Malacious Software Message

[Melekai]

Lately when I am on the forum I get an warning screen that says that malicious software is active on the forum. Any ideas about this? Why does my browser prevent me from navigating this site?

Robert

[Arch Stanton]

I doubt it has anything to do with these forums. If the problem was here, it would get widely reported immediately, and would probably be communicated to everyone, and fixed very quickly.

(I am experiencing no problems here.)

Your computer probably has some sort of malware infection which is giving you malicious pop-ups, twoard the goal of getting you to either spend money on a sham virus detector / malware removal program, or install additional malicious software.

You should probably make sure your OS and anti-malware software is completely up to date, and do a compete scan.

If you are using windows, AVG is a very good, free malware / virus scanner:

AVG Free - Download Free Antivirus and Antispyware for Windows XP and Vista

[GordMay]

I use the free "Avast Home Edition" anti-virus protection.
Download FREE antivirus software - avast! Home Edition

[GMac]

I've had a look around and no sign of anything strange going on or other reports like yours Meleki. It looks as if the issue is falling back on your end.

One handy program I use to find the odd nasty is 'Spybot - Search & Destroy'. It's a freebie download off the interweb with good reviews.

[Morgan Paul]

One handy program I use to find the odd nasty is 'Spybot - Search & Destroy'. It's a freebie download off the interweb with good reviews.

I use Spybot. It works, it is free with no gimmicks.
It is a good program.

[Kiwikat]

Unfortunately what Arch Stanton has stated is most likely "spot on" correct. I recently had a similar incidence. I was lucky enough to pinpoint exactly when I became "infected" and was able to do a system restore to a previous date, to get rid of it.
Sadly there are a lot of faux fixes put about by people with nothing better to do than make our lives miserable. Often if you google an unfamiliar "remedy" you can get some great advice off computer forums about what and what not to avoid.

[Fishman_Tx]

Before you do something as drastic as a system restore, try a few other things first.
1. Clean out your Temporary Internet Files in the Internet options section of your browser. Make sure you include ALL "cookies".
2. Try running a cleaner such as AdAware first. A free version can be downloaded from www.Lavasoft.de or go to www.Downloads.com. It's 100% safe and I have never seen it remove anything critical by mistake, and you can feel safe about deleting anything it finds. Most of the time this can be considered a "Browser Hijack" just like the toolbars and search engines that show up unannounced.
3. Try different antivirus software and do a complete scan.

Do a system restoral as a last resort. If your system does not set restore points very often or they are corrupted you run a risk of "hosing" it up more. Try the insecticide on the bugs before breaking out the shotgun.


Fish

[CharlieCobra]

The absolute NASTIEST critter I ever had on a system was a supposed "Spyware" program. It took a complete drive wipe to get rid of it as it actively fought back by cloning itself and changing registry entries to lock you out. Spybot is obsolete and there are many bugs it won't catch. AVG is good but my money is on Trend Micro. While not free, it's small, agile and effective.

[Janet H]

Originally Posted by Melekai

Lately when I am on the forum I get an warning screen that says that malicious software is active on the forum. Any ideas about this? Why does my browser prevent me from navigating this site?

Robert

Robert - we take security very seriously and aren't aware of any issues. The site does use cookies (little bits of data swapped with your computer) to keep you logged on at page changes. Some security programs and windows vista may recognize this and warn you about this. You can allow cookie exchange with Cruisers safely. But you should know that there are malicious programs out there that appear as though they are standard security programs that are not.

I recommend that you download malwarebytes from malwarebytes.org and run a full scan. AVG is also a robust program and there are others but the purveyors of malware are always one step ahead of the good guys - it pays to be cautious.