COVID cases starting to climb across parts of Canada | CBC News
COVID cases starting to climb across parts of Canada | CBC News https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/covid-september-2025-1.7632962 #covid19 #infections #canada View Original Article
This post is for all those that are always telling me that Macs don’t get infected.
This post is for all those that are always telling me that Macs don't get infected. More than 600,000 Macs infected with Flashback botnet Russian antivirus company says half the computers infected with malware designed to steal personal information are in the U.S. — with 274 located in Cupertino. Read this blog post by Steven …
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Here’s a Super Simple Trick to Defeating Fake Anti-Virus Malware
You might be wondering why we have a screenshot of what appears to be AVG Anti-Virus, but is in fact a fake anti-virus malware that holds your computer hostage until you pay them. Here’s a really simple tip to defeating these types of malware, and a…
How To Remove Advanced Virus Remover and Other Rogue/Fake Antivirus Malware
If you have a PC infected with Advanced Virus Remover, you’ll probably find that this is a tough one to get rid of. Thankfully we’ve got the instructions to help you defeat this terrible virus.
Advanced Virus Remover is one of many fake antivirus applications like Antivirus Live, which are really just rogue viruses that hold your computer hostage until you pay the ransom money. They tell you that your PC is infected with loads of viruses, even though it’s the only virus on your computer. The biggest problem with these things is that they block you from doing almost everything—you can’t use task manager, Safe Mode, or even install a real malware removal tool.
Advanced Virus Remover is Terrible!
This thing just covers your PC with messages about viruses that they claim you have…
There are popups, messages, and just dozens of windows that open…
Their goal, of course, is to get you to pay them.
Advanced Virus Remover is tricky… if you open an application more than once, it’ll block you from opening it again, preventing you from installing any anti-malware tools (I tried both SUPERAntiSpyware installed edition and MalwareBytes, no luck) Note that it also changes your wallpaper.
Advanced Virus Remover also prohibits you from heading into Safe Mode, where you at least might have a better chance of getting rid of it.
Removing Rogue Fake Antivirus Infections (General Guide)
There’s a couple of steps that you can generally follow to get rid of the majority of rogue antivirus infections, and actually most malware or spyware infections of any type. Here’s the quick steps:
- Try to use the free, portable version of SUPERAntiSpyware to remove the viruses.
- If that doesn’t work, reboot your PC into safe mode with networking (use F8 right before Windows starts to load)
- Try to use the free, portable version of SUPERAntiSpyware to remove the viruses.
- Reboot your PC and go back into safe mode with networking.
- If that doesn’t work, and safe mode is blocked, try running ComboFix. Note that I’ve not yet had to resort to this, but some of our readers have.
- Install MalwareBytes and run it, doing a full system scan. (see our previous article on how to use it).
- Reboot your PC again, and run a full scan using your normal Antivirus application (we recommend Microsoft Security Essentials).
- At this point your PC is usually clean.
Those are the rules that normally work. Note that there are some malware infections that not only block safe mode, but also prevent you from doing anything at all. We’ll cover those in another article soon, so make sure to subscribe to How-To Geek for updates (top of the page).
So, Let’s Remove Advanced Virus Remover!
Turns out that the answer to getting rid of this virus is really simple—you’ll just need to grab the free, Portable edition of SUPERAntiSpyware, which we’ve featured as our favorite must-have spyware removal tool, and put it on a flash drive (from another computer).
Then open it up on the PC, making sure to run the scan immediately. Don’t close it and re-open it, or Advanced Virus Remover will figure out what you’re doing and block you!
Once it’s all done, it’ll get rid of the bad stuff.
Then you’ll be prompted to reboot, which you should probably do.
If Advanced Virus Remover Blocks SUPERAntiSpyware
If you have an issue running SUPERAntiSpyware, you can try and use the following technique. Open up the Windows Run box with the Win+R shortcut key, or through the start menu. Then type in the following commands, hitting enter after each one.
taskkill /f /im winupdate86.exe
taskkill /f /im winlogon86.exe
Note that this may or may not help… the goal is to try and shut down the processes that are blocking you, and malware changes filenames all the time. You can also open up Windows Explorer, head into the Windows\System32 folder, and try and locate the bad processes there (hit the properties screen on some recent, odd-looking files), then use the taskkill command to get rid of them. This technique is how I usually figure out what the virus is hiding under, so I can easily kill it with just a few keystrokes.
Cleanup the Leftovers!
Since I never like to fully trust a single anti-malware tool, I usually run multiple passes from multiple malware removal tools. I highly recommend running a second pass with the free edition of Malwarebytes Anti-Malware. (see our previous article on how to use it).
You might notice some more messages popping up from the virus—in this case, my SUPERAntiSpyware definitions were out of date (because I wrote this article before the official portable version came out, so I was using my own hack to create a portable edition).
Just ignore any messages, and continue with the scan, letting Malwarebytes remove everything else.
At this point you’ll want to reboot your system, and then install Microsoft Security Essentials and run another full scan. Can’t hurt to be too cautious! We also highly recommend Microsoft Security Essentials for real-time protection against these types of things.
Note: If you used a thumb drive at any point during this process, you should make sure and scan that as well—I’ve had viruses hop over to the thumb drive, ready to infect the next machine.
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How To Remove Antivirus Live and Other Rogue/Fake Antivirus Malware
If you’ve got a PC infected by the Antivirus Live virus, you’ve got a tough job ahead of you to remove it. And we’ve got the instructions to help.
Antivirus Live is one of many fake antivirus applications that are really rogue viruses that take your computer hostage—then they tell you that your computer is infected by viruses, and you have to pay them to get rid of the fake viruses that aren’t really there. It’s a huge problem, and they are not easy to remove, because they block virtually everything you try and run, including real anti-malware tools.
Removing Rogue Fake Antivirus Infections
There’s a couple of steps that you can generally follow to get rid of the majority of rogue antivirus infections, and actually most malware or spyware infections of any type. Here’s the quick steps:
- Reboot your PC into safe mode with networking (use F8 right before Windows starts to load)
- Install SuperAntiSpyware and run it. (see our previous article on how to use it)
- Reboot your PC and go back into safe mode with networking.
- Install MalwareBytes and run it, doing a full system scan. (see our previous article on how to use it).
- Reboot your PC again, and run your normal Antivirus application (we recommend Microsoft Security Essentials).
- At this point your PC is usually clean.
Note that some malware will block you from using safe mode. That usually requires another set of steps that we won’t cover here.
Let’s Remove Antivirus Live
The first thing you’ll want to do is reboot your computer, and hit the F8 key right before Windows starts loading (you can hit it a bunch of times). Then select the Safe Mode with Networking option.
Before you do anything else, you’re going to need to fix the internet connection to work, because Antivirus Live changes IE to use a fake proxy server that prevents you from getting to anything else—and will also prevent you from installing and updating a real anti-malware software.
Now you’ll want to install SuperAntiSpyware (linked above), which you have hopefully downloaded via another computer already, but safe mode with networking should allow you to download and install it.
Once you load it up, it’s going to do some analysis…
Then you’ll see the full application screen, where you’ll want to use the Check for Updates button to make sure you have the latest definitions. Once you’ve done that, click the Scan your Computer button.
Select your primary drive at least, though you should pick all the drives, and then click the Perform Complete Scan button.
It’ll run for a long time, detect a bunch of stuff, and then you can proceed through the wizard to actually removing it all…
Once it’s all done, you can reboot the PC again (just make sure to go back into Safe Mode again).
Next you’ll want to install Malwarebytes, make sure to check the Update tab for the latest definitions, and then perform a full scan of your system.
Malwarebytes will find even more malware that SuperAntiSpyware missed (seems like you always need more than one util to get it all). Just be sure to click the Remove Selected button to get rid of the rest.
At this point you’ll want to reboot your system, and then install Microsoft Security Essentials and run another full scan. Can’t hurt to be too cautious!
Note: If you used a thumb drive at any point during this process, you should make sure and scan that as well—I’ve had viruses hop over to the thumb drive, ready to infect the next machine.
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Mac fanboys should get a life and some Windows 7 common sense
By Joe Wilcox, Betanews
I have to laugh at the sudden, slew of Mac bloggers taking swings at Windows 7 and asserting that Macs will continue to sell well after Microsoft’s newest OS ships. Feeling a little defensive are we, bros? Their reaction shows worry that the thing they profess against — surging PC sales that swamp Macs — may yet be reality.
Windows 7 is simply Microsoft’s best operating system ever. Mac fanboys should worry and circle together in defensive posture. Collectively, they’re making a last stand against the PC giant. Please, please, boisterous Mac defenders, stand in the front lines and receive the first blows. You deserve them.
Mac market share actually means little to Microsoft, although it sure matters lots to Mac bloggers thumping for Apple. The little dog barks, but the big dog — with its enormous market share — has the bite. Windows 7 is a new set of teeth. (I’ll explain what competitors really matter to Microsoft after the subhead.)
The Apple fanboy crowd snipes against Windows 7 and stresses the over-importance of all things Mac. Some of the assertions about Macs or Windows 7 sales are laughable, they’re so ridiculous. For example, today, Apple 2.0 blogger Philip Elmer-DeWitt asked: “Will Windows 7 boost Apple sales?” Philip writes that “over the past decade, Mac shipments have grown with nearly every new Microsoft release,” based on research released by Broadpoint AmTech yesterday.
That’s not what the data shows. The biggest increase in Mac sales follows the release of the much-maligned Windows Vista. The data supports what is widely known: Vista was a Windows failure. As for the other spikes, supposedly associated with Windows releases, Occam’s Razor dictates that something Apple did and not Microsoft affected Mac sales. For example, the chart shows a huge spike in Mac sales for second quarter 2000, noting that Microsoft released Windows 2000 on February 17. But it ignores something else. A day earlier, Apple unveiled new Power Macs, finally reaching the long-delayed 500MHz processing power milestone and setting off a sales surge.
Another date: Oct. 25, 2001, and the launch of Windows XP. The chart shows level Mac sales for the quarter and a substantial decline for the one following. In July 2001, Apple introduced dual-processor Power Macs, and accordingly there was a two quarter spike in Mac shipments. Philip asks a silly question, and the chart is more reasonably explained by Apple actions, not Microsoft’s.
Over at Apple Insider, Neil Hughes continues the Broadpoint AmTech misinformation, also referring to Philip’s post. Several other blogs or news sites also reported on Broadpoint AmTech numbers, some of them yesterday.
Mac fanboys have also attacked verteran tech reviewer Walt Mossberg’s fairly favorable review of Windows 7. Perhaps they feel betrayed, as Walt has favored Macs for years — and for good reasons in the post-Vista era. But go back a decade and you’ll find Walt to have been less charitable towards Apple.
Assessing the Real Competition
Microsoft’s competitive problems aren’t Macs but:
- Windows XP
- Software pirates
- Netbooks
Windows XP. Windows 7’s biggest competitor will be Windows XP, which runs on about 80 percent of PCs, according to combined analyst reports. Microsoft’s first challenge will be getting XP users to move up to Windows 7. Mac market share was 7.6 percent in the United States in second quarter, according to IDC. (Gartner and IDC should release Q3 preliminary numbers in the next couple of days.)
Mac share is inconsequential to Microsoft compared to Windows XP. My prediction: Windows 7 will slow Mac share gains, which already declined over the last three quarters, according to both Gartner and IDC.
Software pirates. Collectively, software pirates pose the greatest competitive threat to Microsoft, next to Windows XP. Not Macs. Certainly not PCs running Linux. According to Business Software Alliance, software piracy rates are highest in emerging markets, which also are where potential Windows PC adoption is greatest: 85 percent in Latin America, 66 percent in Central and Eastern Europe and 61 percent in Asia Pacific. By comparison, piracy rate in North Americs is 21 percent and 35 percent in the European Union. So in Latin America, more than 8 out of 10 copies of software in use are stolen.
Here’s a loaded question: How many people among the Betanews community use software for which they didn’t pay for, even though the developer charges something? Anyone care to respond in comments? Maybe this is easier: What do you feel you should have to pay for software?
More significantly, software piracy creates competitive opportunities for Macs, because of the damage done to the Windows brand. In a report released last week, BSA revealed a direct correlation between online software piracy at torrents and other file-trading sites and malware infections. Countries with high online piracy rates also have high malware infection rates. Related, 25 percent of a sampling of 98 sites distributing pirated software or digital content also contained malware. Where does the blame fall when PCs are infected with viruses? On Microsoft and Windows, which tarnishes the brand and helps foster popular folklore that Macs are more secure than Windows. Macs have problems, too, but they’re not always as well publicized.
Netbooks. Microsoft also faces more competitive threat from netbooks, which are gobbling up Windows margins at an alarming rate. Microsoft makes substantially less on each Windows XP Home license shipping on netbooks than it does on either Windows Vista Home Basic or Premium.
During second calendar quarter, when Windows Client revenue fell 29 percent year over year and income declined 33 percent, netbooks made up 11 percent of PC sales, according to Microsoft. Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Chris Liddell acknowledged that the increase in lower-margin consumer Windows licenses — fed in part by increasing netbook demand — contributed to declines.
Last week, DisplaySearch updated second calendar quarter PC shipment data. DisplaySearch concluded that netbooks accounted for 22.2 percent of overall PC sales and 11.7 percent of revenues. Netbook sales jumped a staggering 264 percent year over year, while overall laptop sales (without counting netbooks) declined 14 percent.
Meanwhile, increased netbook sales exerted ever greater pull downward on average selling prices. Laptop ASPs fell to $688 in second quarter from $704 in first quarter and $849 in Q2 2008. Netbook prices fell to $361 from $371 and $506, respectively, during the same time period. Microsoft has lots more to worry about than Macs, particularly netbook cannibalization of the PC market and the negative impact on Windows margins.
