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ain.htm
Title
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The Auto-Dialer Virus Strikes Again
I’ve Been Infected By An Auto-Dialer Virus
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The Auto Dialer Virus Strikes Again – Here at Defending The Net,
we receive hundreds of e-mails daily regarding various computer
security issues. Because we receive so many e-mails and requests
for information, we typically write an article that provides the
answer. However, from time to time, we receive requests that
seem important, or critical in nature, and do our best to try
and help.
On October 4th, we received an e-mail from a visitor we felt
compelled to assist. This person appeared to have a home
computer infected with the Auto-Dialer virus, a malicious piece
of Malware that can cost you a tremendous amount of time, and
more importantly, money.
An Unwelcome Letter From a Long Distance Carrier
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Unfortunate results of the auto dialer virus – Our visitor
received a letter from a well known long distance carrier
indicating they had blocked all long distance calls from their
telephone number, the reason; there were hundreds of phone calls
to 1-900 numbers with fees in excess of $1,500. Our visitor had
contacted his internet provider, explained to them what was
going on, and the Internet provider directed them to and article
located here at Defending The Net on auto-dialers.
The long distance carrier who contacted him was not even his
provider, they represented the company with the 1-900 number. He
contacted the long distance provider and explained to them that
he had no idea what was going on and that he has never dialed a
1-900 number. They explained that there was nothing they could
do for him and they were going to turn over the charges to his
local service provider for collection.
As you can imagine, this was a very strange and stressful time.
The fact of the matter is, these auto-dialers can be quite
stealthy, masking themselves as legitimate software, or
installing themselves in a way that keeps you unaware it has
infected your system. These nefarious pieces of software can
even re-program your modem to turn off the speaker so you are
unaware that it is making unauthorized calls. I cannot stress
how dangerous and how much of a negative impact something like
this can have on your computer, and your checkbook.
How Do I Protect Myself
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One thing you must always be aware of is what type of sites you
are visiting. If the sites you visit have tons of pop-up’s and
banners, some of which may be less than moral / ethical, you can
bet there is a high chance of getting infected with something.
There are other things you should keep in mind or do on a
routine basis:
1) Make sure you have anti-virus software installed and keep the
virus signatures up to date. Out of date virus signatures are a
major cause of computer infection;
2) Install spyware detection software, keep it up to date, and
run it regularly. I run mine at least twice a day. Some of these
software packages have real-time protection similar to
anti-virus software;
3) If you now have high-speed internet access, like cable or DSL
service, and you no longer need the internal modem for faxes or
anything else, remove the phone cable from the modem or remove
the modem from the computer altogether. Many people leave these
devices connected and are at risk for auto-dialer impact; And,
4) If you are on a site that has a lot of pop-ups do not just
click ok when they present themselves. You may be agreeing to
something that can cause you problems.
Conclusion
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If you think you have become infected with an Auto-Dialer, or
receive a letter from a long distance carrier stating you owe
them money for 1-900 or like calls, contact your telephone
service provider right away. Also, disconnect your modem to make
sure no additional calls can be placed and run your anti-virus /
spyware detection software to try and locate the problem. If you
can’t locate the malicious software, you will need to back up
all your data and reinstall your computers operating system.
This is the only “real” way to feel confident you have
eradicated the Auto-Dialer that infected your computer.
About the author:
About The Author
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Darren Miller is an Information Security Consultant with over
sixteen years experience. He has written many technology &
security articles, some of which have been published in
nationally circulated magazines & periodicals. If you would like
to contact Darren you can e-mail him at
Darren.Miller@ParaLogic.Net. If you would like to know more
about computer security and auto-dialer virus please visit us at
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