posted on August 20, 2001 01:04:40 PM new
Everyday at noon, my work comuter shuts down and restarts itself. This is the 5th week in a row that it has done this.
So I asked a more knowledgeable employee about any settings that might trigger the computer to reset at noon.
Someone reminded me that about a year ago I had a virus that really did some damage. The tech people gave me a new HD, and managed to salvage some of my files.
I Never, NEVER open attachments.
Anyway, I went to one of those free scanning web sites, and it immediately told me "Your hard drive is infected with the Wassaboo virus, which rates 7.3 on the Jackson-Sluggs scale....... click here to disinfect.
Anyone laughing yet? so I clicked. Then we get a message saying that my hard drive is being reformated. It got to 13 percent before we were able to shut off the computer. It came back on ok, and we are currently running mcafee. Did I get scammed? Was this a joke? I did a search on dogpile for "wassaboo" and it came up with nothing.
Not my name on ebay.
[ edited by Valleygirl on Aug 20, 2001 01:06 PM ]
Several days ago I searched for "virus scan, online" and in about the 2nd or 3rd screen
of results found... freevirusscan.org, registered to a "WebInfoSearch, LLC". When I
went to their site, they offered a virus scan, so I clicked on the button to scan my
computer. It asked to verify my IP address, I clicked yes, then I saw the contents of my root directory scrolling up on the screen. Then it told me I had the "Wassaboo Virus" and gave me an option to fix it. I clicked the button to fix the problem. Then it
said I really didn't have a virus and had what may be a real or bogus link to McAfee - I didn't click on it, rather I attempted to exit the site and/or shut down my browser when a message appeared that it was formatting my hard drive -- which it didn't. Then a message flashed on the screen that "we have all your data" or words to that effect.
Have you ever heard of this site/others like it and should you care to check it out
yourself and get similar results, would you please alert your readers to this? I feel it
poses a significant threat to anyone who ventures near this site. Fortunately nothing
but my son's games and web apps were on this computer but should one have financial or otherwise important information, they could be in for some serious trouble.
After this experience, I deleted all cookies on my H/D, changed all passwords, called up my ISP/telephone provider and changed ISP account info, phone info, etc., etc. I
don't know exactly what these guys are up to, but it smells like a rat. I wouldn't want
others to get taken advantage of like I did. I hope you could warn them away. This site
should be shut down!
The response:
Sheila did the right things, but for the wrong reason because the site is a total
scam--- a hoax that neither scans your system, gathers data, nor harms your files. In fact, if you let the fake "reformatting your hard drive" go to completion, you finally get a page that says
"No, your hard drive has not been formatted. No, You don't have the Wassaboo virus. Actually, we didn't even check -- you could have a hard drive full of viruses."
All the activity before that--- the virus scan, the information-gathering, the reformat--- was completely faked: Nothing actually was going on. It was just designed to scare site visitors. Har har.
I enjoy a good joke--- and even clever practical jokes. But this one caused Sheila to waste real time and effort. It's not funny: It's cruel and stupid, and the folks at "freevirusscan.org" should be ashamed.
posted on August 20, 2001 01:44:20 PM new
That's exactly what I was hoping someone could find for me. Kiawok, you're my hero. Thanks.
Not my name on ebay.
