Thursday, April 08, 2010

Fake Security Programs -- Rogues

Malware disguised as security programs; that is, rogues, have been plaguing internet surfers for the past five years. As time passes, the rogues have become more sophisticated, having the ability to disable Windows Update, firewall, antivirus and anti-malware software, cause web search re-directs and change file associations.

I follow a number of resources to stay up-to-date on the latest rogues. Often times two or three new rogues can be reported in any given day. These sources include sites such as Malwarebytes blog, updates by S!Ri on his blog, Bleeping Computer reports such as "Script kiddies making rogues for fame and not profit", SunbeltBLOG and others.

Security Garden readers may not have much interest in following those sites. However, it is important that you understand what a rogue is and what it can do. Even more importantly, understand how to check for and remove a rogue if your computer becomes infected. Just like the realistic phishing e-mails you may occasionally receive in your mailbox, the rogues are very realistic appearing.

The brief videos linked below were created by Microsoft to provide general information and help about rogue software. Take a few minutes now to add to your personal knowledge base so you will know not only what to do but, most importantly, how to prevent your computer from being infected.

What is rogue software?




How to check for rogue software?



How to defend your computer against rogue software?



Clubhouse Tags: Clubhouse, Microsoft, Windows, Security, Safety, Information,



Remember - "A day without laughter is a day wasted."
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2 comments:

Smith said...

Corrine,
You are SPOT ON!
Thanks a lot for sharing such a nice a nice informative article about the Rogue software. Rogue security software is a form of computer malware that deceives or misleads users into paying for the fake or simulated removal of malware, or that installs other malware.
You had given awesome information How to defend against it, thanks a lot for it,

By the way for more information about the Ethical Hacking and its Certification check this link: http://www.eccouncil.org/certification/certified_ethical_hacker.aspx

Anti Spyware said...

Downloading a fake or rogue software is more dangerous than not having the PC protection. It just behaves like a software but sends all your private details to the third party advertisers.