Moscow (trekearth.com)
January 27, 2012
A. Rootkit Zero Access Viruses
According to Dedicated 2-viruses at
2 Viruses
'ZeroAccess rootkit, also known as Max++, is a nasty piece of malware which is designed to start its persistent campaign just after infiltration. The infiltration of this malware is quite simple and done through security holes together with infected downloads, often Adobe Reader or Java fake updates. It can be said that additional purpose of ZeroAccess rootkit is to set up a stealthy, undetectable and un-removable platform which should help to download malware into the target PC. As you can see, it’s a rootkit which is advanced and sophisticated.'
According to CleanPCGuide.com at
CleanPCGuide
'ZeroAccess rootkit is a malicious trojan horse or bot that may represent security risk for the compromised system and/or its network environment. ZeroAccess rootkit injects rootkit components into Windows processes to avoid detection. It as been also noticed to be used for stealing online banking accounts, disabling some of Windows components, such as User Account Control or others and delivering fake Antivirus applications that should swindle the money from trustful PC users for removal services of malware programs detected by fake antivirus. ZeroAccess rootkit poses a dangerous threat to any computer or system and should be terminated immediately.'
How my computer contracted Rootkit Zero Access Viruses
'Golly, no we got hit by a virus on YouTube, I never heard of that before'.
Former natural body-builder and competitor from East Maple Ridge.
My good friend and frequent blog (s) commenter Bobby Buff/Walter Thomas Franklin very kindly decided he would once again look to YouTube for some theological material in which to comment on my blogs. A couple of weeks earlier he had visited me here in the loft and was on YouTube 'fail' videos which somehow contracted to my computer a fake XP virus alert, similar to what my second citation mentions. I ran Combofix at that time and it appeared to find and delete all traces of Rootkit Zero Access.
However, a couple of weeks later a second time my friend was hit with the viruses, and even though Comboxfix and Kaspersky were both able to find the viruses and delete them, XP would only start in the last known mode that worked and this seemingly guaranteed that the viruses would continue to exist. I also ran SuperAntispyware and Malware Bytes Anti-Malware which deleted some of the viruses 'apparently'. Every other product I tried online either would not load or could not find the viruses sufficiently.
To be blunt, there were some software fails here! I had as the virus name states zero internet access thanks to the series of viruses, and no real ability to fix the problem. With my Mom in the hospital I went to the downstairs part of the condo and used her computer and looked for whatever help I could online.
So, after speaking with professionals and enlightened amateurs my only reasonable option was to reformat XP. I figured a new operating system would be a larger headache with my era of computer unless I just go and buy a new laptop and pass this desktop on to my disabled Mother, which I will likely eventually do. Of course there was 50 hours of work involved and that is not including reloading all my iTunes which still is not completely done, but now I have wisely backed up my key progressive rock, jazz-fusion, art rock and classical discs for 'next time' if evil strikes.
Krym Alupa, Ukraine (trekearth.com)
Lake of Solonets, Oster, Ukraine (trekearth.com)
B. Babylon Toolbar
According to eHow at
eHow
'Babylon is a translation software program that offers one-click translation and dictionary access.'
'Babylon comes with a toolbar that integrates itself with the toolbars in Microsoft Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox and Google Toolbar. Users report that, even after they have uninstalled the Babylon program, this toolbar remains and slows the operation of the computer.'
From Spybot
Spybot
'Babylon Toolbar is a useless toolbar that gets installed by other software, for instance FoxTab Videoconverter. Legal age for installation is 18 while this fact is only mentioned in the terms. Babylon Toolbar installs itself to the system, the Internet Explorer, Firefox and Google Chrome. The Babylon.Toolbar is almost identical to Toolbar.Facemood. Some affiliates like MediGet also install Babylon and the Babylon Toolbar without proper userconsent using a count down timer to start install.'
What I found is that Babylon somehow through my web searches with Google got into both the Internet Explorer and Firefox browsers, defaces them and then basically without one's permission creates not only a Babylon Toolbar but virtually a Babylon browser. Chucky was on Google Chrome for only a few minutes and Babylon hijacked that browser as well. It does not attack Safari at this point. It took Cardinal Chucklins and I around 45 minutes to get rid of Babylon from Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Google Chrome on my computer. I am disappointed to see Microsoft involved with Babylon and as Uncle Chuckles stated that night, Google needs to upgrade their security.
February 20, 2012
From the Mail Online
C. Westboro Baptist Church pretends to picket Whitney Houston funeral by using Photoshopped picture of protest
WBC
Quote:
'The notorious Westboro Baptist Church promised to picket Whitney Houston's funeral, claiming that the star died because she disobeyed God.
On Saturday, the day of the ceremony, church leader Margie Phelps claimed that the protest was 'rocking the house' as she tweeted a picture which appeared to show signs saying 'God hates fags' outside the funeral in New Jersey.
But it now appears that the famously anti-gay church may not have been at the funeral at all - instead, they used Photoshop to make it seem as it they were there.'
'Ms Phelps took to Twitter claiming that the church planned to protest at Ms Houston's funeral at New Hope Baptist Church, saying: 'So many piling up to blather about her today. Not ONE of them warned her of hell.'
From the bit I watched of the funeral, as I am not much of a celebrity viewer, Ms. Houston appeared to have been a Christian believer and so according to Scripture (John 1, John 3, Ephesians 1-3, Romans 8, Romans 10) would not be heading to hell, but heaven/paradise (Luke 23: 43, 2 Corinthians 12: 4, Philippians 1) despite struggles with sin and lack of good works, potentially in Christ (1 Corinthians 3: 10-15, Hebrews 6: 4-8, James 2, 2 Peter 3: 8-13). She apparently at least had a public confession of Christ which reminds one of Romans 10: 13.
To Photoshop the protest and then claim it happened is of course dishonest. This is a breaking of the Ten Commandments, the ninth in Exodus 20: 16 where it states not to give/bear false witness. From the New Testament...
Colossians 3:9-10 (New American Standard Bible)
9 [a]Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old [b]self with its evil practices, 10 and have put on the new self who is being [c]renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him—
To protest funerals in the first place is unloving from a Biblical perspective (Matthew 22, Mark 12, John 15) and from what I gather based on very presumptive dangerous theology on the potential everlasting states of the deceased.
