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WARNING - Be VERY Carefull if you use IE...

rdale

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Hi,

A word of warning to all out there who still use Internet Explorer as their main browser ---> DON'T


<EDIT> :

First saw this over at sitepoint.com/forums : To determine if the malicious code is on your computer, search for the following files: Kk32.dll Surf.dat Steps for Windows XP users: On the taskbar at the bottom of your screen, click Start, and then click Search. Under What do you want to search for? click All files and folders. Under All or part of the file name: type: Kk32.dll and then click the Search button. Under All or part of the file name: type: Surf.dat and then click the Search button. If either of these files is present, your computer may be infected. Web Virus May Be Stealing Financial Data New Scheme Causes Web Sites to Spread the Bug By ANICK JESDANUN, AP NEW YORK (June 26) - A computer virus designed to steal valuable information like passwords spread Friday through a new technique that converted popular Web sites into virus transmitters. Though the impact of the ''Scob'' outbreak was mild compared with recent infections like ''Sasser'' and ''Blaster,'' security experts worried about its method of delivery. With Scob, virus writers have discovered yet another way - beyond e-mail and network techniques - of distributing their malicious code. Now that the exploit is out, it won't be long before others adapt it for spamming and for launching broad attacks to cripple the Internet, said Alfred Huger, senior director of engineering at security company Symantec Corp. The infection, first discovered by Microsoft Corp. on Thursday, appears to take advantage of three separate flaws with Microsoft products and can be difficult to detect. Stephen Toulouse, a security program manager at Microsoft, said software updates to fix two of them had been released in April, but the third flaw was newly discovered and had no patch available yet. He recommended that computer owners obtain the latest security updates for Microsoft products and their anti-virus and firewall programs. For the flaw that lacks a patch, he said, users should also turn up security settings on Microsoft's Internet Explorer browsers to the highest levels. Users could also turn off the ''JavaScript'' feature on their Microsoft browsers, though doing so could cripple functions on some sites. The virus does not affect Macintosh versions of Internet Explorer, nor does it spread through non-Microsoft browsers like Mozilla and Opera. Users can search their computers for the files ''Kk32.dll'' or ''Surf.dat'' to see if they are infected. Removal tools are available from major anti-virus vendors. Experts said the infection was unusually broad but wasn't substantially interfering with Internet traffic. The U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team warned that any Web site, even those trusted by users, might be a vector for spreading the virus. Security experts worked Friday to pin down how hackers managed to infect hundreds and possibly thousands of Web sites. It appears to target at least one recent version of Microsoft software for operating Web sites, called Internet Information Server. Hackers made subtle changes to the Web site so visitors get a piece of code that's designed to retrieve, from a Russian Web site, software that records a person's keystrokes. Such data, which can include credit card numbers, bank accounts and passwords, are collected for remote delivery to hackers, experts say. The virus, however, does not attempt to spread itself, helping to limit its effect. Web sites have been used before to spread a form of spyware called ''browser hijackers.'' One, known as Qhosts, disables access to major search engines and resets the Internet Explorer browser home page to a little-known site. But those typically have involved ''users having been visiting shady sites,'' Chris Kraft, senior security analyst at Sophos Inc. Here, hackers plant the code on business, government and other everyday sites they do not normally control. ''This is kind of ingenious,'' Kraft said.


---> see links below :

http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1105_2-5247187.html?tag=zdfd.newsfeed

http://news.com.com/Corporate+Web+servers+infecting+visitors'+PCs/2100-7349_3-5247187.html?tag=nefd.top

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2004-06-27-web-attack_x.htm

http://news.google.com/news/en/us/technology.html

If you've wanted to wait for a compelling reason to try Opera or Firefox, now's the time, at least until they get IE fixed!

You've been warned...

be safe. :)
 

rdale

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marduke said:
a reason for the warning would be good.

Good idea marduke, sorry for the cranial flatulence...


Found at Google News/Sci/Tech :
http://news.google.com/news/en/us/technology.html


http://news.designtechnica.com/article4482.html
Web Virus May Be Stealing Financial Data
Monday, June 28 @ 05:14:13 PDT

A mysterious Internet virus being spread Friday by possibly thousands of infected websites may be aimed at stealing valuable financial information, security experts warned.

Security experts at Microsoft and elsewhere worked Friday to pin down how the infection spreads across websites. It appears to target at least one recent version of Microsoft software for operating websites &#8212; called Internet Information Server.

The infection makes subtle changes to the website so visitors get a piece of code that's designed to retrieve from a Russian website software that records a person's keystrokes and can send data back, experts say. Such software "Trojan horses" are routinely used to fish for credit card numbers, bank accounts, passwords and the like.

Now that the code is out, other hackers are likely to adapt it to distribute software for spamming and for launching broad Internet attacks against popular websites, said Alfred Huger, senior director of engineering at security company Symantec Corp.

Read the whole article at Globe Technology :
http://www.globetechnology.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20040625.gtvirus2jun25/BNStory/Technology/
 
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Ittai2

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I'm with you all on Firefox. I started using it two weeks ago, as well as replacing Eudora with Thrunderbird. On both counts I've been very pleased with their performance.

I also have Mozilla 1.7 installed. Is this redundant? What are the differences? Which one could I do without?
 
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marduke

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Now that the code is out, other hackers are likely to adapt it to distribute software for spamming and for launching broad Internet attacks against popular websites, said Alfred Huger, senior director of engineering at security company Symantec Corp.

oh great more spam..... just what i always wanted..
 
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Kokopelli

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Great.... and my wife just made a car payment over the web last week using IE. What is worse, I will not be able to run the security updates until later tonight. Any ideas if the Avant Browser is going to be affected as it appears to be built on IE.
 
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Kokopelli

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miamiatw051 said:
i have ie and have no problems iwth it
i just have espn as my homepage and check out othere sports sites and this
whats the big deal

If you do things like pay bills, order merchandise, etc over the web, the files will record the information and send to some one else for their malicious use.
 
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PuppyforChrist

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I don't have too many problems with IE, but for one thing it's the only browser that will allow me to see certain graphics on CF, like the glowing usernames.

I'll use FireFox when it becomes more advanced. So far it just seems a lot like IE. *shrug*
 
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pgp_protector

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PuppyforChrist said:
I don't have too many problems with IE, but for one thing it's the only browser that will allow me to see certain graphics on CF, like the glowing usernames.

I'll use FireFox when it becomes more advanced. So far it just seems a lot like IE. *shrug*

So your willing to give up security / stability / lack of pop ups / security for glowing text ?
 
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Ave Maria

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You know, there is a reason why Microsoft makes Windows Updates every month. It's to help patch up problems that occur such as this. Of course, Windows and it's components (such as IE) have always been susceptible to attacks of various sorts. But then again, I can almost guarantee that you will never find a program that isn't capable of being attacked.
 
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flicka

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Holly3278 said:
You know, there is a reason why Microsoft makes Windows Updates every month. It's to help patch up problems that occur such as this. Of course, Windows and it's components (such as IE) have always been susceptible to attacks of various sorts. But then again, I can almost guarantee that you will never find a program that isn't capable of being attacked.

Your right of course. IE comes under constant attack because it is the most used, but if firefox or opera becomes the norm you can bet the hackers will concentrate their efforts on them and find a way....and suddenly those other companies will be issuing updates every month! :p

As a side note, I've been using IE for years and I do EVERYTHING online. I protect my comp with updates, adblockers, a firewall, virus scanners and such. The only time I've ever had a problem is when I had to reinstall my OS and did some web browsing before I could update windows and put my security in place. Got some nasty malware but I fixed it up and now no more problems. I guess I'd rather just deal with the problems I KNOW about than sit back thinking I'm safe and be surprised by something nobody saw comming...
 
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These exploits are fixed quickly. I don't think it is really anything to worry about. Trust me. Your are not totally invincible by switching to other browsers such as FireFox. There are many other ways to get your passwords stolen. The most common are RATs and keyloggers. Just because you have an AV/FW doesn't mean you are safe.
 
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