Our son, Jon is in South America right now traveling and learning. We'd gotten a text message from him a little earlier saying he'd been out of contact because he was ill for three days. I was terribly worried. Communication has been sporadic.
Then last night... there was his name in my Email Inbox and I was so excited that my brain temporarily stopped working. When I clicked on his e-mail, all I saw was a link. No message. I was confused, but I thought it might be something he wanted me to read. The link took me to a Fox News site. As I scanned down to see what was going on my cellphone rang.
"Mom! Did you get an e-mail from Jon? Don't open that link!" said my daughter.
"Oh... no, Tif. I already did," I gasped. I couldn't believe I did it AGAIN! Doggone it! Just to be sure it didn't get passed on to everybody on my address book, I wrote to a friend who assured me she didn't get that link from me. So hopefully it didn't infect my address book. The last time I got something like that, it didn't seem to get passed on so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
Tif had me change my password and my son-in-law told me to use the Microsoft Security Essentials to scan my computer. I did and got this after 8 hours.
There was some kind of Blacole virus. I removed it and I'm hoping things are OK.
I don't know if this is the virus that came from poor Jon's computer, but at least it may have been successfully removed. I say maybe because I've read that sometimes this virus is quite tenacious.
I think I'd better put up a sign in front of me that says,
"DO NOT OPEN ANY LINK FROM ANYBODY WHO DOES NOT PROVE WHO THEY ARE WITH A PERSONAL MESSAGE!!!"
Would this work? I don't know. I think my fingers are sometimes faster than my brain and my eyes.
Arrrgghhhhhh!!!!!
POSTSCRIPT: Weird thing! I just got another of these spam e-mails from a blogger friend. However, I was smarter this time and didn't open the link. Then I just read this post on Sherri's Jubilee: Email Frustrations! What the heck is going on?
Be careful. Be very careful.
Then last night... there was his name in my Email Inbox and I was so excited that my brain temporarily stopped working. When I clicked on his e-mail, all I saw was a link. No message. I was confused, but I thought it might be something he wanted me to read. The link took me to a Fox News site. As I scanned down to see what was going on my cellphone rang.
"Mom! Did you get an e-mail from Jon? Don't open that link!" said my daughter.
"Oh... no, Tif. I already did," I gasped. I couldn't believe I did it AGAIN! Doggone it! Just to be sure it didn't get passed on to everybody on my address book, I wrote to a friend who assured me she didn't get that link from me. So hopefully it didn't infect my address book. The last time I got something like that, it didn't seem to get passed on so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
Tif had me change my password and my son-in-law told me to use the Microsoft Security Essentials to scan my computer. I did and got this after 8 hours.
There was some kind of Blacole virus. I removed it and I'm hoping things are OK.
I don't know if this is the virus that came from poor Jon's computer, but at least it may have been successfully removed. I say maybe because I've read that sometimes this virus is quite tenacious.
I think I'd better put up a sign in front of me that says,
"DO NOT OPEN ANY LINK FROM ANYBODY WHO DOES NOT PROVE WHO THEY ARE WITH A PERSONAL MESSAGE!!!"
Would this work? I don't know. I think my fingers are sometimes faster than my brain and my eyes.
Arrrgghhhhhh!!!!!
POSTSCRIPT: Weird thing! I just got another of these spam e-mails from a blogger friend. However, I was smarter this time and didn't open the link. Then I just read this post on Sherri's Jubilee: Email Frustrations! What the heck is going on?
Be careful. Be very careful.
It's just an automatic response to open emails from family and friends, really difficult to stop and think. I had one supposedly from a friend the other day, with just a link, and luckily thought to stop and delete the email without opening it, but I could so easily have opened it without thinking.
ReplyDeleteI've been getting a lot of from "friends or family" lately but no subject line so I just don't open.
ReplyDeletewe just automatically click on links...good advice. I've never had a virus on my mac but a friend just did, so time to be careful!
ReplyDeleteI get some of these but usually catch them. If I see something a bit suspicious I go to my yahoo home page where I can look at a bit of the email without opening it and then if it proves to be something that I don't want to open I just remove it immediately.
ReplyDeletethanks Kay, scary out there....I've seen a few people's emails getting hacked and received weird messages from them. If it seems odd, I don't open it.
ReplyDeleteWhen they get ahold of an email address book, things show up in both my email box and Facebook. I know better than to open any link because of my suspicious husband. Otherwise I would get infected, too... glad you caught this one, Kay.
ReplyDeleteI know the same thing happened to me and I had to spend hours last weekend trying to remove the virus. I learnt more about my computer in the process so that wasnt a bad thing but it is so dangerous, particularly the ones trying to get hold of your passwords and other information. Hope Jon is ok.
ReplyDeleteA great reminder, Kay. I had the same thing happen a couple of weeks ago...an e-mail from my uncle that was just a link. I am like you-apt to open something if it looks like it is from someone I know. It is too bad we have to be so careful these days.
ReplyDeleteWe have Norton on our desk top computer, and McAfee on our laptop. Won't those two block viruses?
ReplyDeleteHi gigi,
DeleteIn my haste I started scanning with safe mode (no internet connection) as soon as I discovered my email account was hacked. Then I remembered that you are in my email address history. Hope you didn't get an email from me with my name and no subject, with just a link. Possibly even opening the email is enough to download the virus. I opened the infected email sent to my hawaiiantel.net address and found no virus, so hopefully just opening it doesn't do any harm. Yes, I hope McAfee does the job (on my laptop) and the virus is in my husband's Kindle with no anti-virus at the moment. I also wonder if it could be a trojan, so I would need malwaretype security also.
L. from W.
Hmmm... Address history...
DeleteI didn't think about that. I wonder if that's why Jon's spam e-mail was sent to us, his family and not everybody in his address book.
my Norton has an "email scan" (what ever that is). I better use it.
DeleteHello Kay,
ReplyDeleteThis is a terrible thing to happen and it would have cause great anxiety and worry to you. I wonder what pleasure these people who send the viruses get out of it. Surely, they are mad.
I am glad you have no more problem and thanks for warning about the links in email.
Best wishes to you and your family,
Joseph
i hate when i click on something to later find that i shouldn't have. i wish these hackers would stop trying to cause havoc. so glad you were able to contain your problem. hope your son is feeling better soon. have a great day~
ReplyDeleteI spent 12 hours (all night) scanning with McAfee Total Protection anti-virus in safe mode and it found no virus. I don't know how my hotmail email account was hacked yesterday. The password I use for that account is my Amazon password since I once shopped with Windows Live. Then a light bulb clicked in my head...we have the Kindle Fire which has no protection and maybe that's how the virus entered. Possibly it is in my husband's kindle. So this morning we read up on how to protect it and found some discussions about Kaspersky for Tablets. I purchased and downloaded it, but cannot open the installation, so now I have to deal with a failed installation also. I'm so frustrated...on days like today, I am ready to give up computers all together. No more VIRUSES!! I don't know if I should also run Microsoft Security Essentials, but shouldn't McAfee protect for the same virus?
ReplyDeleteWhat is strange about this virus is it seems to not list all the addresses it sent emails to. Is it getting sneakier?
L. from W.
Now that you mention it, it's true. Jon's spam e-mail to me only contained a few addresses. It was pretty much to Art, Tiffany and me and a couple of other people.
DeleteI would think McAfee would do the same thing. I don't think I have McAfee on this computer.
I just got the same suspicious email (my name and no subject) sent to the hotmail account that sent the other suspicious emails, imagine that. I don't know which email account it could be from but I didn't even click on it, just deleted it. Never opening the email, I will not know which of my email accounts were hacked. Therefore, I am going to change all my email passwords just to be on the safe side.
DeleteL. from W.
I have received four emails in the last two weeks from blogging friends that are not , they are virus carriers, I know open nothing, that is "re" or forwarded, I have become so nervous since losing my whole blog!
ReplyDeleteThis is so scary. I just hope the Microsoft Essentials did the whole job and cleaned my computer completely. I hope. And I hope nobody got e-mail from me.
DeleteIt is happening a lot lately.
ReplyDeleteIs John OK now, I hope?
We talked to Jon yesterday on Skype. He's in Peru right now with Sarah doing the Alpamayo trek. He says he's almost recovered. Apparently he'd gotten giardia. Sounded awful. We told him he should rest but he says they had a bunch of things they wanted to do and would have to start or they wouldn't be able to accomplish it before they'd have to return to the states to get situated for their grad school. Those two just can't seem to sit still and be SAFE.
DeleteBeen there; done that -- but not for a long, long time. I use Avast Anti-Virus -- very reasonably priced (for the paid version and worth it) -- and great customer service. It's also not intrusive and bugging me all the time like some of the ones mentioned above. I've been using it about 10 years.
ReplyDeleteGlad you got it straightened out!!!
I am glad Jon is almost recovered. Giardia can really rack a body.
ReplyDeleteI don't open any links, no matter who it is from. I know I probably miss out on some neat stuff but I hate to take the chance. Hope your computer is OK now.
I've been lucky-never had an email virus.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad Jon is all right, and so is your computer. I have become more suspicious about opening things, but I still could get caught if I knew the apparent sender, like you did.
ReplyDeleteThe only excuse I have is that it was late at night, I was tired and I was worried about Jon being sick. Sigh...
DeleteI have since gotten another e-mail like his. It was another friend with a Hotmail address which has me wondering.
Yes these mails do come sometimes. Many of us probably have learnt a lesson by going through a similar mistake like this.
ReplyDeleteYou have a great blog Kay, love the posts.