Can"t email Len Bacus so I am making a post about a Virus

[Rustystud]

Len when I logged on LRH site Monday, I was greeted with a "Virus Warning" that turned out to be a virus that has locked up my wife"s desktop computer until I can remove the Mal Ware that computer is idol This post was done with my wife's Ipad.
Just thought you should know what the holidays has brought with them.
I would have e-mailed you but the site doesn't allow e-mails be sent to you.
Happy Holidays
Nat Lambeth

 

[rick523]

Nat I had the same thing happen but Norton blocked it. I have also in the last couple of day's this annoying pop up on the left side of screen for related searches, and adds in the bottom right hand corner. Have no idea what the heck is up with that. If it is something Len has added I don't much care for it!

 

[Teh Fixer]

I'm sorry you guys are having trouble. My first question, though, is why can't you email Len? If the Contact Us link at the bottom of every page is not working, please let me know.

Len when I logged on LRH site Monday, I was greeted with a "Virus Warning" that turned out to be a virus that has locked up my wife"s desktop computer...

The server technology we use is modern and has multiple redundancy when it comes to security. We want the members and visitors of LRH to be safe from just such problems. However, there has been the rare occurrence of a 3rd party ad linking to a bad website. We monitor the system closely and have multiple anti-malware systems so that no virus, trojan or malware finds its way into the server. But if a bad ad is clicked and the user visits the site the ad directs you to, you may become infected that way. However, LRH itself is not a source of infection. Your virus protection software should protect you from any harm.

If you use modern, up to date virus protection on your computer and your browser is also current and you haven't reduced the security of it through various options, then you should be warned long before your computer is infected. Our biggest problem is virus protection software giving false positive alerts (our subject matter may have something to do with these false alerts).

I would have e-mailed you but the site doesn't allow e-mails be sent to you.

It does though. Even unregistered visitors can use the Contact Us link at the bottom of every page of this website. Please let me know if that is not working for you.

I have also in the last couple of day's this annoying pop up on the left side of screen for related searches, and adds in the bottom right hand corner.

Is there a way you can provide a screen shot of those? I am not aware of anything like that. Len had me root out a similar problem a couple weeks ago - he hates them as much as you do - and I eliminated the code that was causing that popup. I wasn't able to find it until he gave me a screen shot though. If you can't do a screen shot, then give me the exact wording of the popups, especially anything identifying, like "ScoreCard Research" (the popup that Len was getting) that will help me search through the many thousands of lines of code that makes up most pages here.

Again, I'm sorry for any troubles you are having. I'll do my best to find the source of the problem and deal with it. But I need your help to do that. First and foremost, be sure your computer has a good virus protection program installed and it is configured to update automatically (virus and malware detection databases are updated daily, if not more often). Your browsers should also be the newest versions available and you should not compromise the security of your browser by reducing the protection levels to "low." You can add individual websites to your browser's whitelist or trusted sites list, but don't set controls so low that your system can't tell you that the site you are about to visit is a known hazard.

Thank you for bringing this to our attention.

Jim, Teh Fixer
LRH Webmaster

 

[rick523]

Jim here are a couple of pictures of what I was talking about. The add at the bottom of screen says BrowseSmartAds. Hope you can help, these just popped up a couple of days ago. As far as emailing Len I have not tried but I have emailed him in the past with no problem. Thanks for any help. The adds at the bottom are everything from Sears to games as you can see.
Rick

 

[Ludicrous]

Hit me too. It was an adware virus called "Scorpion Saver."

 

[Teh Fixer]

Jim here are a couple of pictures of what I was talking about. The add at the bottom of screen says BrowseSmartAds. Hope you can help, these just popped up a couple of days ago. As far as emailing Len I have not tried but I have emailed him in the past with no problem. Thanks for any help. The adds at the bottom are everything from Sears to games as you can see.
Rick

Rick,

The pictures were helpful, but it would be far better if you could provide an actual screen shot - press the PrtSc key on your keyboard, then open an image editor (Windows Paint or any other image editing program) and paste the picture in a new document. Save the picture as a JPG image and then use the upload system here to add it to your post.

You should see no ads on the left of any kind. There are no ads set up and there isn't a left column used in forum threads. We also do not have anything like what appears in the lower-right corner, but your pictures don't reveal the whole screen. It looks like you may be using an older version of Windows, which may also mean you are using an older version of your browser. You don't say what browser you are using, but it should be the latest version available for your operating system.

What virus protection program are you using? Is it up to date with the most current virus definition files? Is the software itself up to date? When was the last time you did a complete scan of your computer for viruses, malware and trojans? This should be done regularly. Treat your computer the same way you would treat your vehicle - regular maintenance is what keeps it running smooth and avoids major problems.

I use free virus protection software (AVG and Avast are 2 of the best available) and use free malware detection software at least once a month (MalwareBytes, Housecall and SuperAntiSpyware are all good programs and all free). Let one of them do a complete scan while you sleep. I run all of them alternately - one month I run Malwarebytes, the next month Housecall, etc.

Upload a screen shot and let's go from there.

Jim

 

[Teh Fixer]

Hit me too. It was an adware virus called "Scorpion Saver."

More information is needed. There is nothing called Scorpion on this server and nothing appears to include that in any of the ads, although the system shows different ads to different people. A screen shot would help in this case too, or tell us what ads you saw on the page (including what page you saw it on).

I can't emphasize enough how important it is to provide detailed information. The only thing you gave me was "Scorpion Saver" and a search for that results in a big zero.

• When did it happen
• Where did it happen
• What else was on the page
• Did you click a link or ad to get that warning
• What are your system specifications (OS, browser versions)
• Do you have a screen shot to show

The information I have about Scorpion Saver is here, along with a removal guide: Scorpion Saver Removal Guide

Thanks,

Jim

 

[wyowinchester]

I had a virus attack the last two times I opened LRH. Norton sent me a blocked message but it was only opening the site. I took a pic of Nortons info.

 

[Teh Fixer]

I had a virus attack the last two times I opened LRH. Norton sent me a blocked message but it was only opening the site. I took a pic of Nortons info.

Did you click the link that says "More Details"? That might have given us more to go on. From what I can see on the image (can't you do a screen shot instead of taking a picture of a small part of your monitor), none of the URLs or IP addresses relate to LRH.

Please answer as many of the questions in my previous post as possible. I really want to sort this out, but a serious lack of information is hindering that effort.

Thanks,

Jim

 

[rick523]

Jim,
I have the latest version of Norton, also have Avast, and run a scan about once a week. That said I did down load MalwareBytes ran a quick scan and it got rid of the problem. Thanks so much for the tip, I appreciate it and all the other help. (I use Google Chrome as my operating system.) Have a great New Year!
Rick

 

[Teh Fixer]

Jim,
I have the latest version of Norton, also have Avast, and run a scan about once a week. That said I did down load MalwareBytes ran a quick scan and it got rid of the problem. Thanks so much for the tip, I appreciate it and all the other help. (I use Google Chrome as my operating system.) Have a great New Year!
Rick

Glad you have your problem sorted out. I would like to caution you about running more than one real time virus detection program. Conflicts can occur and neither Norton (I used to work for them) nor Avast recommends it. If you have to choose, I suggest Avast. It's free and just as good, if not better than Norton. If you need some of the other features Norton comes with, you might find that there are also free versions of those and others may not even be necessary. However, if you do decide to uninstall Norton, it is not as simple as uninstalling other Windows programs. Follow the guidance here: Download and run the Norton Removal Tool to uninstall your Norton product

Jim

 

[Nimrod1203]

I've been getting a pop up when visiting LRH that looks like a virus software has found a virus, but it's a link to a Trojan. I believe this is what you all are seeing. hope this helps.

If you click the X instead of OK, then "Leave Page" you're fine. If you click "OK" you accept the download of a Trojan.
Nimrod

 

[Teh Fixer]

Nimrod, I don't think anyone can see what's in that picture. Can you post a link to the full-size picture?

 

[Nimrod1203]

Try again.
Nimrod