Let's Meow Meow

Visual Novel Community Archive, 2000-2009
#61

Run a virus scan too. My friend’s computer has been infested with spyware for months now, and SpyBot and Ad-aware alone can’t do much about it. It comes back whenever Windows starts, and it requires some pretty specific registry editing, virus check and such to remove. Easy solution: Run the anti-virus (to remove the damn trojans he got), Ad-aware and Spybot, then switch to FireFox. Remember to set it as default browser, and delete all shortcuts to IE, as running IE makes all the crap surface again.

Actually, it was this entire process with his PC that recently caused me to switch to FireFox myself. I haven’t had the problems he had, but I liked it, and better safe than sorry. Especially since I’m not the only one using the net on this PC.

It was kinda funny, my friend had decided he needed anti-virus protection, so he downloaded Norton AV plus a crack. After installing Norton, he was about to run the crack when the AV told him it was trojan infected. My friend thought “Pah, they probably just say that to make people not use the crack”, and then… Well, you know you have messed up when you get 4 pop-ups for spyware removal every time you open the Anti-Virus menu, not to mention all those goddamn browser hijackers I spent hours trying to get rid of. I just hope he’s learned, because I’m not helping next time…

Personally, I use Norman AV and Firewall, which came bundled with the PC (with 3 years free updating), and SpyBot + Ad-aware. No problems here. And of course, now that I’ve switched to FireFox, there’s a few worries less in that department as well.

#62
quote:
Originally posted by Vaga42Bond:
Odds are even if you delete the spyware (And contary to some belief, Virtual-Mate isn't spying on you. Stop being paranoid.),
Fine I'm paranoid once again until proven right yet again at which point people forget I warned them of the possibilites and once again label me paranoid. Regardless of what it is being used for it can be used that way, otherwise after registration and perhaps a download of some unlocking program for the game, no one would care if we logged in each time or not, at least that is what I see, once again perahps it is for now at least paranoia.

[This message has been edited by SCDawg (edited 11-04-2004).]

#63
quote:
Originally posted by SCDawg:
Regardless of what it is being used for it can be used that way, otherwise after registration and perhaps a download of some unlocking program for the game, no one would care if we logged in each time or not, at least that is what I see, once again perahps it is for now at least paranoia.

What they're trying to track, of course, is whether the game is installed at multiple IPs, i.e., piracy. It's a brilliant strategem.

[This message has been edited by Mozart (edited 11-04-2004).]

#64
quote:
Originally posted by Mozart:
What they're trying to track, of course, is whether the game is installed at multiple IPs, i.e., piracy. It's a brilliant strategem.

[This message has been edited by Mozart (edited 11-04-2004).]

Not so brilliant, since they virtually cut off of their customers' line offline players like me and many others. And it seems from what i see comments on LMMW are usually left alone as stray dogs.... [img]http://princess.cybrmall.net/ubb/smile.gif[/img]

#65

Or you can stop the spyware from being installed from the begining with SpywareBlaster and SpywareGuard
Absolutly the best progs ever for this sort of things, and the best part of this is that they are absolutly free.

#66
quote:
Originally posted by AG3:
It was kinda funny, my friend had decided he needed anti-virus protection, so he downloaded Norton AV plus a crack. After installing Norton, he was about to run the crack when the AV told him it was trojan infected. My friend thought "Pah, they probably just say that to make people not use the crack", and then... Well, you know

HAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

Oh, that's rich. The phrase 'penny wise, pound foolish' comes to mind...

#67
quote:
Originally posted by Nandemonai:
HAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

Oh, that's rich. The phrase 'penny wise, pound foolish' comes to mind...

Indeed. Additionally, the ISP we both use is now offering Norman AV and firewall really cheap (23 USD per year), and he STILL wants to try and get another "free" solution. Some people have a hard time learning from experience...

#68
quote:
Originally posted by AG3:
Indeed. Additionally, the ISP we both use is now offering Norman AV and firewall really cheap (23 USD per year), and he STILL wants to try and get another "free" solution. Some people have a hard time learning from experience...

...alright, that stops being funny. His idiocy is polluting the rest of the Internet. When your box is 0wned it isn't just you, it's whoever the organized crime people that rent your machine decide to harass.

I'd say find a way to MAKE him pay for it.

#69
quote:
Originally posted by Nandemonai:
...alright, that stops being funny. His idiocy is polluting the rest of the Internet. When your box is 0wned it isn't just you, it's whoever the organized crime people that rent your machine decide to harass.

I'd say find a way to MAKE him pay for it.

Well, he finally gave in. After downloading 4 or 5 different cracks for another Norton AV, all with different trojans in them (scanned beforehand), he decided to go with the cheap AV from his ISP.

This is kinda off-topic... The only experience I've had myself with this stuff was a key logger that installed itself every time I ran a money trainer for Red Alert 2 (it worked properly too), which I didn't detect because I always turned off my AV before playing, to make the game go faster -_-;; . I found the file in my \\system32 folder with Spybot later on, but didn't discover the source of it until over a year later, when I ran the trainer by a mistake with my AV turned on. Before that I had to scan my system every time I purchased stuff off the net, to avoid having my credit card information stolen.

Wheee, stuff from the internet can hold all kinds of surprises...

[This message has been edited by AG3 (edited 11-05-2004).]

#70
quote:
Originally posted by CapnWeasel:
Perhaps this has been mentioned on another thread, but anyone else with this game notice that your friend and mine V-Mate added a few unwelcome touches upon installation? All that i've noticed so far was the desktop icons spam (easily deleted) and a automatic connection to MyHoroscope or some such that fires itself up when i connect to the Net (also gotten rid of, just massively annoying). Could be more lurking, but i remain optimistic. Also need to be connected to load save games, i discovered, FYI.

Okay, I can tell you right now that this is NOT from V-mate because I don't have any V-mate games on my computer but I have the exact same kind of spyware on my system. It's the "my daily horoscope" that gives you a crescent moon icon on the toolbar, right. The spam icons it creates can be deleted but they come back every few days or so. And I deleted My Daily Horoscope but it came back as well. I scan for viruses and it shows no problems. I use spybot to search for spyware and I always have 5 entries for DSO Exploit. I tell it to fix the problems and it says that it does, but if I run spybot again, there are still 5 errors that come up, again DSO exploit. I never had this problem until I downloaded Spybot. Ever since that time I cannot get this off my system but it doesn't slow my PC down and it's easy to delete the icons. Still, I'd like it get rid of it but it's more difficult than most spyware.

#71

Try this:
http://www.scanspyware.net/info/MyDailyHoroscope.htm

#72

Seeing as i haven’t fired up IE since then i haven’t had anymore icons or mysterious horoscopes. To get rid of the horoscope i actually went into add/remove programs and uninstalled it that way. If nothing else this experience has added a bit of ungency to my need to get the new version of Internet Security, as mine has expired. Blaming V-mate was an admittedly knee-jerk reaction made within about an hour after it happened before i had a chance to think about it much. Ah the power of the internet, allowing us to complain twice as much in half the time. Sorry for the confusion.

#73
quote:
Originally posted by CapnWeasel:
Ah the power of the internet, allowing us to complain twice as much in half the time.

The wonders of technology, eh? [img]http://princess.cybrmall.net/ubb/tongue.gif[/img]

If you guys are having trouble keeping spyware and trojans off your computers, I'd recommend PrevX. It's freeware, and it locks your registry, program files, etc. It's kind of annoying, since it doesn't distinguish "friend from foe" until you tell it to (much like a software firewall), but it really works. Just surf a crack site and you'll see all the stuff it blocks. Install it and you'll never have your system files changed without your consent again (unless you mistakenly let it happen).

See here for more information or to download: http://www1.prevx.com/prevxhome.asp

[This message has been edited by Dark_Shiki (edited 11-05-2004).]

#74
quote:
Actually, it was this entire process with his PC that recently caused me to switch to FireFox myself. I haven't had the problems he had, but I liked it, and better safe than sorry. Especially since I'm not the only one using the net on this PC.

Mozilla is even better. [img]http://princess.cybrmall.net/ubb/smile.gif[/img]
quote:
and he STILL wants to try and get another "free" solution.

Free anti-virus solution? AVG from Grisoft. Free for personal use.
quote:
Try this:
http://www.scanspyware.net/info/MyDailyHoroscope.htm

Eeek! That page showed a floating dialog box! KILL IT! KILL IT!

[This message has been edited by Benoit (edited 11-06-2004).]

[This message has been edited by Benoit (edited 11-06-2004).]

#75

The best way to avoid spywares: stay away from porno sites.

#76

… DISABLE JAVASCRIPT. AND DON’T USE OUTLOOK.

There, the vast majority of your problems are gone. I vist porn sites; I don’t have fancy protection software; I don’t even run spyware sweep tools very often (only when someone brings it up, so I can show them that no, my machine really is just fine).

No popups, no mysterious icons or programs appearing, no trouble.

#77
quote:
Originally posted by Italicus:
The best way to avoid spywares: stay away from porno sites. [img]http://princess.cybrmall.net/ubb/biggrin.gif[/img]

For IE users. Not for Mozilla users. [img]http://princess.cybrmall.net/ubb/biggrin.gif[/img]
I visit porn sites for free samples and stuff through links. Rarely, I get a dialog box asking me if I want to download program X that the site is trying to get me to download. Just say no. [img]http://princess.cybrmall.net/ubb/smile.gif[/img] Stupid dialers.
#78

No dialers with my commercial DSL contract, LOL!!! It’s dialer protected.

#79

You mean that with DSL you can’t dial, eh? That’s another benefit of having DSL.

#80

My review of Let’s Meow Meow! has been posted at gamefaqs.com:

http://gamefaqs.com/computer/doswin/review/R80897.html

Please feel free to comment on it either here or at the gamefaqs board.