Extortion Ware

I just wanted to let you know about the nasty virus out there that we unfortunately caught on our computer.

Thanks to my nephew, he was able to help me via phone remove the virus, uninstall my antivirus software that didn’t protect me and download Microsoft’s security measures. It was a long process, but I feel very grateful to him for helping me at such a late hour.

This virus called, Extortion Ware. It is a fake anti-virus software. Apparently how it works is when you click on a website that is infected, it gets into your computer. Keep in mind that the site you visited that was affected was not the website’s fault. They were a victim as well. Even well know websites like CNN was infected. We were just visiting a site that is a legitimate site and I’m sure they are unaware of the virus hitching a ride on their site.

The virus then causes a pop up with a warning that looks like it is from Microsoft. Even the emblem looks very similar to Microsoft. It tells you that the page or file you are looking at is a threat and you must click here to activate your antivirus to protect yourself. If you click on it, thinking you are activating the antivirus program you already have or that it is Microsoft telling you to let them get rid of it for you, it gets into your computer and holds it hostage. It then tells you that you have to buy this extra protection to have it removed. If you click no, then porn sites start popping up everytime you try and access the Internet or it just won’t let you on at all. I guess they do this to scare you into buying their program. Of course, warnings keep popping up for you to let them protect your computer against this attack.

Nice isn’t it? They infect your computer with a virus, then tell you that you must purchase the “fix” for it. Hence the extortion name.

The name came up on my computer was called, Antivirus Pro, so look out for that, but there may be other names.

The fix was easy once found. Apparently the virus resets your Lan settings so that the proxy server boxes get checked. This allows them to dictate what you can and cannot access on the Internet.

We corrected that buy going to our Internet page (no need to be online) hit Tools, Internet options, Connections, LAN settings, unchecking all the boxes and saving. This was done in safe mode.

We then ran a scan to seek out and remove the infected files. I then removed the anti virus software that didn't protect me and downloaded Microsoft's security essentials. This process may or may not work on your computer depending on how it is infected. It was a long process, but worth it. My nephew is a lifesaver for sure!

These people who write these viruses and execute them puzzle me. They are so talented, it's just such a waste of a good life. They think that their greed and money they get from hurting other people will make them happy, but in reality if they use their powers for good instead of evil they would actually be even more happier and more successful!