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Damn It I Am So Screwed!

by Steven Wagenheim
7 replies
  • OFF TOPIC
    • |
I am normally so careful but this looked so real.

I got an email that somebody commented on my wall post at Facebook. I am
pretty active there now so I opened it up.

I went to Facebook first but didn't see it. I thought this was strange. So I
went back to the email and clicked on the link to view it. Trust me, this
email looked 100% authentic.

Well, when it tried to go to the page, I got some strange javascript message
and I knew that was bad news. The page hadn't opened yet so I closed down
my AOL program.

I may have avoided getting hit with whatever they slammed me with but I
have no way of knowing now. My anti virus didn't pop up any warnings or
anything like that but I am still scared ****less. I just got a new PC with
Windows 7 because my XP got slammed by a virus that essentially killed it.

If it's just happened again I swear I am going to hunt this SOB down and
make them sorry they were ever born.

WHY do people have to do these things?

*******s! I'm fed up with them!
  • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
    Steven, I never click a link in an email without resting the cursor on it and looking in the status bar to see if the link points to where it's supposed to. Even with emails from friends, because if their computer gets a virus, the virus can send an email that looks like it's from them when it's really the virus trying to replicate itself via an attachment or a link to a drive-by virus.

    Moral of the story: Never trust the email, verify what you are seeing, and you'll be much safer.
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    Just when you think you've got it all figured out, someone changes the rules.

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    • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
      Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

      Steven, I never click a link in an email without resting the cursor on it and looking in the status bar to see if the link points to where it's supposed to. Even with emails from friends, because if their computer gets a virus, the virus can send an email that looks like it's from them when it's really the virus trying to replicate itself via an attachment or a link to a drive-by virus.

      Moral of the story: Never trust the email, verify what you are seeing, and you'll be much safer.
      Yes, I know, I know, I know...you'd think after 14 years on the Internet I'd
      learn by now. But every once in a while I get stupid. It was the timing of the
      whole thing.

      I had just made a post on my page and figured this was in response to it.

      If it had come out of nowhere, I would have been more skeptical. And I even
      looked up the member name and didn't find it. You'd think THAT would have
      told me something.

      I feel like a blooming idiot.
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  • Profile picture of the author Peter Bestel
    Steven

    What progs have you used to scan? In my experience you need to run a few scans (all in Safe Mode) in addition to any antivirus you already have installed.

    I run a PC repair biz and quite often use these, they're pretty self-explanatory and they're all free.


    I start off with

    Super Anti Spyware (full scan)

    then run

    Malwarebytes (full scan)

    and maybe also run

    Dr Web Cure it


    If your PC's not showing any obvious wierdness, then I guess there's no guarantee that you've cleared everything. It's difficult not to become paranoid once you've had a near miss like you have but you'll simply have to keep an eye on things.

    I do use other progs to do clear outs but I'd start with the ones I've mentioned.

    Good luck

    Peter
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  • Profile picture of the author Facebank
    Hi Steven. Typical facebook "viruses" aren't true viruses at all, they will usually just trick you into clicking a like button, or posting javascript remotely into your address bar. The only other way would take an XSS vulnerability and there is not currently a working one out right now.

    They really will just spam your facebook wall and friends, no other real danger. You were probably just sent to a page that has a forced share popup.

    To be safe, just uninstall any apps from your profile that you do not recognize. Then change password. You really can't get a virus unless you install an application, program or browser plugin/extension, ect. so I doubt you got anything. In the future use a good AV (I use avast) and firewall like comodo!
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  • Profile picture of the author K Meier
    I highly doubt it was a virus. Probably just some javascript that injects your page so it automatically posts a status update and advertises a site. Or it likes a fan page or page.
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  • Profile picture of the author julianna
    I agree probably nothing... can be scary though! Good reminder to be diligent
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    • Profile picture of the author dbarnum
      Hey, happens to all of us, and we're online daily, dude Don't beat yourself up. Not worth it.

      Now beating those bad guys up, that's another story...
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