Malware can knock thousands off the Internet on Monday
WASHINGTON
(AP) - Despite repeated warnings, tens of thousands of Americans may
still lose their Internet service on Monday unless you do a quick check
of their computer for malware that would take their cars over a year
ago.
The warnings about the problem of the Internet have been slammed in Facebook and Google. Internet service providers have posted notices, and the FBI set up a special website.
According to the FBI, the number of infected computers that probably has more than 277,000 worldwide, down from 360,000 in April. Nearly 64,000 infected computers are probably still in the United States.
The Canadian Internet Registration Authority has about 25,000 computers initially affected by malware in Canada, but now only about 7,000 machines are infected there, according to Canadian Internet Registration Authority spokesman Mark Buell.
He said his organization, along with Public Safety Canada and the Canadian Radio-Television Telecommunications Commission, has developed an online site where computer users can control their computers for malware.
People whose computers are still infected on Monday will lose their ability to go online, and will call their service providers to help eliminate malware and reconnect to the Internet.
The problem started when international hackers, has posted an online ad scam to take control of more than 570,000 infected computers worldwide. When the FBI went to kill the hackers late last year, officials realized that if they turned off the malicious servers used to control computers, all the victims would lose their Internet service.
In a very unusual move, the FBI has established a safety net. They brought in a private company for the installation of two servers for the Internet to recruit clean malicious servers so that people would not suddenly lose their internet.
And while he was the first time I had done something like this, FBI officials acknowledged that might not be the last, as the authorities are taking more of these types of investigations.
The temporary Internet have created, however, will close at 12:01 am EDT Monday, July 9.
Most victims do not even know their computers have been infected, even if the malware has probably slowed the online browsing and disable your antivirus software, making their machines more vulnerable to other problems.
But popular social networking sites and Internet providers have gotten involved, reach out to computer users to warn of the problem.
According to Tom Grasso, a supervisory special agent of the FBI, many Internet providers are ready for the problem and are planning to try to help their customers. Some, like Comcast, already tense.
The company sent notices and information posted on its website. Because the company can tell if there is a problem with the Internet server to a client, Comcast has sent a warning e-mail, letter or Internet to customers whose computers seemed to be affected.
Grasso said the other Internet providers can come up with technical solutions that will be implemented Monday to correct the problem or provide information to customers when they call to say their Internet does not work. If the Internet service providers to solve the problem of the server, the Internet works, but the malware on victim machines will remain and could create future problems.
In addition to the owners of individual computers, about 50 Fortune 500 companies are still infected, said Grasso.
Both Facebook and Google have created their own alert messages that showed up, if someone using the site seemed to have an infected computer. Facebook users will receive a message that says: "Your computer or the network may be infected," along with a link that users can click for more information.
Google users received a similar message, which appears at the top of a page of search results on Google. It also provides information on how to solve the problem.
To check if a computer is infected, users can visit a website operated by the group introduced by the FBI: http://www.dcwg.org.
The site contains links to authoritative sites that trade will play a quick check on the computer, and also provides detailed instructions if users actually want to control their computer.
Associated Press Writer Charmaine Noronha in Toronto contributed to this report.
Online:
To check and clean your computer: http://www.dcwg.org
Canadian web sites: http://www.dns-ok.ca/ ~ = ~ HEAD NNS
Comcast Warning: http://forums.comcast.com/t5/Security-and-Anti-Virus/DNS-Changer-Bot-FAQ/td-p/1215341
Google: http://googleonlinesecurity.blogspot.com/2012/05/notifying-users-affected-by-dnschanger.html
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/notes/facebook-security/notifying-dnschanger-victims/10150833689760766
The warnings about the problem of the Internet have been slammed in Facebook and Google. Internet service providers have posted notices, and the FBI set up a special website.
According to the FBI, the number of infected computers that probably has more than 277,000 worldwide, down from 360,000 in April. Nearly 64,000 infected computers are probably still in the United States.
The Canadian Internet Registration Authority has about 25,000 computers initially affected by malware in Canada, but now only about 7,000 machines are infected there, according to Canadian Internet Registration Authority spokesman Mark Buell.
He said his organization, along with Public Safety Canada and the Canadian Radio-Television Telecommunications Commission, has developed an online site where computer users can control their computers for malware.
People whose computers are still infected on Monday will lose their ability to go online, and will call their service providers to help eliminate malware and reconnect to the Internet.
The problem started when international hackers, has posted an online ad scam to take control of more than 570,000 infected computers worldwide. When the FBI went to kill the hackers late last year, officials realized that if they turned off the malicious servers used to control computers, all the victims would lose their Internet service.
In a very unusual move, the FBI has established a safety net. They brought in a private company for the installation of two servers for the Internet to recruit clean malicious servers so that people would not suddenly lose their internet.
And while he was the first time I had done something like this, FBI officials acknowledged that might not be the last, as the authorities are taking more of these types of investigations.
The temporary Internet have created, however, will close at 12:01 am EDT Monday, July 9.
Most victims do not even know their computers have been infected, even if the malware has probably slowed the online browsing and disable your antivirus software, making their machines more vulnerable to other problems.
But popular social networking sites and Internet providers have gotten involved, reach out to computer users to warn of the problem.
According to Tom Grasso, a supervisory special agent of the FBI, many Internet providers are ready for the problem and are planning to try to help their customers. Some, like Comcast, already tense.
The company sent notices and information posted on its website. Because the company can tell if there is a problem with the Internet server to a client, Comcast has sent a warning e-mail, letter or Internet to customers whose computers seemed to be affected.
Grasso said the other Internet providers can come up with technical solutions that will be implemented Monday to correct the problem or provide information to customers when they call to say their Internet does not work. If the Internet service providers to solve the problem of the server, the Internet works, but the malware on victim machines will remain and could create future problems.
In addition to the owners of individual computers, about 50 Fortune 500 companies are still infected, said Grasso.
Both Facebook and Google have created their own alert messages that showed up, if someone using the site seemed to have an infected computer. Facebook users will receive a message that says: "Your computer or the network may be infected," along with a link that users can click for more information.
Google users received a similar message, which appears at the top of a page of search results on Google. It also provides information on how to solve the problem.
To check if a computer is infected, users can visit a website operated by the group introduced by the FBI: http://www.dcwg.org.
The site contains links to authoritative sites that trade will play a quick check on the computer, and also provides detailed instructions if users actually want to control their computer.
Associated Press Writer Charmaine Noronha in Toronto contributed to this report.
Online:
To check and clean your computer: http://www.dcwg.org
Canadian web sites: http://www.dns-ok.ca/ ~ = ~ HEAD NNS
Comcast Warning: http://forums.comcast.com/t5/Security-and-Anti-Virus/DNS-Changer-Bot-FAQ/td-p/1215341
Google: http://googleonlinesecurity.blogspot.com/2012/05/notifying-users-affected-by-dnschanger.html
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/notes/facebook-security/notifying-dnschanger-victims/10150833689760766
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