AOL email hack and a thread for malware, adware, spyware, etc. update

[Zeke]

I don't use AOL, but some family members do from way back. I guess they just never moved on. Anyway, I'm in their address books. So, I get spam over the weekend.

I guess this has been going on forever because I uncovered Google hits dating back to '99 about AOL email hacks. I got one from a Yahoo user as well earlier this year and he's a graduate in computer science from Cal Poly.

So, this thread will be about what all is wrong when the account user has had their address book harvested and their email is corrupt. For instance, I'm told that the password doesn't work now and the "send to another account" is an endless loop. I figure that what happened there is now the alternate account has been compromised.

Other than having AOL help with the issues of malware at this point, what are the other measures I should pass onto the family?

I didn't open the thing, so maybe I'm OK. But since I'm on a new (barely used but now 6 YO computer), I'll install what is recommended. Thanks to Art, I have about 775 MB of RAM to work with.

[Brando]

Don't use AOL.

Seriously. A co-worker just had her account get 'hacked'. And also a friend of a friend last week. People keep too much personal info in their e-mail. Bank logins? Paypal? FB? All of it.

As we used to say... If it's on the internet, it's not secure.

[Zeke]

Thanks for all your help, Brando. I don't use AOL. But the wife and her sisters do and the deed is done.

[Brando]

I wasn't trying to be a jacka$$, milt. It's unfortunate that your wife/wife's sister's accounts were compromised but I'm hearing of this with AOL more and more.

Depending on how much information was tied to that account, I'll recommend what I said to my friend last week:

Change all e-mail accounts associated with your banks. Change your passwords, too. That would also mean changing the passwords for:

FaceBook, Twitter, Myspace (any social networking), evilBay, Paypal, any other online payment system they may use.

ALSO now would be a good time to notify friends and family to block that previous e-mail address, and give them a new one to reach you.

You may also want to call the CRAs and put a fraud notice/identity theft notice on your credit report. Let the banks know their login/pw may have been compromised.

What can start as just gaining access to your e-mail could end up as full-blown identity theft.

[Zeke]

I'll pass the word.

Meanwhile, I had hoped this thread would be about anti-xxxx programs. The list to choose from is long and I haven't seen an update thread in awhile. The tech-on-the-corner recommends Norton 2011 Anti Virus, but not the enhanced versions.

[john70t]

I received another one of those "help I've been robbed in London" things, a whole bunch of "UPS/FEDEX/USPS mail recepit notification" w/attachment, and even a "Update Microsoft" which looked pretty official.

[Zeke]

Too bad this didn't take off. I guess I'll just bite for the Norton.

[sammyg2]

This is kinda sorta related but not totally:

I got hit with a particularly nasty malware/virus about 6 months ago or so.

I ran all the spyware and malware programs, they'd find it and get rid of it but the next time I re-booted it was back. I changed anti-virus programs, still kept coming back.
I went through the registry and cleaned that up but it kept coming back.
I did all the tricks listed on this forum but it kept coming back. There was a hole in the firewall and in XP and it kept re-loading itself.
I never confirmed for sure if it was re-loading from the inrterwebs or off of my own hard drive, didn't really matter.

I stuck the windows XP CD in the slot and re-started the computer.
It asked if I wanted to re-install or repair XP, I said repair.
It went through the half hour process and when it was done, no more virus, no more malware, no more hole in the firewall. The puter ran faster and better than before too.

Avast keeps an eye on things now and I haven't had a bit of trouble since then.

So, when in doubt I reload or repair windows.

Oh one other thing, I don't use outlook. Not even loaded on my puter.

I use the online mail box thing that comes with AT&T and shows up on my homepage. It's a tad slower than outlook and doesn't have as many bells and whistles but seems more secure.

[nota]

basic anti-V
micro-soft security essentials it free and works well d/l from M-S web site
or avast-home also free to D/l

malware-bytes and ad-aware and spybote for the non V stuff
and worse case try hijack this!