We are seeing a disturbing trend. We’ll clean the malware from a computer and a few months later, the same person is back with more malware. And many of them will ask us where they got it. They’ll also tell us they have X, Y, and Z security programs installed.
We cannot stress enough that you cannot depend on antimalware, antivirus, or antispyware to protect you 100% of the time from 100% of everything you’re likely to encounter on the Internet. And no software can protect you from yourself.
It’s really important that you be EXTREMELY careful when you download anything, especially freeware, that you don’t rush through the installation. But even more importantly, you have to make absolutely sure you’ve downloaded the correct program. Many freeware download pages try to dupe you into downloading something else by putting great bit download buttons all over the page. Why? Because they want to make money. And every single time you click a download button (that is really a download for something else other than what you came to get) they get money.
Most all the malware we’ve seen has come from people downloading bundled software, and much of it from the wrong download link. How do we know? Because we’ll go through their list of programs and ask them why they have Uncle Jimmy’s PC Protector installed (we just made up that name, there is no such product) and they’ll say, I didn’t install that! But there it is, in black and white, Uncle Jimmy’s PC Protector, bigger than life. And most of the time, these things are running in the background as a process or a service.
Dear friends, over 80% of all the computers we have seen in our experience with Cloudeight Direct (and we’ve seen hundreds and hundreds) are infected with malware. It’s bad enough that this malware found its way onto the computers, but it’s even worse when you consider most of it is redirecting searches, gathering information about your search preferences, buying preferences, surfing preferences and sending it all back to Mama Jones (and Uncle Jimmy) and other miscreants. And if that’s not bad enough, let’s add insult to injury…most of these malware programs run as processes or services, often with non-descriptive names, and thus are using up system resources.
We cannot stress strongly enough how very important it is for you to be extremely vigilant when downloading software, especially freeware. Make sure you have the right download link. Don’t click big download buttons unless you are positive it’s a download for the software you wanted. And when you install anything, read each dialog window carefully. If you see any bundled software that’s included in the installer that gives you the option to uncheck the box so as not to install the bundled software, uncheck the box. If you don’t have an option to uncheck a box so that the bundled application or applications are not installed, cancel the installation.
Just yesterday we encountered a download page that tried to confuse the visitor with two big, green download buttons. But neither of these buttons were download buttons for the software program we wanted to download. Of course, we are always on the look out for these kinds of tricks and we found the text link to the correct download link on the page and downloaded the correct program. But many others would have clicked one of the big green download buttons which are advertisements for products which are probably loaded up with malware. Here’s a picture of the page we’re talking about:
The download link is bolded text. The two big green download buttons are advertisements and if you click either of them, you sure won’t get EPS Viewer, but you may get suckered into downloading something — and that something will probably bundled with a myriad of malware applications.
Over 80% of you have malware on your computer. And most of it came from bundled installers or from clicking the wrong download links. And, unfortunately, most security software doesn’t protect you from yourself. You willingly installed the software; whether you knew what it was, for sure, or not. You are the one who gave it permission to install on your computer. And there is no software that can protect you from yourself.
Just because you have a good antivirus, a good antispyware and a good antimalware installed, doesn’t mean you are protected from everything. It doesn’t mean you can sit back and relax, thinking if you make a mistake, one of your security programs will correct it and protect you. Most of these kinds of programs protect you from the really serious threats like viruses, Trojans and some root-kits. But malware of the type that comes bundled with so many installers can really harm your computer, your computer’s resources, and your privacy too.
Your best defense against malware is you, your common sense — and your constant diligence. Be careful when clicking a download link – make sure it’s not an advertisement; make sure it’s for the product you wanted to download and not for something else. And be wary when running the installer. Read every dialog box and uncheck any additional software that they’re trying to encourage you to install, by unchecking the boxes next to the bundled software. They’ll try to make the extra bundled software sound like something you really need and should have, but it seldom is. What it really is, is a way for the freeware developer to make money from you. If they want to make money, let them do it the right ways: Sell the product, ask for donations, or offer a paid version with more features. No one should ever be allow to make money by trickery – but these days, many do.
Remember too, that we offer a very reasonably priced malware removal service ($25.00). If you want to make sure your computer is clean, visit http://thundercloud.net/direct/clean and purchase a malware removal session key — and we’ll clean up all the malware on your computer for you, and give you a fresh, clean start.
what do you know about spyhunter removal tool and is it a good product?