Freedom, Joy, and Adventure

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Virus recovery tools & techniques

I wrote this article to share what I learned as a result of having to deal with a computer virus recently. Basically, my familiarity with virus recovery tools and techniques has been forcibly upgraded.

It has been a long time, perhaps more than 5 years, since I have had to deal with a virus infestation in our household. We had been using Grisoft AVG Free for anti-virus, Javacool SpywareBlaster to prevent spyware, and Lavasoft Ad-Aware to detect and remove any spyware/adware that made it past SpywareBlaster. I was fanatical about keeping all of those programs updated, and this has worked very well for us.

However, this past Saturday it became apparent that my wife’s desktop computer had become infected with a browser hijacker. AVG antivirus has active website scanning enabled, so my wife had received a pop-up warning from the program that there was malware on a website she visited recently, but it appeared that the program had contained the threat.

Apparently it was one of the newer Trojans, and made it past our AVG antivirus software. Browser windows started popping up, pestering her with ads. This thing disabled Windows Update, reset her browser Privacy setting to Low (Allow All Cookies), disabled the updater for AVG antivirus and Ad-Aware, and made it impossible to reach desired websites – the browser was constantly redirecting. Experience and research further indicated that malware was being actively invited in on an ongoing basis and that a key logger might have been employed, necessitating a reset of all passwords.

I’m going to spare you all the details of the many steps I took, involving many hours over three plus days, to resolve the issue and fast forward to lessons learned and hopefully someone can benefit from this incident.

However, I assume no responsibility for your data or your computer security; this article is for informational purposes only, and you should do your own homework and come to your own conclusions. As always, you should back up your valuable data regularly. And should you become aware of a virus or malware infection on the source computer, scan all back-up data carefully before using in any way.

Lessons learned

- AVG Free did not prevent, detect, or remove this infection (seriously, no one’s perfect, and I imagine it must be hard to keep up with all the new viruses that are constantly coming out)
- Ad-Aware could not remove this infection
- Bitdefender and Kaspersky antivirus both get high reviews from a variety of sources, but I cannot recommend Kaspersky because it refused to install when it detected traces of the previously-installed AVG – Kaspersky would not work for me when I really needed it to, so I’ve gone with bitdefender, and I’m happy with it so far
- it’s better to be prepared than to have to scramble for a solution
- what removed the infection for me was a combination of Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware and Simply Super Software Trojan Remover
- keep your hard drive defragmented, and buy the fastest hard drives you can afford – having to scan your entire hard for viruses is a time-consuming process

Disaster recovery preparation

After a lot of trial and error, here’s the virus disaster recovery kit I came up with:

- a CD with the BartPE ISO burned onto it, and
- a USB thumb drive full of malware removal tools

Although it wasn’t useful for this purpose, I also recommend having a copy of Ultimate Boot CD laying around for computer emergencies: http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/

Bart's Preinstalled Environment (BartPE) bootable live windows CD/DVD: http://www.nu2.nu/pebuilder/

BartPE is a CD bootable environment that has some Windows functionality. Basically it allows you to bypass your infected hard drive and run Windows executable programs from the thumb drive. You will need your Windows install CD to create the ISO as it uses Windows system files.

Theoretically you could create plug-ins to include your favorite programs with the BartPE ISO, but I found this wasn’t as easy as it looked or sounded. Although there are a number of sites offering BartPE plug-ins for antivirus/antispyware, all the ones I found were so old as to be practically useless.

That doesn’t matter; the basic BartPE ISO is all you need to boot to an environment from CD that allows you to run the virus removal tools from the USB thumb drive. It’s easier to keep adding updated antivirus tools to a thumb drive anyway – download the latest one every month.

The moment you suspect your computer has become infected with a virus, worm, Trojan, or any other kind of malware you should unplug it from the network immediately. Pop in the BartPE CD, shut it down and leave it off for 30 seconds, plug in the USB thumb drive and restart it, making sure that the CD drive is ahead of the hard drive in the BIOS boot sequence.

Start by running these standalone programs – these do not require installation; they can run in BartPE from the thumb drive:

Trend Micro CWShredder: http://us.trendmicro.com/us/products/personal/CWShredder/
McAfee Avert Stinger: http://vil.nai.com/VIL/stinger/
avast! Virus Cleaner: http://www.avast.com/eng/avast-virus-cleaner.html
SmitFraudFix: http://siri.urz.free.fr/Fix/SmitfraudFix_En.php
Trend Micro Sysclean: http://www.trendmicro.com/download/dcs.asp (DOS executable)

If you know exactly which virus has infected your computer and if you have another computer you can use, you can go to one of these sites and download the specific removal tool for that virus:

Kaspersky Virus Removal Tools: http://www.kaspersky.com/removaltools
Symantec Virus Removal Tools: http://www.symantec.com/business/security_response/removaltools.jsp

Once your computer is clean enough to restart in Safe Mode, you can install and run these programs:

bitdefender: http://www.bitdefender.com/ - excellent!
Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware: http://www.malwarebytes.org/mbam.php - excellent!
Simply Super Software Trojan Remover: http://www.simplysup.com/ - excellent!

Here are some anti-virus reviews:

http://antivirus-software.topchoicereviews.com/
http://www.pcworld.com/article/124475/top_antivirus_software.html
http://www.malwarehelp.org/malware_removal_download.html
http://www.2009softwarereviews.com/Default.aspx?Refer=5Go&Keyword=antivirusSsoftwarereview
http://anti-virus-software-review.toptenreviews.com/

I hope this helps, and I welcome any feedback. Thanks!

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Monday, August 4, 2008

What John McCain does NOT want you to see

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Monday, July 28, 2008

Letter To The National GOP

Letter To The National GOP

July 28, 2008

Republican National Committee
310 First Street
Washington, D. C. 20003

Attn: Mike Duncan
Chairman, Republican National Committee

We, the undersigned, wish to convey our thoughts to you on the following matter.

Most of us feel that the presumptive Presidential Candidate, Senator John McCain, is a fine individual (some of us don't), but he can not and will not win the 2008 race for the Presidency of the United States of America for the following reasons:
The Democratic candidate, Senator Barack Obama, currently has a much stronger following of young people and independents. In a head to head race with Senator John McCain and no third party contenders, Senator Barack Obama would easily win the Presidency. Some pundits are saying "in a landslide."
Former GOP Representative Bob Barr has entered the race on the Libertarian ticket which will siphon votes away from Senator John McCain and the GOP. (The Nader effect) Traditionally, the Libertarian candidate gets 1% of the vote, however pundits are estimating that former GOP Representative Bob Barr will garner 5-8% or more. This is something the Libertarians are very excited about.
Senator John McCain is a pro-war candidate. National polls show that 70% of American voters are against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Therefore, a large number of the voting public will vote against Senator John McCain based on this fact.
The Scott McClellan book might become a bigger issue for Senator John McCain due to his close ties with President George W. Bush.
All indications are showing Senator John McCain violated his own McCain-Feingold Laws when pledging FEC money for securing a bank loan, and then ignored the laws and exceeded the spending caps.
Senator John McCain and his lobbyist ties are causing the campaign to lose key staff and paint an image of Senator John McCain contrary to the image he has tried to broadcast in this race.
Senator John McCain and his temper scares most Americans and opens up the potential that he could say or do something rash, further jeopardizing Americans and American interests.
Senator John McCain admits he knows very little about economics. This comes at a time when our nation is on the verge of huge financial issues with growing debt, escalating oil prices, devaluation of the dollar, and huge trade deficits and ever expanding borrowing from China.
etc., etc., etc.
Given light of these facts, it seems clear to us that Senator John McCain will not win the Presidency of the United States of America; and we are part of that swing vote that will NOT be voting for McCain, but would vote for a GOP candidate if the right candidate were presented.

The core GOP members who have pledged "Party Unity" and to vote for Senator John McCain (even though for the vast majority of them he was not their first choice in the early primaries) will vote for ANY candidate the GOP places before the American voter. So this number is a constant, however not enough of a number to beat Obama.

The one candidate in the GOP we feel can win the Presidency for the GOP is Representative Dr. Ron Paul from Texas. We feel that he can bring a Presidency win to the GOP in 2008 for the following reasons:
Representative Dr. Ron Paul has / had a huge young voter following and would bring those independent voters back to the GOP and away from Senator Barack Obama.
Representative Dr. Ron Paul would steal ALL the thunder from Bob Barr and the Libertarian Party, delivering that lost 5-8% back to the GOP.
Representative Dr. Ron Paul would maintain the constant, core GOP voter. Those who want "Party Unity" and a GOP Presidency would unite behind Representative Dr. Ron Paul.
Representative Dr. Ron Paul has garnered the MOST contributions from our military of any GOP contender. That alone speaks volumes.
The Scott McClellan book would have no effect on Representative Dr. Ron Paul due to his sterling image and reputation.
According to GOP Senator Tom Coburn, he feels "Many Republicans are waiting for a consultant or party elder to come down from the mountain and, in Moses-like fashion, deliver an agenda and talking points on stone tablets. But the burning bush, so to speak, is delivering a blindingly simple message: Behave like Republicans." WSJ - 5/27/07 Page A21 "Republicans Are in Denial" - Representative Dr. Ron Paul is such a Republican with such a message.
Representative Dr. Ron Paul can fill the coffers of the GOP, just look at his fund raising successes at the end of last year.
Representative Dr. Ron Paul is a man of principle, the Constitution, and TRUE core Republican beliefs. He understands our economic issues and our international situations. If you have any questions about this, read his book, "The Revolution", a New York Times Best Seller.
and so much more...
We feel it is our obligation as Americans to let you know our positions and reasons. You may ignore this letter and our signatures, or act upon them. The choice is yours. Win the Presidency in 2008 with Ron Paul, or lose with "Party Unity" and John McCain.

We, the undersigned, pledge to NOT vote for GOP candidate Senator John McCain. We declare that we WILL vote for GOP candidate Representative Dr. Ron Paul as President of the United States of America for the reasons expressed above.

Sincerely,

Sign it!

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Wednesday, July 23, 2008

545 PEOPLE

RE-ELECT NOBODY
… regardless of your party affiliation

545 PEOPLE
100 senators + 435 congressmen + 1 president + 9 Supreme Court justices = 545

By Charlie Reese
Charlie Reese is a former columnist of the Orlando Sentinel Newspaper.

Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.

Have you ever wondered, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?
Have you ever wondered, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?
You and I don't propose a federal budget. The president does.
You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations. The House of Representatives does.
You and I don't write the tax code, Congress does.
You and I don't set fiscal policy, Congress does.
You and I don't control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does.

100 senators, 435 congressmen, 1 president, and 9 Supreme Court justices - 545 human beings out of 300 million - are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board, because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private, central bank.

I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman, or a president to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the power to accept it … or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislators' responsibility to determine how they vote.

Those 545 people spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.

What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who stood up and criticized the President for creating deficits. The President can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it.

The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes. Who is the speaker of the House? She is the leader of the majority party. Fellow House members, not the president, can approve any budget they want. If the President vetoes it, they can pass it over his veto … if they agree to.

It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million cannot replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts -- of incompetence and irresponsibility. I can't think of a single domestic problem that is not traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise the power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair.
If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red.
If the Army & Marines are in IRAQ, it's because they want them in IRAQ.
If they do not receive social security but are on an elite retirement plan not available to the rest of the people, it's because they want it that way.

There are no insoluble government problems.

Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power. Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exists disembodied mystical forces like 'the economy,' 'inflation,' or 'politics' that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.

Those 545 people, and they alone, are responsible.

They, and they alone, have the power.

They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses - provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees.

We should vote all of them out of office and clean up their mess!

WWW.FIRECONGRESS.MEETUP.COM/13

Charlie Reese is a former columnist of the Orlando Sentinel Newspaper.