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MAJOR VIRUS WARNING--DO NOT USE INTERNET EXPLORER RIGHT NOW

Hi to everyone on BC/TS.
I just received a message from my Son-in-Law who stated; while at a meeting today, their IT person came into the meeting and told everyone "DO NOT USE Internet Explorer until "Patch Tuesday" which is May 6 2014; and when Microsoft will fix the "security breach" that has placed an extremely dangerous virus, called a "watering hole" out there. "Watering holes" get their name from how lions stay around water holes that they know other animals will come to and drink.

Hackers inject their virus code into normal, everyday websites, then when a person goes to that website as she/he may do daily or so, the virus gets into the user computer.
The hacker/s are calling their campaign "Operation Clandestine Fox".

The IT person further said that the hack was done using a "corrupted" Adobe Flash issue; and the BEST suggestion was to go into your programs and STOP Adobe Flash on your personal or business computer/s for the time being until all fixes can be made.
The belief right now is that turning off Adobe Flash will prevent the Virus from getting into your computer.(THIS IS A BEST GUESS).

Further, it is safe, (at least right now), to enter the Internet by using any other browser, such as Chrome, Firefox, Mozilla, and such; as it appears only Explorer has been hacked.
My Son-in-Law also told me in his message, that the IT person informed them that the Department of Homeland Security was also involved in tracking down the hacker/s who created and employed this VERY DESTRUCTIVE VIRUS.

Additional FYI: This issue has been KNOWN ABOUT since Saturday April 26, 2014; and only now has it been released out to the public.

I realize this is not the normal use for the Blog, but I do want all my "favorite friends" to have a very safe, pleasant "surfing" experience, and also not have BC/TS again getting serious problems as we all have seen lately, and all the very hard work our "illustrious and intrepid" Web Site Administrator/s have been doing to keep us all together as a happy family.
Janice Lynn

Comments

IE 0 Day

Here's the scoop:

https://isc.sans.edu/forums/diary/IE+Zero+Day+Advisory+from+...

And again:

http://arstechnica.com/security/2014/04/windows-0day-flash-b...

Notice that Adobe has issued an emergency update to Flash.

There's also a second, completely independent, 0-day against Firefox.

And if you thought Heartbleed has been handled, think again.

http://www.wired.com/2014/04/heartbleed_embedded/

And if you need to go to the hospital:

http://www.wired.com/2014/04/hospital-equipment-vulnerable/

Remember: you're not paranoid if they're really out to get you.

Welcome to the new world.

We may be bomed back to 98.

It was only a year or so ago that I was reading about some of the big Fortune 500 who have stayed with 98 writing new code to keep there internal systems going. I do not know if that is practical but with all the holes created by MS allowing for exploitation I am very hesitate to go to another operating system. I do not know MS products well enough to know what in the past is secure or if I need to go to Umbatue Lenex based system.

My 1.9 gh system works fine for what I want it to do, in fact most of what I do could be done on 98 with exception of internet. I am not interested in a toy to play with I am interested in using and processing data for many of the various projects I have interest in. A lot of the older equipment is robust and able to take a beating. It can cheaply ] cost effectively } up graded when I need to do so. The newer equipment is a lot more prone to catastrophic failure and to compromise by who ever has the mind to.

I think there will be some second party effort to keep XP up due to how many people. offices, hospitals. etc etc etc still are sing it. Vista locked people out of there XP comparable data bases considering it a security threat. I had a single net book with Windoes 7 on it and I could see nothing but cosmetic differences between that and XP, but I have been informed that this new tech operating system works very differently inside of its structure.

I do firmly believe in intellectual property rights, But for these big people it does not come down to our level only what they can tie up in there web. So Does any one have any Ideas. This is what I am doing at this time.

1] Create a separate isolated Establishing my own data base of the commonly used information I need to use from legally sourced sites.

2] Limit my internet browsing to a supported Op sys that I can keep secure as possible [ S A P ]. All data to be kept needs to be sieved as best as I can for computer pathogens before storing them.

3] Any down loading I am doing is going to a jump drive or an SD chip separate from my main computer memory.

4] I never have and will never store personal information or pass words on my system.

Any thing else I would love to hear.

Huggles

Michele

With those with open eyes the world reads like a book

celtgirl_0.gif

"Umbatue Lenex"

Ha-ha. That is a good name. I think you might be really referring to Ubuntu Linux.

Given the (IMHO) sorry state of Ubuntu these days, the best alternative and one easiest for former windows users to pick up is probable Mint.

however if you need to stick with windows there are many better alternative browsers out there. my personal choice is to use Firefox with Adblock-Plus and noScript plugins. It also runs on Linux and OSX which can't be said for IE.

Google Chrome is also not bad, if you don't mind it possible 'phoning home' your movements around the internet.

Even Microsoft's own web site is now navigable with Firefox so I only ever use IE when I have to access my companies Corporate Applications.

The sad thing is that even if you don't use IE Directly in windows, you are using a lot of its code because much of it is integrated with Windows Explorer.

Samantha

{PS. If you do use Firefox with Adblock-Plus and no-Script you will have to 'educate' its configuration so that BC works properly and you can see the images and adverts.}

administrator account

Don't use an account with administrative privileges for day-to-day computing. Because if someone does hijack your computer over the internet they can do anything the logged in user has rights to do.

"we can turn it all around, because it's not too late, it's NEVER too late" -(never too late, Three Days Grace)

Mew?

Why would anyone use internet explorer? It's been a virus fest for years now xD Firefox and Chrome all the way :D

I know who I am, I am me, and I like me ^^
Transgender, Gamer, Little, Princess, Therian and proud :D

this^

Sadarsa's picture

yeah,IE's been the internet's Leper for over 5 years now... i'm surprised not only that people still use it... but that hacker's think it's worthwhile to continue hacking. If they wanted a larger target audience, they'd go after Chrome or Firefox (technically chrome's better... but screw Google! lol)

~Your only Limitation is your Imagination~

IE

Internet Explorer, the best web browser there is to download another web browser.

Browser fairness

Internet Explorer has been a punching bag for years, sometimes it has deserved it and sometimes it has been too easy of a target. Firefox hasn't been immune from problems maybe nothing on this scale, and surely we won't have to wait too long before destructive minds turn their attention to webkit based browsers in an attempt to send chrome and safari users running for cover

-
You can't choose your relatives but you can choose your family.

Then we'll just go to the next one

Any time a browser gets corrupted, someone makes a better one. So we'll just go to that one. No big deal really. Browsers are expendable :3

I know who I am, I am me, and I like me ^^
Transgender, Gamer, Little, Princess, Therian and proud :D

From what I'm reading, the

From what I'm reading, the real flaw isn't in IE - it's in Adobe Flash Player.

The Washington Post article (which, it turns out, isn't readable unless you allow the entire web site to have active scripting support) points out that 1) You have to use Flash, or 2) have someone click on a link, so they can hit a specially crafted script.

That's no different than everything _else_ that my customers have been infecting themselves with.

So, if you're running XP, switch to another browser (why haven't you anyway? Microsoft basically abandoned XP for browsers two years before officially abandoning it), and pay attention to what you do online.


I'll get a life when it's proven and substantiated to be better than what I'm currently experiencing.

I'm not very computer savvy

But its been 6 years at least since I started using Firefox and at least 2 years since I used IE in any fashion.

Now if I could get my cat to stop jumping in my lap so I can finish my next ebook......

Daniel, author of maid, whore, bimbo, and sissy free TG fiction since 2000

What the world needs is more geniuses with humility; there are so few of us left.- Oscar Levant