Personal AV 2009; the newest dirty trick utilized by spammers to get you to install and buy fake antivirus products.
How It Works:
Personal Anti-Virus 2009 is a rogue anti-spyware program created by a company named Innovagest 2000. The program advertises fake security alerts on your computer alleging that threats have been detected. Any“button” that you click on, yes, no, cancel, or x to close the window prompts a download to start which installs Personal Antivirus on your system . It may also prompt you to purchase a rogue trial version of the anti-virus software for threat removal.
Once installed, the rogue anti-virus uses highly aggravating techniques, such as changing the Windows desktop background to warn of additional supposed infections, all in hopes to push you to buy the full version of the software.
Tell Tale Sign That You Are Infected :
*An Abundance of Pop-ups warning you of a bloated amount of threats found.
How to Prevent Infection:
Follow basic security precautions, keep your bona-fide antivirus software up-to-date if you don’t have anti-virus software it’s highly recommended purchasing some, be careful with email attachments and downloads, you can significantly reduce the odds of getting infected.
If you do see pop-ups or other fake warnings from rogue AV on your computer, it’s a good idea to try to determine whether it’s from a site or from actual software installed by a bot (or by someone else who uses the PC).
What To Do If You Are Infected:
For complete removal, seek professional help. Often times, Personal Anti-Virus 2009 can and will mess up Windows system files; which may require a complete wipe and re-install of the operating system. Wipe & re-installs can be a tricky process and should be handled by an IT professional.
Contact MTI Tech Solutions today if you suspect your systems maybe infected by Personal Anti-Virus 2009.
Nowadays, anything that generates a huge “buzz” can be utilized by Spammers to target their next victim, so it’s no surprise that the recent frenzy about the Swine Flu has become the subject of their exploits.
The initial Swine Flu Spam campaigns emails sent out by scammers were intended to scare the readers, not necessarily including malicious attachments. Then the spam evolved into money-making schemes, with spammers trying to sell pharmaceuticals, medical devices and PDF’s that contain generic information on the swine flu for $20 to $30.
The first swine flu e-mail with a malicious attachment surfaced late last week and included a PDF document of Swine Flu Influenza FAQ’s. When a user attempts to open up the PDF file, it drops malware on the local computer by exploiting vulnerability in Adobe. As we all know, malware can infiltrate your system and wreak havoc.
What can you do to prevent the Swine Flu Spam for infecting your PC?
Ensuring that you have antivirus software that would detect the threat if it attempted installation is important, and anti-spam software might stop the e-mail from reaching you in the first place. In addition, a patch from Adobe has been available for some time now that fixed the vulnerability in the software.
Want to make sure you are protected with up-to-date anti virus and Spam software? Contact MTI Tech Solutions today.
We all know Windows 7 isn’t going to be released until September of this year, but why not get a head start on determining what version will work best for your company?
Microsoft has confirmed that there will be 6 separate versions of Windows 7 when the new OS is launched. Some versions will not be available in the United States, don’t fret, these are the versions of Windows 7 you wouldn’t want. They lack the ability to share an internet connection and run more than 3 programs simultaneously.. not an ideal application for use in a business setting.
The run-down on version Features:
Windows 7 Home Premium: Includes multi-touch capability, media functionality, and the ability to create home network groups; geared more towards the home user.
Windows 7 Professional: Includes enhanced networking feature, backup and offline folders. This version is geared towards small business users.
Windows 7 Enterprise: This edition will only be sold through volume licensing to companies which have Software Assurance contract with Microsoft.
Windows 7 Ultimate: Windows 7 Ultimate contains the same features as Windows 7 Enterprise, but unlike that edition it will be available to home users on an individual license basis. Windows 7 Home Premium and Windows 7 Professional users will be able to upgrade to Windows 7 Ultimate for a fee using Windows Anytime Upgrade if they wish to do so.
Need help determining what version will work best in your business environment? Or want more information on version features, contact MTI today.
Microsoft will issue eight security updates this patch Tuesday to patch problems in Windows Internet Explorer 8, Direct X, ISA, Excel, Word, and security software.
Microsoft rates the IE and Excel fixes as critical The IE update will patch all the supported versions of the browser ( IE 5.0, 6 & 7). The excel patch will fix the vulnerability that hackers tapped into a couple months back that allowed them to deliver a Trojan horse to targeted machines. The Trojan acts as a downloader that is capable of retrieving and installing additional malware on the hijacked computer. The patch will fix excel versions 2000, 2002, 2003 & 2007.
According to Microsoft, three of the Windows updates are also deemed critical, meaning a hacker could take advantage of the flaws they patch to run unauthorized software on a PC. The ISA patch is rated important; an attacker could use this bug to crash a system and the other two Windows flaws could be used to elevate privileges to gain access to unauthorized resources on the PC.
To ensure that your systems are up-to-date MTI Tech Solutions recommends installing the latest set of patches as soon as possible.
* Please note, not all machines are equipped for the updates; similarly some software programs like Oracle & QuickBooks can be rendered inoperable due to the patch install. Contact MTI today to schedule your on-site visit today!
Windows 7, Microsoft’s newest OS, is slated to release later this year or early in 2010. Many PC users who make the jump will be upgrading from Windows XP; this means having to do a clean install all your application, preferences and data will have to be reinstalled on your machine once the Windows 7 OS is in place.
This will entail more “work” i.e. backing up your dating, erasing XP and installing Windows 7, however a clean install is not necessarily a bad thing. Any viruses, registry error or other performance flaws will not be carried over into Windows 7.
Plan on making the jump from Vista?
An in-place upgrade will be available for PC users making the jump from Vista and will preserve your applications & preferences. However, MTI Tech Solutions recommends a clean install even for Vista users to avoid the “performance flaws” that could be carried over from Vista.
Want to learn more about Windows 7 or start making preparations for the upgrade? Contact MTI today.
On April 1st 2009, the Confiker Virus is set to launch. The virus was designed to remain hidden on a PC’s operating system and lay dormant until April 1st at which point in time it will run code that can potentially kill security software and link other infected PCs together to do the creators bidding.
The Evolution of Confiker:
Last November, a small, unsuccessful worm was released with the same intentions as Confiker but was easily correct by a Microsoft patch. In December, the worm dubbed ”B release“ was launched; it was much more detrimental to PCs. B release set up peer to peer communication on PCs and would force itself into shared and network drives. It was also known to add itself to USB flash drives, infecting the PCs that connected to the drive. Similar to Confiker, B release would disable security software, windows updates, and implant itself deep into the Windows System.
Last month, the C variant was released. The C variant did an even better job of stopping security software and had a more powerful p2p (peer to peer) engine that used digital coding to connect it to other infected PCs, in essence it created a massive supercomputer out of the millions of infected PCs.
On April 1st all the dormant variants of this Virus will become active. Any PCs and/or Servers that do not have the latest patches, up to date virus and spyware protection are at tremendous risk of this infection. MTI It is recommends that all PCs and servers receive the lastest updates and virus definitions prior to April 1st.
Mac’s supposed invulnerability to malware and spyware attacks is quite deceptive. Macs increasing popularity has casued spammers worldwide to up the anty and produce malware, viruses and spam for the MAC platform.
Just like the Windows Platform, Mac’s are subject to all types of security issues. They require security updates, though not as often, just like Windows. These updates are carried out through the operating system ‘apple software update’ and are automatic unless you choose to turn it off manually. For virus scanning, AVG and Norton/Symantec have created Mac antivirus software. The more important aspect of Macintosh/Apple operating systems is to keep the file system defragmented properly. There are several options available to you in order to keep your MAC up-to-date.
If your Mac is used in a business production environment, if you have private files, or if you just want to be at peace knowing that your Mac is as secure as you can make it? Contact MTI Tech Solutions today to discuss your options !
Nowadays it seems as though no social networking site is safe from the havoc spammers intend to inflict on unsuspecting users. Beware of the new third- party application launched by hackers for Facebook.com user.. This application is designed to the user’s login credentials.
The Facebook-closingdown!!! application sends a fake email to the user claiming they have been reported “for violating our Terms of Service”. The message continues warning that this is your ” offical warning!-” Click here to find out why you were reported.
Any user who click on link will give the hackers instant access to their profile and personal information. It will also foward the fake message to each of the user’s friends spreading the hoax.
Fackebook has since removed the application, but there are reports that similar applications like “My Account” and “Reported For Rule Breaking”; are currently circulating the popular networking site.
Network with caution!
Looking for a quick and cheap way to fix your biggest IT headaches? DON’T!
Band-aid fixes and cutting corners on PC repairs may seem like a viable way out of your pressing IT problems, especially when funds are short or time is tight. However, more often that not, the underlying condition continues to grow worse, until the day of reckoning when your PC finally gives way and a more complex repair is required- often at greater cost than it would have been earlier on.
As IT professionals, it is our duty to provide you with the good, bad and the ugly associated with any IT issue. Often times, these issues require a substantial amount of time to correct and will cost more than a band-aid fix, but remember, band-aid fixes are temporary and in essence a way of prolonging the inevitable. Paying a little more in advance to remedy the issue rather than patching it and waiting for it to happen again will save your company valuable time and money in the long run.
Ready to remove your band-aid fix? Contact MTI to learn how.
For those of you who don’t know what twitter is, Twitter is an increasingly popular social-networking and micro-blogging service that allows its users to send and read other users’ updates (otherwise known as tweets), which are text-based posts.
Tweet Tornado, a software designed specifically for spammers and malware distributors allows individuals to create unlimited Twitter accounts, add an unlimited number of followers and send identical updates to multiple accounts through proxy servers.
What’s the purpose you ask? To deliver unwanted messages to unsuspecting Twitter users.
Unfortunately Twitter doesn’t have any kind of validation service for users and has the potential to become a haven for spam. Beware