OmniCognateNeutronRangler
Senior Member
I have noticed there is a post on this forum from a "junior member" claiming to offer software to check your pc for unwanted files. BE VERY WARY of this kind of help. As with letters telling you that you have won a fabulous prize (and just have to call them at £1.50 per minute to see what you have won) unsolicted advice of this type should be avoided.
The particular offer on the thread said to visit a web site and download some software to protect your PC. I suggest that what it is probably doing is either downloading a virus or, more likely, spyware. These are nasty applications that sit on your pc and record keystrokes or web sites accessed and report them back to other users. This way they can spy on everything that goes on on your pc. If you have visited the suggested site I strongly recommend that you change any passwords that you use regularly, especially things like on-line banking. I would also check your bank details to ensure nothing has gone missing. If you have any accounts, like Amazon, set up with creadit card details already loaded you MUST change your password to these sites AFTER ENSURING YOUR PC IS SECURE!
If you do not have anti-spyware on your pc it can be downloaded for free from Microsoft (who are fairly reputable) from:
http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/downloads/default.mspx
If you don't trust the link then just go to the Micorsoft web-site and search for anti-spyware. This url also includes free trials of an anti-virus programmes from many other companies.
If you visited the site mentioned in the other thread I STRONGLY RECOMMEND YOU VISIT THE MS WEB SITE AND DOWNLOAD THE SOFTWARE IMMEDIATELY.
I may be wrong and the site may have be legit but I VERY much doubt it.
The particular offer on the thread said to visit a web site and download some software to protect your PC. I suggest that what it is probably doing is either downloading a virus or, more likely, spyware. These are nasty applications that sit on your pc and record keystrokes or web sites accessed and report them back to other users. This way they can spy on everything that goes on on your pc. If you have visited the suggested site I strongly recommend that you change any passwords that you use regularly, especially things like on-line banking. I would also check your bank details to ensure nothing has gone missing. If you have any accounts, like Amazon, set up with creadit card details already loaded you MUST change your password to these sites AFTER ENSURING YOUR PC IS SECURE!
If you do not have anti-spyware on your pc it can be downloaded for free from Microsoft (who are fairly reputable) from:
http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/downloads/default.mspx
If you don't trust the link then just go to the Micorsoft web-site and search for anti-spyware. This url also includes free trials of an anti-virus programmes from many other companies.
If you visited the site mentioned in the other thread I STRONGLY RECOMMEND YOU VISIT THE MS WEB SITE AND DOWNLOAD THE SOFTWARE IMMEDIATELY.
I may be wrong and the site may have be legit but I VERY much doubt it.
