit
when the "adobe" pop up appeared,
just like I'm sure the pop up you
got on coupons.com looked legit. IT
DIDN"T COME FROM COUPONS.COM. That's
how malware works. You pick it up
somewhere and it bides its time
until a moment when you least expect
it. It's like you catch a cold virus
while out shopping, but you don't
get your first sneeze until 3 days
later while at the movies. You
didn't get the cold at the movies
but you associate it with that.
Malware is horrible and you usually
have to get someone professional to
get it off your computer. But blame
the right people, NOT COUPONS.COM.
Malware is designed to look totally
legit and it takes advantage of your
trust in reputable sites to get you
to click the bad link. Thousands of
people visit coupons.com per hour
and have printed coupons for years.
If it was really planting viruses,
it would have long ago self
destructed. You got malware and no
one will be able to tell you exactly
when or how. That's what's so
horrible about it. , Julie B, MI 86530 Julie is Right (11/5/2014 5:45:58 AM): You got malware. It happened to me and it took a $75 repair to get it off. It comes from evil people sitting in their basements making up pop ups that look official and real. You trust the site, so you click it. Then all he11 breaks loose. It's also sneaky. The malware is designed to lie dormant until you're on a big-name site. That's when it will spring because you least expect it. The lesson is to distrust popups. Don't click them, no matter how legit they appear. , Joan J, IL 86546 Signs of Malware (11/5/2014 8:12:33 AM): 1) Popup ads appear even when no browser is open. 2) Browser navigation gets redirected. 3) A security program you never installed pops up scary warnings. 4) Posts you didn't write appear on your social media pages. 5) A program holds your PC for ransom. 6) Suddenly you can't use common system tools. 7) Everything seems perfectly normal, because the malware is laying in wait. Malware doesn't come from reputable sites (like coupons.com or smartsource.com or swagbucks.com or amazon.com). It sneaks in through an email or through clicking on an innocent looking pop up or who knows? Malware creators are smart and wicked. If you think you have malware, you will probably need a professional to clean up the mess, then install a good anti-malware program. But even those aren't fool-proof because bad people are working around the clock to come up with the next generation of viruses and malware. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. , Barbara S, NC |
One last note: If you have
your security settings very high on your
anti-virus program, it may warn you about
any site that it considers advertising,
including most sites on the internet that
run ads. Coupons.com will leave a cookie on
your computer to prevent you from printing
more than 2 of a coupon. That's not spying
or a danger to your computer.
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