Digital Protection spyware

[NickC]

There is a new spyware going around called Digital Protection. Watch out for it! Does the usual stuff - takes over everything; very difficult to remove or do a system restore.

A friend got her laptop infected. It was a few years old so I suggested we just reimage to get a fresh start.

I did Google the removal instructions and found plenty of info. However, one thing I didn't find is just how this thing gets installed on the computer. My friend said she didn't remember clicking on any download or OK buttons, but I suspect that's what happened. Anyone know if that's how this thing gets installed or if it does a drive-by? Her computer had Symantec antivirus and Windows Defender; neither of which seemed to be much help.

[HAN]

FWIW, all of these fake antivirus, fake protection scanners, (or whatever you want to call them), seem to be hard to stop. Around the web, I see there are many genuine protection programs bypassed at a very high rate. I have not seen a definitive infection method although it's safe to assume that clicking on a bad link is most certainly one method. Running java script in a browser may well be a way too, but turning it off kills many websites and most users would not tolerate doing without it.

IMO, the best chance we have against the problem is to keep everything up to date (Windows, browser and email programs, antivirus and so forth.) You might also consider using a site rating add on like WOT (available for IE and Firefox.) Site ratings aren't a perfect answer but at least they can offer reliable advice...

[NickC]

Yeah, this one seemed very tenacious! Fortunately, she had everything backed up so we were able to do a reimage without much fuss. I'll look into the WOT add-on.

My guess is that she accidentally clicked on the first pop-up. Once the approval has been given, all bets are off. But it would be much worse if it were a drive-by install.