? about Spy Sweeper

**ruthsollid** · Subject: ? about Spy Sweeper 6/6/2009, 14:10

I'm kinda freaked out and need explanations or reassurance or something. On our desktop computer, it was running super slow and I got a notice that our personal info was under attack. I got scared and followed Repa's Tut #6 to the "T". It seems fine now. That took 2 days and I finished yesterday. Now today, I'm on my laptop and I keep getting notified that Spy Sweeper is blocking access to a whole bunch of sites. From the names, they look like bad places, so assume that this is a good thing, right?

**Repa** · Subject: Re: ? about Spy Sweeper 6/6/2009, 17:54

ruthsollid wrote:

I'm kinda freaked out and need explanations or reassurance or something. On our desktop computer, it was running super slow and I got a notice that our personal info was under attack. I got scared and followed Repa's Tut #6 to the "T". It seems fine now. That took 2 days and I finished yesterday. Now today, I'm on my laptop and I keep getting notified that Spy Sweeper is blocking access to a whole bunch of sites. From the names, they look like bad places, so assume that this is a good thing, right?

Yes, but where are the sites coming from that are being blocked? Are you accessing the net with your browser when this happens, or are you getting the messages at random without using your browser? Do you have a router attached to your computer? Are you using wireless, and is it secured?

_________________
Repa

**ruthsollid** · Subject: Re: ? about Spy Sweeper 6/6/2009, 18:04

Yes, I am using wireless. I'm not sure what you mean by secured. I have McAfee on my laptop, which the laptop came with. And we have a router from Qwest. I was getting the messages random without using a browser, but with the router and the DSL, we are always connected to the Internet.

_________________
Ruth

**Repa** · Subject: Re: ? about Spy Sweeper 6/7/2009, 00:18

ruthsollid wrote:

Yes, I am using wireless. I'm not sure what you mean by secured. I have McAfee on my laptop, which the laptop came with. And we have a router from Qwest. I was getting the messages random without using a browser, but with the router and the DSL, we are always connected to the Internet.

Ruth, it concerns me that you are getting these warning messages from Spy Sweeper. It indicates that you have open ports to the internet that any hacker can find and access. You may also have software on your computer calling "home."

I suggest you read the following article to understand what I mean by secured:

http://compnetworking.about.com/od/wirelesssecurity/tp/wifisecurity.htm

You want your wireless access point or router to be at least WPA secure. WPA is Wi-Fi Protected Access, one of several popular standards for wireless network security. I have my network authorization set for WPA-PSK, with data encryption set for TKIP. For added security, I do not broadcast my SSID, and I have my MAC filtering on as well. This feature allows you to identify which wireless cards the router will "speak" to, and it can specify that your router ignore all other ethernet cards. This ensures that only computers you approve of can use your access point. You can find your MAC address by clicking Start -> Run, typing "cmd", clicking "Ok", and then typing "ipconfig /all" in the console window that pops up. Your MAC address is listed next to Physical Address.

I suggest that you call whoever you got your wireless router or access point from and they should be able to help you properly secure your wireless network. I would also make sure your router security setting is on medium, not low.

You can check out to see how vulnerable your computer is to being accessed from outside your network by going here:

http://www.grc.com

and run the "All service ports" option of ShieldsUp! The instructions are pretty detailed on how to do this and interpret the results. Basically, you want all "green" ports showing in "stealth mode." You don't want your system replying to pings either. Most routers have settings that will allow you to achieve stealth mode (all ports closed and not responding to probes), but each router is different and the best advice on how to achieve this for your router is from the manufacturer or your ISP, if that is who you got it from.

If, after having secured your network, you still get these messages, then you need to start looking internally at your computer. Have you installed and frequently update Spywareblaster and Spybot Search and Destroy? These progams block thousands of bad websites from loading cookies on your machine, and Spybot fills the Hosts table with entries to block thousands of bad websites from ever reaching your computer. If you haven't done so, check out Tut#3 and Tut #20.

_________________
Repa

**ruthsollid** · Subject: Re: ? about Spy Sweeper 6/7/2009, 15:15

I'm so freaked out right now...when I get to "SheildsUp!", where do I find the "All service ports"?

_________________
Ruth

**ruthsollid** · Subject: Re: ? about Spy Sweeper 6/7/2009, 16:10

I was able to find "All Service Ports" and the results weren't very good news. I don't know how safe it is to tell you the results, since someone doesn't have to be a member to read this.

I will call Qwest tomorrow (since it's Sunday today).

OK, I am officially freaked out now....

**Repa** · Subject: Re: ? about Spy Sweeper 6/7/2009, 18:37

Ruth, you can pm me if you want to.

_________________
Repa

**pepperpot** · Subject: Re: ? about Spy Sweeper 6/7/2009, 21:12

ruthsollid wrote:

I was able to find "All Service Ports" and the results weren't very good news. I don't know how safe it is to tell you the results, since someone doesn't have to be a member to read this.
I will call Qwest tomorrow (since it's Sunday today).

OK, I am officially freaked out now....

**ruthsollid** · Subject: Re: ? about Spy Sweeper 6/8/2009, 11:57

Repa,

I found out that I can chat with Qwest, but it was unavailable yesterday. I'm going to try again now.

I do keep my Spyware Blaster up-to-date and I ran Spybot in Safe mode this morning. (It found nothing).

Thanks for the links...I read in that article to turn off the modem, so I did that unless abolutely necessary yesterday and today.

I'll pm you after I chat with Qwest.

Thanks Samantha! I didn't know that!

_________________
Ruth

Hey, Everybody,

Just to let you know, try to watch, or record Glenn Beck Program Friday 4pm CST 11/20/09, Saturday 2pm CST 11/21/09, and Monday 4PM CST, 11/23/09. It's good to watch every day, but, these next 3 programs are to be special.

Also, Saturday 11/21/09, will be a critical day in the Senate in Washington, on healthcare. If you don't want it, tell your sen...

[ Full reading ]