| Author |
PC QUESTION? |
jttar
Moderator
Premium Member
Rank: Sony Master
Joined: Feb 28, 2003
Posts: 9156
From: Chicago,IL, USA
 |  Posted: 2012-04-17 21:24
dragon53,
Any thing happening with a solution yet?
Joe
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dragon53
Rank: Ultimate Sony Reviewer
Joined: Nov 01, 2002
Posts: 2891
From:
 | Posted: 2012-04-18 11:11
JTTAR:
I called AT&T on Monday morning to inquire about the free modem/router they offered me. The rep I talked to said they would not send me one.
I called back Tuesday and talked to another rep and asked if my telephone/DSL account was on a contract or monthly basis, so if I switched providers, would I incur a penalty fee. The new rep asked why I would consider switching providers, so I told her about my modem problem. She said AT&T would send me a new modem/router at no charge. She confirmed that their Motorola modems were pretty bad. Hopefully, the new modem/router will arrive on day or so.
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jttar
Moderator
Premium Member
Rank: Sony Master
Joined: Feb 28, 2003
Posts: 9156
From: Chicago,IL, USA
| Posted: 2012-04-18 21:49
Thanks for the update dragon53. Please let us knowif the new modem solves the connectivity problem.
Joe
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dragon53
Rank: Ultimate Sony Reviewer
Joined: Nov 01, 2002
Posts: 2891
From:
| Posted: 2012-04-20 00:02
JTTAR:
My new modem arrived today. SO FAR it's working fine and is faster than the Motorola. I think the Motorola had been dying for about a year because my speed was getting slower and videos were halting.
I haven't found any real reviews of the new modem so I don't know how reliable it will be, but here's the link:
http://www.att.com/equipment/accessory-details/?wtSlotClick=1-0071ZM-0-1&WT.svl=calltoaction&q_categoryid=cat2020062&q_sku=sku5520238&q_manufacturer=&q_model=
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jttar
Moderator
Premium Member
Rank: Sony Master
Joined: Feb 28, 2003
Posts: 9156
From: Chicago,IL, USA
| Posted: 2012-04-20 13:34
Good news dragon53! Happy to hear that the Pace is faster than the Motorola. Always a bonus to pick up speed. Thank you for the update.
Joe
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dragon53
Rank: Ultimate Sony Reviewer
Joined: Nov 01, 2002
Posts: 2891
From:
| Posted: 2012-04-21 14:05
JTTAR,
More bad news.....my pc got the Smart virus Friday night.
I've run repeated scans with Malwarebyte and Avast which have removed infected files, but the Smart virus is still there.
Any suggestions on how to remove completely?
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jttar
Moderator
Premium Member
Rank: Sony Master
Joined: Feb 28, 2003
Posts: 9156
From: Chicago,IL, USA
| Posted: 2012-04-21 21:31
Damn dragon, guess you pissed off the gods somehow. OK, so I found this free down loadable program that is supposed to restore your computer back to the way it was before the Smart Virus. Look HERE.
Personally, I would do a format and a fresh install of the operating system using your restore disks just to be sure there are no traces of the virus but you could try the above program to see if it works.
Joe
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dragon53
Rank: Ultimate Sony Reviewer
Joined: Nov 01, 2002
Posts: 2891
From:
| Posted: 2012-04-24 22:41
JTTAR,
Avast and Malwarebytes finally got rid of the Smart. I think I ran 15 scans since Friday, many were over one hour long. Hopefully, Avast won't be behind the curve next time like they were on Smart. Now I'm working on restoring my desktop.
In less than four weeks, I lost two modems and gained two viruses.
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jttar
Moderator
Premium Member
Rank: Sony Master
Joined: Feb 28, 2003
Posts: 9156
From: Chicago,IL, USA
| Posted: 2012-04-25 21:42
On 2012-04-24 22:41, dragon53 wrote:
In less than four weeks, I lost two modems and gained two viruses.
All in all not a great month. Hopefully that will be the end of your problems. Any idea where you were infected with the Smart Virus?
Joe
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dragon53
Rank: Ultimate Sony Reviewer
Joined: Nov 01, 2002
Posts: 2891
From:
| Posted: 2012-04-25 23:59
JTTAR,
I'm almost 100% sure I got the Smart after trying to get out info on a new Blu-ray movie titled THE WICKER TREE. Every time I visit Blu-ray.com and see it listed, I wince.
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jttar
Moderator
Premium Member
Rank: Sony Master
Joined: Feb 28, 2003
Posts: 9156
From: Chicago,IL, USA
| Posted: 2012-04-26 22:09
Don't blame you dragon53. There is malware in the least expected places. I appreciate your response.
Joe
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dragon53
Rank: Ultimate Sony Reviewer
Joined: Nov 01, 2002
Posts: 2891
From:
| Posted: 2012-04-26 22:23
JTTAR,
This morning I clicked on a Tom Cruise photo for the Movie/TV News and got another pop-up claiming my pc was infected and buying their anti-virus program would solve the problem. I left the page and ran another Avast and Malwarebyte scan which found nothing.
Again, Avast didn't warn me beforehand like it has in the past.
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jehill
Premium Member
Rank: Sony Senior Advisor
Joined: Mar 13, 2003
Posts: 13790
From: Sewell, NJ
 | Posted: 2012-04-27 09:45
Your problem is that this is spyware, not a virus. You need spyware removal software. I used Webroot Spysweeper for years until until I replaced it with the Norton Security Suite provided by Comcast free. If your provider isn't Comcast, check with them to see if they will provide you with a similar product free.
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jttar
Moderator
Premium Member
Rank: Sony Master
Joined: Feb 28, 2003
Posts: 9156
From: Chicago,IL, USA
| Posted: 2012-04-27 22:02
There are some sites that pop up those type of messages and make them look like a Windows message.The problem begins when you let the site scan your computer for problems. Once you do you get flagged to purchase thier software to solve the problem. You did the right thing by leaving the site.
John is correct in saying this is spyware and this is why Avast didn't warn you.
Joe
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dragon53
Rank: Ultimate Sony Reviewer
Joined: Nov 01, 2002
Posts: 2891
From:
| Posted: 2012-04-29 14:29
JEHILL, JTTAR,
Thanks for clarifying about the spyware.
In reviewing my pc for problems cause by the Smart virus, I found a lot of missing items on my Startup Box. I posted a generic photo of a Startup Box to help illustrate the problems.
Problem #1---under Programs on the left side (white side) of the Box, Mozilla Firefox and Internet Explorer are no longer listed, but I did recover them as icons on the desktop. How do I add them back on the Programs list in the left/white side of the box?
Problem #2---on the right side (grey) of the Box, everything previously listed such as "Documents, Pictures, Music.....Control Panel, Help and Support, ", etc. are all gone and have been replaced by one item, "Run...".
How do I restore "Documents, Pictures, Music..." etc.?
[ This message was edited by: dragon53 on 2012-04-29 14:35 ]
[ This message was edited by: dragon53 on 2012-04-29 14:36 ]
[ This message was edited by: dragon53 on 2012-04-29 14:38 ]
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