57 replies to this topic

[Zmeej]

The thing in mind is a script or some other site-connector that has been slowing down site access considerably, and producing frequent "temp-hangs" ("Not Responding, etc.) and occasional outright hangs.

 

The most pernicious are mechanisms for which search results suggest that they are components are malware or malware originating sites.

 

One signals that it is "Waiting for" or "Transferring from":

aw16-electricsheep.netdna-ssl.com

 

Another is an entire "family" that signals its waiting and/or transfers re

... a.akamalhd.net

 

Prefixes include

 

fashiononesec-

and

tos-

 

There are others in this family.

 

There are also other mechanisms which have this invidious action, but haven't written them down yet.

 

Thoughts from others, admins?

Edited by Zmeej, 17 April 2016 - 16:30.

[Vitesse2]

Your end, not ours.

 

Akamalhd.net is a drive-by install trojan. https://malwaretips....aihd-net-virus/

 

Sooner or later, Zmeej, you are going to have to junk or upgrade your XP system. As I recall, you are also using an ancient (in browser terms) version of Firefox, which will have more security holes in it than a Swiss cheese.

[YoungGun]

Zmjeej

 

Try this free malware program

 

https://www.malwarebytes.org/

 

It was very useful to me when I got infected by Serpens.

 

Edit: Forgot to mention this free browser clean-up also. It will remove any suspicious malware from you browser masquerading as add-ons.

 

https://www.avast.co...browser-cleanup

Edited by YoungGun, 13 April 2016 - 09:56.

[Zmeej]

V2

 

According to my computer doctor, there is nothing wrong with my XP system and as long as I run the latest anti-viral stuff it is equal to MS10 and much better than 7 & 8. As for Firefox, he said that upgrading to a topheavy version would definitely cause problems greater than those I go through once in a while.

 

Thanks for the link to the "drive-by trojan" removal info.

 

 

YG

 

Do use AntiMalWareBytes.

 

Re Avast - did use it and switched to Panda based on the abovementioned computer doctor's recommendation.

Edited by Zmeej, 13 April 2016 - 15:20.

[Zmeej]

V2

 

Your end, not ours.

 

Akamalhd.net is a drive-by install trojan.

 

Actually, it is.

 

The com-doc sez that what I'm "told" on the bottom left-hand space of my Firefox window is a recitative of the various elements of a website with which the browser is communicating, not the various processes which are launched off my computer.

 

As such, in one fashion or another, the Autosport Forums area is being "driven by" these malware vectors and catch the attention of browsers via adware.

 

EDIT: Besides, am confident after running Full and Quick scans via Panda that the debugger accurately tells me whether this machine is clean or messed up in a minor or major way.

Edited by Zmeej, 17 April 2016 - 16:31.

[YoungGun]

It doesn't show up my list of sites that Autosport informs when I visit.  Maybe it's using some stealth mode to advise Akamalhd.net.

 

[Zmeej]

Interesting

 

The "cloudfront" site causes some problems, but not every time.

 

Where's the button for that feature?

Edited by Zmeej, 07 June 2016 - 17:22.

[YoungGun]

It's an add-on to the Chrome Browser

 

https://disconnect.me/

 

Once installed an icon appears in the tool bar

 

Click on the icon, then on visualize, then on the Autosport icon in the centre of the graph for the list.

[Zmeej]

Ah. Do you know if Firefox has an add-on that functions similarly?

[YoungGun]

Not as far as I have found. It's unique to Chrome.  If the suspected intruder is not from your end you should be able to blacklist it.

 

For example

 

Under the content tab, Visual Revenue is unchecked, checking it blacklists it.

[Zmeej]

Very useful feature, no doubt why Chrome & Chromium have such high security ratings.

 

My version of Firefox, at present status of Add-ons, has a "Media" sub-menu of the "Page Info" menu in "Tools" that has something conceptually similar in terms of pointing out active autosport-native thangs and google images etc., but nothing concerning processes. All one can do is simply block images, which ain't much, and they have never been a source of problems.

 

The "Security" menu just gives you a click-box for cookies, but all of them are autosport-native (which makes sense), and also have never been a problem.

Edited by Zmeej, 17 April 2016 - 16:33.

[milestone 11]

Very useful feature, no doubt why Chrome & Chromium have such high security ratings.

 

My version of Firefox, at present status of Add-ons, has a "Media" sub-menu of the "Page Info" menu in "Tools" that has something conceptually similar in terms of pointing out active autosport-native thangs and google images etc., but nothing concerning processes. All one can do is simply block images, which ain't much, and they have never been a source of problems.

 

The "Security" menu just gives you a click-box for cookies, but all of them are autosport-native (which makes sense), and also have never been a problem.

I've been an IE user constantly since 2009, that is until recently. You are as aware of the vagaries of this site as I am so an alternative had to be found. I have been using Firefox for the last three weeks and also have had the problems that you are experiencing. Now, I can't vouch for its effectiveness, but there is precisely this add on available on Firefox but as yet, I haven't downloaded it but will do tomorrow. Whether it is compatible with the version of Firefox that you are using, I do not know. Will update you anon,

[Zmeej]

Thanks

[milestone 11]

Thanks

Yep, works perfectly Zmeej. Simple to download, install, and to set up as you want. It certainly speeds up loading the site. Have blocked Advertising and Site Analytics whilst leaving the Essentials unblocked.

As far as your XP is concerned, if you have Service Pack 3 installed, it is possible to download and install the latest Firefox, 45.0.2. If however you manually download Windows updates, SP3 is available FOC on the Microsoft site.

Edited by milestone 11, 18 April 2016 - 15:13.

[Zmeej]

Very good news.

 

Although it was hardly great to hear that someone else had similar issues, it was nevertheless reassuring that the source of difficulties was not my computer.

 

Will be loading Service Pack 3 at some point (in part because the comp-doc installed a GOM media viewer that is kinda impaired without it), but dunno if I'll proceed to Firefox45. Will see how things work with the early version + SP3.

[Zmeej]

Just found out that the "Ghostery" add-on is not available for my version of Firefox.

 

Confirms that it's probably time to migrate to another browser...

[milestone 11]

Just found out that the "Ghostery" add-on is not available for my version of Firefox.
 
Confirms that it's probably time to migrate to another browser...

Paranoia doesn't suit you Zmeej, what's the reluctance with "45"

[Zmeej]

m11

 

Paranoia doesn't suit you Zmeej

 

No doubt, you meant that as a compliment.

 

what's the reluctance with "45"

 

Have heard from some that it's werra top-heavy and, as mentioned above, my compu-doc suggested it might have difficulties meshing with XP, until I have SP3 loaded.

[milestone 11]

m11



No doubt, you meant that as a compliment.



Have heard from some that it's werra top-heavy and, as mentioned above, my compu-doc suggested it might have difficulties meshing with XP, until I have SP3 loaded.

Indeed it was.
As for top heavy, it runs a dream on my machine. Frankly, opened up a whole new experience with a few of the add ons. My machine, whilst possibly de rigueur in 2008/9 is most certainly not so today. I've no doubt that you confirmed with compu-doc that SP3 is not a spy in a box, I think you may be unduly concerned.

Edited by milestone 11, 20 April 2016 - 21:47.

[YoungGun]

Thought I would give Firefox 45 a go to see how it fared against Chrome. These were my results.

 

Edited by YoungGun, 21 April 2016 - 09:47.

[Zmeej]

m11

 

Thanks for the compliment.

 

Re this:

 

SP3 is not a spy in a box, I think you may be unduly concerned.

 

FWIW, not concerned about SP3, just something I've put off installing.

[Zmeej]

So far

(knock on wood)

the new server/version of the Forums appears to have addressed the invidious effects of the interaction with, say, "cloudfront," and other legitimate sources/mechanisms.

 

EDIT: As of this writing, it appears that similar effects from "drivebys" have been neutralised to the point that their functioning no longer appears in the relevant fields.

Edited by Zmeej, 22 April 2016 - 18:33.

[Zmeej]

YG

 

Thanks for doing that.

[milestone 11]

Thought I would give Firefox 45 a go to see how it fared against Chrome. These were my results.

Thanks YoungGun. The results certainly show that Chrome performs the better when compared with Firefox45. Problem is, when one is old and totally intransigent, like me, or probably just intransigent in Zmeej's case, Chrome isn't really a long term option. In my case, I'm using Vista and Zmeej uses something even more historic, namely XP. Neither of these will be supported on Chrome after the beginning of next year.

In my case, without spending €150+, I can't change my OS. Microsoft, for reasons known only to them, choose to offer free installation of Windows 11 to registered purchasers of most Windows OS's but unfortunately that is not the case with Vista, nor I doubt, XP.

Edited by milestone 11, 26 April 2016 - 14:02.

[Ricciardo2014]

Hey Guys, I'm not sure where I should ask about this, but I saw the word malware so jumped in.

 

About 2 weeks ago I visited the Forum, and although the pages all came up at about the speed I'm used to with my laptop and internet, in the bottom left corner I'm seeing "tags.bluekai.com" and the loading icon up the top continues as if it's still loading the page.

It's been happening ever since.

Sometimes it only last for a few seconds, but other times it can go on for 20 or more.

 

I googled it and all I can find is that it's malware of some sort.

 

No matter where I visit, the Autosport Forum is the only place this happens, so I was hoping someone could let me know what it's actually all about ?

 

I'll be honest with you, I'm pretty much a computer dumbo if I have to delve too deep into my settings.

So if anyone could explain simply to me what's going on, why it only happens here, and if it's something I should be concerned about I would be forever in your debt.

 

Cheers guys 

[Vitesse2]

I think Grayson will need a bit more detail about where you're accessing the forum from. Sounds like an infected advert, which would be market-specific.

[Ricciardo2014]

Ok, thanks mate.

 

Is it just my region that's needed ?

I'm in NSW, Australia if that helps ?

 

For what it's worth, when I accessed the Forum just now the Bluekai thing only last a couple of seconds.

Sometimes it's that quick I hardly notice it, other times it takes a while.

[Ricciardo2014]

Quick update on this guys.

 

A mate of mine suggested I simply clear my browsing history, cookies, cache etc.

So I've done that just now and low & behold it's not happening any more.

All the pages I've tried appear almost instantly.

 

The same thing with the tags.bluekai.com does appear at the lower left of my screen, but so fast you have to look for it to see it.

 

Clearing things re introduced another problem with my login though, so I guess I'll head over there and have a moan now 

[YoungGun]

For what it's worth, when I accessed the Forum just now the Bluekai thing only last a couple of seconds.

 

Bluekai is not related to Autosport from what I can tell. Something else is calling it when you visit.

[Ricciardo2014]

Bluekai is not related to Autosport from what I can tell. Something else is calling it when you visit.

Wonder what's going on then ?

I've never seen it show up anywhere else I visit.

.

Do you have any idea what might cause it mate ?

[Vitesse2]

Wonder what's going on then ?

I've never seen it show up anywhere else I visit.

.

Do you have any idea what might cause it mate ?

It's almost certainly because of the way the advertising on the site is delivered. It's done through third party agencies, who tailor ads to your market, so it's probably down to one badly-coded advert which is being served to Australia - or even just through one particular Australian ISP. So it could theoretically only be showing up for (say) Telstra users, but not if you were connecting through Westnet.

 

Very difficult to pin down, TBH.

[Ricciardo2014]

It's almost certainly because of the way the advertising on the site is delivered. It's done through third party agencies, who tailor ads to your market, so it's probably down to one badly-coded advert which is being served to Australia - or even just through one particular Australian ISP. So it could theoretically only be showing up for (say) Telstra users, but not if you were connecting through Westnet.

 

Very difficult to pin down, TBH.

Thanks, appreciate the info mate.

 

It's not so bad after I cleared all the history and stuff, so not worrying me too much.

If it does get to the stage where it's getting as slow as it was before I'll just clear everything again.

 

I was more worried when I googled it and found it was malware, and apparently hard to get rid of.

Is there any way that you know of to get rid of it, or should I just not worry about it ?

[YoungGun]

Wonder what's going on then ?

I've never seen it show up anywhere else I visit.

.

Do you have any idea what might cause it mate ?

 

From the brief read on BlueKai it collects data about you while surfing the web to help marketing companies enhance the ads they deliver to you. I had a similar situation when visiting AutoSport plus other websites where uninvited intruders were eavesdropping on my surfing.

 

It was recommended I try something like ghostery or disconnect and have had no issues since.

[Ricciardo2014]

From the brief read on BlueKai it collects data about you while surfing the web to help marketing companies enhance the ads they deliver to you. I had a similar situation when visiting AutoSport plus other websites where uninvited intruders were eavesdropping on my surfing.

 

It was recommended I try something like ghostery or disconnect and have had no issues since.

Thanks heaps YoungGun 

 

I'll try out the links you shared mate 

[Ricciardo2014]

Ok, so I've installed Ghostery.

I learnt a lot just going right through their site, and even reading the FAQ's

It's actually quite interesting to see just how many "uninvited intruders" are having a look at what I'm doing

 

Anyhow, I've blocked them all and it certainly makes a big difference.

Thanks again YoungGun.

You've been a great help mate   

 

*Edit*

 

Wow.

You've got no idea how fast some of the links on Facebook work now, and the amount of **** Ghostery actually blocks.

I'm a fan of a facebook page called "I F**cking Love Science", and their links have advertising like all the rest.

Sometimes it would take a while to finish loading when I clicked on one of their links, but now it's almost instant. 

It's quite amazing.

 

Cheers again to all that have helped, especially YoungGun   

Edited by Ricciardo2014, 06 June 2016 - 15:37.

[Lotus53B]

Hi, when I went to access a topic in the Paddock Club, my Avast Anti-virus software gave me the following warning (which, given that I use Avast free, because I'm cheap, is probably a false positive, but I thought I'd let you know):-

 

Object:

 

http://forums.autosp...-terry-nutkins/

 

Infection

HTML:Script-Inf

 

Process

C:\Program (yada yada) I use firefox.

 

The relevant part of the log reads:-

 

18/07/2016 08:55:12    http://forums.autosp...-terry-nutkins/ [L] HTML:Script-inf (0)
18/07/2016 08:55:12    http://forums.autosp...-terry-nutkins/ [L] HTML:Script-inf (0)
18/07/2016 08:55:12    http://forums.autosp...-terry-nutkins/ [L] HTML:Script-inf (0)
18/07/2016 08:55:12    http://forums.autosp...-terry-nutkins/ [L] HTML:Script-inf (0)
18/07/2016 08:55:12    http://forums.autosp...-terry-nutkins/ [L] HTML:Script-inf (0)
18/07/2016 08:55:12    http://forums.autosp...-terry-nutkins/ [L] HTML:Script-inf (0)
18/07/2016 08:55:12    http://forums.autosp...-terry-nutkins/ [L] HTML:Script-inf (0)
18/07/2016 08:55:12    http://www.motifwebs...h_27oct04_2.jpg [L] URL:Mal (0)
18/07/2016 08:55:12    http://www.motifwebs...ar_17sept05.jpg [L] URL:Mal (0)
18/07/2016 08:55:12    http://www.motifwebs...r_12sep04_5.jpg [L] URL:Mal (0)
18/07/2016 08:55:12    http://www.motifwebs...dges_6apr06.jpg [L] URL:Mal (0)
18/07/2016 08:55:12    http://www.motifwebs...ar_23sept05.jpg [L] URL:Mal (0)
18/07/2016 08:55:12    http://www.motifwebs...r07DSC_4769.jpg [L] URL:Mal (0)
18/07/2016 08:55:12    http://www.motifwebs...Bay_31dec07.jpg [L] URL:Mal (0)
 

[chunder27]

Since upgrading to 10 and a new machine recently I have noticed weird issue.

 

In the toolbar at the top where you have the home and refresh buttons, there is often a flickering.

 

At the same time your text will wait and hesitate before appearing in the text box.

 

No idea what this is, but didn't used to happen on older browsers and older operating systems.

 

I fear it might be something to do with the pathetic smiley box at the bottom of the screen

[milestone 11]

All of a sudden have tags.tiqcdn.com causing difficulty loading page from start-up Four minutes from clicking desk top link to page appearing.

[Vitesse2]

All of a sudden have tags.tiqcdn.com causing difficulty loading page from start-up Four minutes from clicking desk top link to page appearing.

Sounds like a badly-coded third-party advert not loading properly. That will be market-specific.

[milestone 11]

Sounds like a badly-coded third-party advert not loading properly. That will be market-specific.

Mmmh, will have to try going via Autosport link tomorrow as opposed to Classic where I know that I'll have to log in. Spanish adverts are notoriously dodgy, my KIS quite often denies access to sites that carry spanish ads. Thanks V2.

[Myrvold]

So, when not using the BBCode editor for posting, I will get some sort of ad blocking out the reply-box.
I would also love to say that it is down to my computer, but after countless different scans (for Virus, Malware, Spyware, Rootkits etc. etc. I do them all when I first start). I found nothing. Also, it is not on any other page I visit. Not even on other IPBoards.

[Vitesse2]

That sounds very odd. I know you said you'd done a lot of scans, but have you used AdwCleaner? IMO the best available, as it also finds and destroys remnants of stuff that others may not have removed. If you've never used it before, make sure you close all other programs, as it will restart your system as part of the process. Accept all its removal suggestions - unless you have a very good reason not to - and just let it work. On a first run, it may seem to be taking a very long time to restart and you will just be presented with a blank screen while it works. But it will eventually restart and generate a report of everything it has removed.

[Myrvold]

That sounds very odd. I know you said you'd done a lot of scans, but have you used AdwCleaner? IMO the best available, as it also finds and destroys remnants of stuff that others may not have removed. If you've never used it before, make sure you close all other programs, as it will restart your system as part of the process. Accept all its removal suggestions - unless you have a very good reason not to - and just let it work. On a first run, it may seem to be taking a very long time to restart and you will just be presented with a blank screen while it works. But it will eventually restart and generate a report of everything it has removed.

Done.  That found 1 thing, which in itself is strange. It's "always" something, somewhere that might be a threat. One string of a website-thingy was deleted, and that was it. No difference here though. Or, the ads are "gone", I don't see the ad-pictures anymore, just a empty space where the reply-box should be.

On a sidenote, it is ironic, after 7 years without firewalls, antivirus etc. (just one install a year, a scan, then uninstall antivirus) I've never had any issues. After 3 weeks with a brand spanking new computer, Windows 10, windows defender, antivirus and firewall (Forza Horizon 3 won't work online unless the firewall is on) I am having issues.

Edited by Myrvold, 11 October 2016 - 13:06.

[Vitesse2]

Curiouser and curiouser ...

 

What browser are you using? Do you have any others installed and if so do you see the same behaviour on those?

[Myrvold]

Curiouser and curiouser ...

 

What browser are you using? Do you have any others installed and if so do you see the same behaviour on those?

Hmm, interesting. The "Sign-in" button doesn't work on other browsers - Microsoft Edge and Firefox (every other button does). I don't dare to check if that is the case on Chrome, I am kinda stuck if that's the case. That also applies to the only other IPBoard I am a member on. But not on any other kind of site I visit.
So for some reason, atm, it looks like it might be on my computer, solely with IPBoard solutions, certain areas and without any program finding anything. Now that is interesting!

EDIT: Though, normal reply button now works in Chrome, all the other small issues that I had before applies to the other browsers I thought I was computer-geeky, but now I am at a loss.

Also have had a look through the installed programs (or apps&features as it is called in this age), nothing new or strange there. Only things I have downloaded and/or installed the last week is a new nVidia driver and a logitech driver.

Edited by Myrvold, 11 October 2016 - 15:03.

[Vitesse2]

Maybe roll back the drivers one at a time and see if that makes a difference? I think it's unlikely, but stranger things have happened - I had a long-running problem which was disabling right-click menus in Firefox after 3-4 hours online and which turned out to be a conflict between two outside programs.

[Myrvold]

Done, no difference there either. Interesting thing is that after deleting the cache, history etc. it seems like it have fixed itself on Chrome (though, I guess it's just masking an issue), while Edge and Firefox is still unusable(still only IPBoards). I have of course done the same delete-round on those.

I'll see if I can come up with something for later on, at least, I don't think it is an Autosport-forum issue anymore, it was just the place I noticed it first, and had the biggest issues it looks like.

EDIT: It haven't fixed itself. This is fun!

Edited by Myrvold, 11 October 2016 - 19:17.

[noikeee]

I've just started to get redirected to findingresult.com whenever I load up the forum. Wasn't happening 10 minutes ago.

This is in my work computer (I'm writing from my phone otherwise I can't access the forums), so I'm pretty confident I didn't pick up malware from watching pr0n or something.

[Marklar]

Exactly the same is happening to me the last 30 or so minutes, on my mobile phone. I'm redirected to the same site.

 

Edit: Browser is Google Chrome. Same as my computer (Windows 10) where it works fine,

Edited by Marklar, 28 October 2016 - 10:14.

[noikeee]

Seems fine now again. Bizarre.