Help! Some Russian goon has ALL my personal info

[Alex+R 0]

Throw it away......buy a mac!

You mean buy an expensive system that's got limited hardware and software available for it?

Want an example? Next time you're at the store ask them where their 'OS X' compatible webcam section is. Now compare that to Windows. Then go over to the computer gaming section and do the same thing. There's a reason the new 'Wintel' Macs dual boot OS X and Windows.

Wouldn't have to cuz Macs come with built in webcams now

[DeadPoolX 9]

Throw it away......buy a mac!

You mean buy an expensive system that's got limited hardware and software available for it?

Want an example? Next time you're at the store ask them where their 'OS X' compatible webcam section is. Now compare that to Windows. Then go over to the computer gaming section and do the same thing. There's a reason the new 'Wintel' Macs dual boot OS X and Windows.

Wouldn't have to cuz Macs come with built in webcams now

I think that's even worse. As technology improves, you're stuck with an old, outdated webcam. At least if you purchase one, you can replace it and update it as necessary. That's one of the things I've never liked about Macs -- the lack of upgradability. With a PC, it's easy to upgrade individual pieces of hardware or build your own system.

[QuietMe 0]

Get Norton Antivirus and firewall immediately. You can go and scan you system on the symantec website for free. Clean out all viruses and trojans that Symantec finds.

http://www.kaspersky.com/ is good. Norton provides updates and patches quickly and usually leads the market.

You should not run 2 antivirus programs on any computer because they will cancel each other out and eat up too much processor time.

Update your operating system with all hot fixes from Microsoft.

You probably need to look into Webroot Spysweeper to get rid of other internet monitoring cookies.

The firewall from Symantec will see if anyone is accessing you computer or if program is trying to communicate out. It will block the bad stuff.

Do this immediately.

There is a program called Ccleaner you can download for free. It will delete most cookies, history files, etc.... and eliminate some pain. I run it at least once per week to clean my deleted items folder and internet cookies.

Hope this helps.

[MPGGPM 0]

I really have exactly the same feeling as if my wallet had been stolen!

I called the credit card company that I've been using, since it occured to me that the fraud alert might make it hard for me to use that card while I'm abroad - everything seems to be fine with that account and they say that the fraud alert just stops people who are trying to establish new credit, so that should be ok. She asked me awesome and tricky questions about my identity, none of which were ever on my computer, so I feel a little bit better.

Did she say "fraud alert" or an actual "credit freeze"? A fraud alert from what I have read is just a way to give you some added protection, but it will NOT stop people entirely.....from using your credit.

From what I copied below, a lot depends on how responsible the company giving away the credit is....to actually call you. I personally wouldn't trust them. Too many companies, have very loose standards when giving away credit, and what do they care if you end up holding the bag because someone used the card in your name?

What is a Fraud Alert?

A fraud alert is something that the major credit bureaus attach to your credit report. When you, or someone else, tries to open up a credit account by getting a new credit card, car loan, cell phone, etc., the lender should contact you by phone to verify that you really want to open a new account. If you aren't reachable by phone, the credit account shouldn't be opened.

A creditor isn't required by law to contact you, however, even if you have fraud alert in place.

link is below....

http://www.fightidentitytheft.com/flag.html

Many states allow you to freeze your credit. You should look into that, and if you feel like there was a good chance your identity etc was stolen, I would not rely on the "fraud alert"

Seeing how even the biggest companies get "hacked" and information gets stolen.....if there is any info I leave on my computer, it's "coded"...so even if somehow someone did get access to my computer, they would not be able to understand what they find.

Good luck.

Having your identity stolen is about the biggest headache I can imagine anyone having. I've read and seen some tough stories of people who have had to jump through so many hoops, to clear their names.

EVERY state should allow people to "freeze" their credit..........but the actual people who are lobbying congress the most to STOP states from being able to freeze credit..........are the VERY companies who give the credit away or control it.....including the big 3 (Equifax, Experian, and Transunion).

[Ban Hammer 12,836]

You should not run 2 antivirus programs on any computer because they will cancel each other out and eat up too much processor time.

i can't imagine why anyone would run two at the same time. even having two on the computer can give false alerts, as one will detect the virus signatures on the other program.

but two anti-spyware programs are still recommended.

[mawilson 2,133]

http://www.kaspersky.com/

That is the best anti-virus solution available today.

Chopfukc Russians.

Isn't Kaspersky Russian?

[Boiler 43,433]

Takes one to beat one.

I have tried Norton, seemed to cause problems. Is it the Geek Squad at Best Buy? The guys I was talking to use Kaspersky themselves but can not use it there on customers machines.

Most of them will give you a 30 day evaluation, I also tried the Microsoft product, but has some issue with it.

[malka 0]

Wow.

Thanks, everyone. We're on a crazy-tight budget at the moment, so we can't go out and buy a new computer, but I've got the Zone Alarm up and the AVG antivrus and spyware. But... the AVG didn't find anything on the computer, so I guess we'll check out the Kaspersky and also some other spyware programs. As of last night, we've switched to Firefox. Don't know why that took us so long to do - it seems just great. The Ccleaner program sounds like it may help, too, since I want to be sure those files are GONE from the drives on this computer! I'll be delighted to get my brother-in-law to help us wipe the whole system - I don't know how to do that. But in a way, I do kinda feel like I'm closing the barn doors long after the animals have left the building...

I've changed all my passwords and I will definitely look into a credit freeze. Thanks for that tip. I may bite the bullet and put some money into one of those credit monitoring programs that notifies you immediately if anyone makes an inquiry.

My fiance is just kinda staring at me... he believes me that protecting your identity and having good credit is insanely important in the USA, especially if you're just starting out with homes and cars and stuff, but I can tell that he doesn't quite get it yet. But in an effort to soothe my panicked heart, he did bring me one of those tasty Milka chocolates filled with strawberry yogurt. Not exactly on the FBI fraud protection action list, but it did kinda help!

Thanks again for all your time!

Edited March 9, 2007 by malka

[Robor007 0]

Throw it away......buy a mac!

You mean buy an expensive system that's got limited hardware and software available for it?

Want an example? Next time you're at the store ask them where their 'OS X' compatible webcam section is. Now compare that to Windows. Then go over to the computer gaming section and do the same thing. There's a reason the new 'Wintel' Macs dual boot OS X and Windows.

Wouldn't have to cuz Macs come with built in webcams now

A bad idea IMO. Tell me how I can show the person I'm chatting with what's on my screen when it's built-in? Also, I'd rather have a choice of which cam I want - of course, with a Mac, you pretty much have choice of one or the other.

[Ban Hammer 12,836]

A bad idea IMO. Tell me how I can show the person I'm chatting with what's on my screen when it's built-in? Also, I'd rather have a choice of which cam I want - of course, with a Mac, you pretty much have choice of one or the other.

agreed.

[Robor007 0]

Throw it away......buy a mac!

You mean buy an expensive system that's got limited hardware and software available for it?

Want an example? Next time you're at the store ask them where their 'OS X' compatible webcam section is. Now compare that to Windows. Then go over to the computer gaming section and do the same thing. There's a reason the new 'Wintel' Macs dual boot OS X and Windows.

If it was a straight price issue, I would get a Mac, for my needs.

Not a gamer and I just need a laptop.

Odd that you can buy the published version of Kaspersky from Amazon for less than a download.

Mac's are fine for some people and not for others. My wife has one and she likes it. I've used hers and a few others and for me it's just not the right operating system. I do think the app launcher bar is really slick looking but overall the look is just 'cartoon-ish'. Plus there's things I do (browse Usenet and play modern games for example) that I can't do on Mac's. Of course, I can't do that in Linux (the OS I prefer) either. Unfortunately, no OS is perfect.

[Robor007 0]

Get Norton Antivirus and firewall immediately. You can go and scan you system on the symantec website for free. Clean out all viruses and trojans that Symantec finds.

http://www.kaspersky.com/ is good. Norton provides updates and patches quickly and usually leads the market.

You should not run 2 antivirus programs on any computer because they will cancel each other out and eat up too much processor time.

Update your operating system with all hot fixes from Microsoft.

You probably need to look into Webroot Spysweeper to get rid of other internet monitoring cookies.

The firewall from Symantec will see if anyone is accessing you computer or if program is trying to communicate out. It will block the bad stuff.

Do this immediately.

There is a program called Ccleaner you can download for free. It will delete most cookies, history files, etc.... and eliminate some pain. I run it at least once per week to clean my deleted items folder and internet cookies.

Hope this helps.

Good points - Two anti-virus programs is a definite no-no. I've used Spysweeper before but not recently. Heard really good things about it though (like best of the bunch). I'm not a fan of Symantec's 'Internet Suite' (whatever it's called now) though. I don't like software firewalls either just because they can really mess up a system if you don't know what you're doing. My mom totally borked her system with Zone Alarm.

** Keep in mind if you use CrapCleaner (or something similar) to blow off your cookies you're going to clear your saved passwords for things like forum logins.

[malka 0]

Well, here's my final update after spending two days wiping up after myself on this fiasco. I am just thrilled by all the great advice I got here.

Evidently, I am not allowed to do a credit freeze in my state! It would indeed have been the perfect thing to do, but... no. So, mostly for peace of mind, I've ordered a credit monitoring program (TrueCredit), which is probably why the credit bureau threesome are so hot to prevent credit freezes. $14.95 a month, but at least for the next several months, it's surely worth it. They'll send me an email within 24 hours if anyone inquires into my credit with any of the big three or adds something to my file, or if there's any change at all, so hopefully I can smack down any fraud activity before it gets out of hand. On the plus side, it is kind of cool to look through all their handy little charts and graphs and see all the credit history and scores so nicely laid out. So far, everything looks fine. I really hope this turns out to be a total waste of my money.

I've got Zone Alarm guarding the gates. Installed AVG and PestPatrol spyware, which found some malware, but nothing that would give anyone a heart attack. Wheeeeew. But, I'll probably try out the Spysweeper, too. And I now have the lovely AOL Active Virus Shield / Kapersky antivirus program, which rooted out a whole bunch of Adware that Avast and AVG missed. The CCleaner made me quite happy, too! It gives you tons of options, including letting you select which cookies you want to keep AND has a terrific overwrite feature: it deleted and overwrote tons of old files including a bunch we'd emptied from the recycle bin ages ago. Freed up lots of space, too.

Thanks again, everyone!

[Bobbie 1]

I would go get Panda. IT can be downloaded, just do a search on Panda software. I pay for this month in and month out. I have an online business and I swear by this.

I was so blogged down with bugs that I had Macaffee come into my computer. They could not fix it remotely.

Finally Panda. It was a pain to set up, I had to get rid of all of the paid software and unpaid of virus protection, now it runs like a dream. When ever someone pings me to try and attatck it lets me know, if someone is trying to access my computer, it lets me know, if someone is hot shotting on a wifi connection it lets me know.

I love my Panda.

Bobbie

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

of course, with a Mac, you pretty much have choice of one or the other.

Macs are for dummies.