Hackers--Am I a victim?

[getitdone1]

Sometimes my computer does some odd things or slows way down. Then, I often wonder if I am having problems with hackers.

Today I began looking into how to discover hackers on your computer and how to track them down.

Hacking is against the law. Wonder what the penalty is when caught?

If not too expensive I may hire what they call a "Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator (CHFI)." If I find there's someone even more qualified I may hire them.

Is it possible for a very competent hacker to hack and not leave any "tracks?"

Are the popular anti-virus/anti-spyware programs a joke to a good hacker? I'm using Norton.

Wondering what experience along these lines some of you here have had? Did you catch a hacker?

Back in Indiana I had to have expensive work done on my computer due to viruses, one a Trojan. Tends to make a person suspicious.

Don

[Derenius]

The way I see it, there is most of the time very small, or no reasons for a hacker to invade a personal computer. If it´s some sort of business´s machine, there might be more interest. I don´t think I´ve heard of one single case of an "average Joe´s" computer being hacked for serious or malicious reasons. There just is not enough to gain from doing it, compared to the amount of work the hacker would have to put in.
I might be naive, but I really don´t think you have to worry.
And, if you are seriously convinced that someone IS hacking your machine, just keep all banking and sensitive stuff off that machine.
If a hacker really wanted to, no anti-virus software would stopp them.

[getitdone1]

Derenius,

Thanks for your thoughts. I would never do banking business online. I agree, if a pro hacker wants to access your computer, he can do it. Makes me wonder why the experts who make the anti-virus programs can't defeat the hackers 100%.

Don

[Derenius]

Well, I only live in little old Sweden, but I have never ever worried about doing my banking online. I´ve been doing so for at least 15 years now, and have never had anything strange happen. That I didn´t cause myself, that is...
Neither have I ever been subjected to any form of an attack on my computers. In fact, as long as one uses ones head, and don´t visit places that MIGHT be virus-ridden, you don´t even need a anti-virus software. I haven´t had one for 10 years... And my machine stays on all the time! I only shut it off if I´m going away for more than a couple of days, or when there is a thunderstorm. Never in those ten years have I ever had a virus either...

[sore shoulder]

The only way for hackers to get into your online banking is using your password info, and the only way to get that is using a keylogger (usually defeated by the secure login page) or somehow getting you to enter the info into a cloned sign in. I personally have seen clone pages twice. Never ever log into anything from an email link, those are almost always whats known as phishing. And if you suddenly get a popup that says you have been logged out and offers a popup login page, do not use it, it's probably a clone.

And don't kid yourself, hackers are very most definitely interested in hacking you. They will attempt to get any personal information they possibly can. As far as that goes, all web browsers are "hacking" you. Ever wonder why the ads you see on your email home page just happen to be the very things you looked at recently? Every time you visit almost any website you will be vulnerable to and recieve tracking cookies.

If your computer is running slow at times there are probably things running in the background. CTRL+ALT+DELETE, then look at whats using your computers RAM the most.

Another thing people don't do is clean unused root keys etc. I use a free version of a very well reviewed program called CCleaner. I recommend getting it and using it.

Also, Malwarebytes.

Also, if you have less than a Gig of RAM, you will encounter slow speeds everytime you are on the net because the browsers have so much information on them now, and if your antivirus starts running a scan at the same time, forget it. Minimum RAM these days is 2Gig.

I get antivirus free through the military. They used to offer a choice of Norton or McAffee. Now all they offer is McAfee. Using other deep scan programs I have not found any viruses or Trojans in over a year. Whatever antivirus you use, if it's not updated daily, you are vulnerable.

Thats just what I know, which aint much, but I know people who know a LOT about this and this is what I do to stay safe.

[Derenius]

I think it´s fair to say, that the situation might be vastly different, depending on where you live. As I stated before, with some common sense, and awareness, you have the best protection. However, what sore shoulder writes, is also true. But I do believe that for my own part, I dont have to worry that much, because of where I live, and how I use the interwebs. I take care, and for me that´s been working great. But, as with everything, the only one who can say when you should feel safe is you. Do what ever it takes to feel that, and enjoy the internet.

[soon 2 retire]

Here's a link to an article I came across on Fox News today. It appears that a lot of computers have been infected worldwide. Infected computers won't be able to access the Internet after July 9. The site mentions a website that gives instructions to detect and eliminate the virus. The virus shuts down anti virus software on the infected computers.


http://scitech.foxnews.mobi/quickPage.h ... roteus.fma



Bob in Friday Harbor

[getitdone1]

I have 8 Gigs of ram. Believe I read, or someone told me, my Windows Vista OS cannot use that much ram but Windows 7 can. Still...I'm not running slow at times due to a lack of memory--unless, somehow the memory isn't working properly.

When I do a cold boot-up it takes a long time before I can begin using computer. About 3 minutes, as I recall. This is with my desktop with Vista and 8 Gigs of ram.

My new laptop boots-up much faster with, I believe, 4 Gigs of ram and Windows 7.

Don

[Griff]

I have 8 gigs of ram also. And my son tells me (he's in the 'puter generation), it's all those "instances" of IE that you have open. So when the computer wants to do something else... your ram is tied up and it slows things down. I used to use PC-Cillin exclusively... but since I got this "bigger, faster, stronger" laptop from the kid... and he already had Norton 360 Premier Edition, I've just used it for several months now. No issues with any attempts to hack.

[Dave]

We have had good luck with Malware Bytes. You can download it free. It will get a lot of mess off your PC. That combined with AVG, which is another free download, keeps our computers pretty clean. Spybot is another good cleaner and Avast is a good preventer.

[Hankster]

Windows 7 32 bit, will only use/see use up to 3.072 gigs, no matter HOW much Ram you install.
Now, if you are running Windows 7 64 bit... then it will see ALL the Ram you have... just the way the architecture is set up.
Microsoft Security Essentials for AV.. FREE, and works very well. Use an occasional scan of Malwarebytes, THEN a cross scan of "SuperAntispyware" Free edition.....for MAX security. Be sure, to update both,right before using them , for latest definitions. MSE auto updates itelf. Spybot S&D, has gotten old, and their def's are not updated very often anymore, so i dropped them. They also thru more false positives in the end.. old Tech.

[Griff]

Windows 7 32 bit, will only use/see use up to 3.072 gigs, no matter HOW much Ram you install.
Now, if you are running Windows 7 64 bit... then it will see ALL the Ram you have... just the way the architecture is set up.
Microsoft Security Essentials for AV.. FREE, and works very well. Use an occasional scan of Malwarebytes, THEN a cross scan of "SuperAntispyware" Free edition.....for MAX security. Be sure, to update both,right before using them , for latest definitions. MSE auto updates itelf. Spybot S&D, has gotten old, and their def's are not updated very often anymore, so i dropped them. They also thru more false positives in the end.. old Tech.

Huh?

[MrMurphy]

Get rid of Norton. Be aware it might require a hard drive wipe to do so, as Norton is effectively a virus of it's own.

Once installed, it doesn't like getting uninstalled, and will leave files all over (or modify ones you already have). Odds are, a combination of Norton and Win Vista with a hard drive that hasn't been defragged in a while is what's causing it.

Windows should never take 3 minutes to start up. Ever.


I work in the gaming business, and one thing we know is net security. Our IT guys only recommend Malwarebytes and one other program I can't remember the name to at the moment (it's 6am), and AVG also scores high marks. They all run screaming from Norton.

And these are guys who've been to every school Microsoft offers with the certificates to prove it (in the IT world, the equivalent of being a master gunsmith, or having a doctorate).

Run at least two different companies programs as not all catch the same bugs, and do it about once every two weeks. Don't do dumb things online and you're generally safe, i.e don't hit up porn sites, don't click on links from people you don't know (even ones you do, be cautious) and etc etc.

Keylogging and viruses cause a lot of issues.

[FatJackDurham]

Hi, I am a network engineer in real life, and have been working with computers professionally for more than 15 years. I will offer the sum of my experience on this subject, and you can take what you will:

1) There are the same idealogues in IT as there are in any industry who will swear this or swear that. 85% of the time, they recommend what they are most familiar with, not what is best.

2) World-wide organized crime has been focusing on hacking to capture credit card info and identity info for the past decade. It is their current greatest profit center.

3) 15 years ago, hacking was "targeted", meaning you could hide in a crowd. Now days, computers are so powerful that hackers "sweep" the Internet, using every vulnerability they can find, including home users.

4) Home users with broadband connections a valuable to hackers because they allow hackers to control vast numbers of computers to run operations. If your computer is compromised, you may unwittingly be helping to hack a bank, provide anonymous access for others to the web and email, or sharing files without you knowledge.

5) Consumer Reports and other "independant" publications occasionally review free and paid security software.

6) There are several kinds of security software:
a) Antivirus: AV software can scan your drive for viruses. It can protect you from known threats.
b) "Security Suites": More than simple AV, security suites not only scan for viruses, they also monitor your connections and block live problems. For instance, if you get an email with a dangerous payload, a security suite that has email monitoring will protect you. Also important are Web scanners, that plug into your browser and monitor the websites you visit. If they have malicious code in the web page, the scanner will warn you.
c) Malware Cleaners: No quite anti-virus, malware cleaners can scan your computer for worms and trojans or other spyware that websites deposit to track your usage to invade your privacy.
d) Firewalls: The Internet uses a language called TCP/IP. This means your network card is listening all the time for legitimate traffic. Windows also has other ports listening for traffic that might not be used on the internet, such as printing or network drives, etc. Firewalls block all ports that should not be open. In Vista and Windows 7, and to a small extent XP, the firewal is configure for this. YOu should have it enabled, and set your Internet connection as Public network to get some kind of protection.

7) MS Windows and computer performance: Oh,boy. One of the biggest problems with windows historically is that it accummulates stuff over time and slows down. Often the only solution is to reload.
a) Vista is a terrible OS. If you have Vista, you should upgrade to Windows 7.
b) 32 bit Windows and Memory: The original versions of XP and Vista can only access 4 GB of memory at a time. Some versions can use a "switch" in their boot up parameters to access more, but only for programs designed to take advantage off it, which rarely is used in the home. 64-bit Windows 7 is one of the better OS that Microsoft has ever produced, right up there with Windows 98 SE and XP. If you have Vista, you should upgrade. If you have more than 4 GB ram, you should use 64 bits.

To protect yourself you need to have security softwarew RUNNING and CONFIGURED. This will cause a lot of background use. YOu will lose performance on the PC if you don't have multiple processors, which most modern computers have, and extra memory, which most can get. However, you need to pick a good suite.

9) To protect yourself, you need to make sure you don't let the baddies in. The easy way in to your computer is for you to go to a website and click "OK" to run a control or something that you don't know what it does. It's hard for non-professionals to recognise this when it happens. Here, at easter, we always get e-cards that people get from friends, that contain malware. It's not malicious that their friends are attacking us, they just don't know it's there.

10) Learn to keep your files in specific locations, and keep your installation software. SOmetimes, you have to just get your computer reloaded. Backing up just a few folders where your pictures, documents and Quicken files are is easier than the whole computer.

11) Norton/Symantic Security Suite - Very powerful, very resource intensive. If you have a powerful computer, with extra CPUs and memory, this is a good suite. Expensive, heavy handed, but once you learn it and how to update it, it provides good security.

12) The currently top rated on Consumer Reports Free software is: Avira Free AntiVirus, with AVG just behind

13) The currently top rated on consumer reports Pay Software is: Avira Internet Security 2012, with G Data, then Kaspersky and ESET all "recommended'. Norton did not make the Consumer Reports "recommended" list, which only means, that they found other software to be better values.

It all comes down to the user. If you don't have active web scanning, and you go to suspect sites like porn or fraudulent business or spam sites, your computer will be attacked. Sometimes, links off of legitimate sites like CNN directing you to a blog site may introduce a trojan. You need to have security software that actively scans your computer for attacks, and can clean. Firewalls should always be enabled.

I hope this helps.

[FatJackDurham]

One more thing, hackers produce "fake" security software. YOu might get a pop up on a website that says" Your computer is infected, download this software!"

NEVER do that. If you want to check software, google it. There are armies of "white hats" out there that keep track of these things. hoax.com and other websites keep records of what email scams, bad software, etc exist.

Also, Malwarebytes was not evaluated on ConsumerReports, but that should not be construed badly. Not all software or products are evaluated.

Malwarebytes IS a reputable and effective product, but as with all FreeWares, only the pay versions provide the ACTIVE protections. THe free versions are usually after the fact scanners and cleaners.

[bdhold]

It used to take my home computer 20 minutes to start up.
I doubled my RAM ($35) and now it starts in 30 seconds.

[getitdone1]

Big thanks to all of you guys and especially FatJackDurham for your lengthy response.

I think I might just get a new hard drive with Windows 7 on it. Makes for lots of work to get back-up to speed but expect it'd be worth it and also get rid of my present Vista OS.

Getting 'mixed signals' with Norton antivirus so not yet definite about a new antivirus program. One time I had an experienced computer guy--he was accessing my computer at the time--with my permission--and he said he thought a person was about as well off without an antivirus program and that they slowed down your computer a bunch. Have not found anyone that agrees with him.

Don

[FatJackDurham]

Getting 'mixed signals' with Norton antivirus so not yet definite about a new antivirus program. One time I had an experienced computer guy--he was accessing my computer at the time--with my permission--and he said he thought a person was about as well off without an antivirus program and that they slowed down your computer a bunch. Have not found anyone that agrees with him.

Don

Hah! Norton will drive you to do that. There was a period of time when AV software was severily behind the curve and infections were better managed through isolation.

Norton really isn't a great consumer product. We use it at work because it has enterprise level management features. If I were you, I'd use AVG or Avira, paying for the pro versions to get active scanning. I agree with your tech that the compter runs faster without... until its infected.

You could also use a MacIntosh. Those truely don't need AV, as they are based on an operating system with a completely different security model. There are viruses that target Macs, but those so far have required pretty egrecious user cooperation to work, and once Apple finally acknowledged the problem, they issued a patch.

I believe for my father's computer, I installed Avira and Spybot Search and Destroy.

But like I said, active scanning is your best defence, so Avira is currently a great one. Definitely upgrade away from Vista..... can't go wrong there. Especially if you have extra memory.

[bdhold]

My BIL is VP Infrastructure for a major oil company. He said his IS guys say McAfee is the only AV program that works.

[sore shoulder]

My BIL is VP Infrastructure for a major oil company. He said his IS guys say McAfee is the only AV program that works.

The military apparently feels the same way as they stopped offering Norton and only offer McAfee, and I havent had a single trojan or virus in over a year, and I surf a lot with multiple browser pages open.

[FatJackDurham]

My BIL is VP Infrastructure for a major oil company. He said his IS guys say McAfee is the only AV program that works.

The military apparently feels the same way as they stopped offering Norton and only offer McAfee, and I havent had a single trojan or virus in over a year, and I surf a lot with multiple browser pages open.

Thats good to know. McAfee had really gone down hill a few years ago. They had been the number 1 AV in the mid nineties, but when they started acquiring all kinds of stuff, and trying to become Symantec, they really screwed it up. Government contracts are affected by a lot of stuff besides the quality of the actual product, but if it's really working for you and the Army, that's good news.

[sore shoulder]

My BIL is VP Infrastructure for a major oil company. He said his IS guys say McAfee is the only AV program that works.

The military apparently feels the same way as they stopped offering Norton and only offer McAfee, and I havent had a single trojan or virus in over a year, and I surf a lot with multiple browser pages open.

Thats good to know. McAfee had really gone down hill a few years ago. They had been the number 1 AV in the mid nineties, but when they started acquiring all kinds of stuff, and trying to become Symantec, they really screwed it up. Government contracts are affected by a lot of stuff besides the quality of the actual product, but if it's really working for you and the Army, that's good news.

I run Malwarebytes and CCleaner often and Malwarebytes hasn't found anything in over a year. The McAfee active scanning and firewall seems to catch everything.