Virus scammed me!!!

[TerryBPP]

I just got my phone bill for last month and saw that there was a $30 long distance charge on there. We dont use the house phone for long distance so I called Sprint and asked them what the charge was for. They said that I had logged onto a site that provided a search engine by using a 1-900 number. I recalled that I had download a virus that changed my Explorer home page. I deleted all the files which took about 10 minutes. So I came to the conclusion that the virus had changed my dial-up # and started billing me. Lucky I caught it because it was charging $7 per min.

There is no way to contact the search engine company and Sprint only cut the charge by %50. First time I've ever been ripped off. How can Sprint see charges like this and still bill you?

[widebody911]

Yup, that's another scam that's been around a while - dialers. Virus/trojan will install a program that dials 900 numbers or numbers out in the wild blue yonder and they make money off the toll charges.

Really, who in their right mind would pay for web searches anymore? Back in the day, when search engines first came out, they tried the pay model, and it fell flat on it's face.

Time to update your virus s/w and install something like AdAware. Oh, and stop using IE

[Jims5543]

Adaware removes the spyware AFTER it has infected your computer.

Try this. Its in BETA testing right now but I am liking it a lot. It stops the spyware before it infects your computer.

Go Here:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=321cd7a2-6a57-4c57-a8bd-dbf62eda9671&displaylang=en


Also, I have been trying out this Panda Anti Virus and its very very good. I like it a lot.
You can download it for an evaluation for free.
http://www.pandasoftware.com/products/activescan/com/activescan_principal.htm


It sucks that your carrier is making you pay on a scam. My temper gets the worst of me sometimes. I would probably threaten to close my acct. and do it if they did not remove the charge.

[Tim Walsh]

www.getfirefox.com

it's been awhile since I've heard of an auto-dialer virus... pretty sneaky.

[widebody911]

Actually, SpyBot will also prevent the stuff from being installed.

I've heard good things about the MS stuff, but I'm wary of it.

[island911]

another thought; cancel your long-distance service on your land-line.

Between cell-phones & calling-cards there really isn't much need for the ~$6/month charge. . . . or the liability of fraudulent abuse.

[widebody911]

Originally posted by island911
another thought; cancel your long-distance service on your land-line.

And turn on 900 blocking; unless of course you need acess to 900 numbers...

[Joeaksa]

When I built my last computer did not even put a modem in it. Stopped that in its tracks!

Bastards who write this crap need to be shot!

JoeA

[island911]

I would hope that turning off long-distance would stop any number dialed "1+. . .." (?)

.. .but then I thought the internet killed the "1 900-suk-mymy" type numbers.
. ..or are those still popular with the gay crowd? . . Thom?

[dhoward]

[ronin]

Originally posted by island911
another thought; cancel your long-distance service on your land-line.

Between cell-phones & calling-cards there really isn't much need for the ~$6/month charge. . . . or the liability of fraudulent abuse.

ditto! not much a dialer can do when confronted with that lovely little female voice announcing "sorry, dumbass!"

my cell is my ld plan