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Best Resource For Identifying Legit Applications?
bjb writes "While helping a somewhat computer illiterate person figure out a problem recently, they mentioned that PDF files had recently stopped working. Upon investigation I found something installed called 'PDF Suite.' Never having heard of it, I Googled it with 'malware' and other key words, but nothing turned up, though my suspicion remained (and was somewhat confirmed by WOT.) So my question is, where can you go to find out if something is legitimate? Because the person I'm helping is on a dial-up connection, downloading malware detection applications (and updates) is too heavy consider. And I don't maintain a USB stick with such apps, since I don't do this kind of thing very often. Where can you quickly find information?"
and many other software download sites [claim to] thoroughly test submitted applications with antiviruses. in recent times i haven't downloaded any app from them that turned out to contain any sort of malware.
weinersmith
downloading malware detection applications (and updates) is too heavy consider.
Any yet they find the time to download all of that malware...
"linux is just DOS with a UNIX like syntax" -- Galactic Dominator (944134)
If you've never heard of an application, assume that it's untrusted malware.
Linux has been pioneering a way around this through trusted software repositories, but the concept hasn't panned out for Windows yet.
Does the vendor make md5 or sha1 hashes available?
Linux repositories are signed with pgp keys, this is usually pretty good(pun intended) for security. Even when breaches happen things are found out pretty quickly.
Searching the internet for downloads and running downloaded apps to install is a very 1990's way of installing software. Its hard to believe Windows users don't have App repositories yet.
find /usr/ports/* >> notmalware.txt
Seen as "somewhat computer illiterate," read as "Windows."
I know a lot of OSX users that fit that description.
Attention... all grammer nazi"s! Is they're anything; wrong with: my post,
If it is malware, it's probably more secure against attack than Adobe Reader is.
Seen as "somewhat computer illiterate," read as "Windows."
I know a lot of OSX users that fit that description.
The OP also said "dialup" and "malware" so I still read as "Windows." :)
Did you try Googling it *without* the word malware?
http://www.google.com/#hl=en&source=hp&q=%22PDF+Suite%22&aq=f&aqi=g10&aql=&oq=&fp=1
Well, if it was benign software, then maybe the free trial ended? Or, if it really did have some malware in it, maybe it was a "cracked" version, with extra Russian Hacker Goodness?
Program Intellivision!
Ho ho ho, allow me a moment, my monocle has fallen into my snifter of brandy. Ho ho!
I, being a LINUX USER, you see, do not have such mundane Mico$$$$$$$$$oft problems, ho ho!
Did I mention I use LINUX! Ho ho. I bet you are impressed with my LINUX USING ABILITY. We USERS OF LINUX have SOFTWARE REPOSITORIES, ho ho ho. By USING LINUX you too can have a SOFTWARE REPOSITORY.
What is that I hear? You use Mico$$$$$oft products?! Ho ho! My dear friend, you must cease at once and switch to LINUX. LINUX has SOFTWARE REPOSITORIES, did I mention this? Ho ho ho...
oh dear, it appears my monocle has come off again! Ho ho!
Are you getting paid? And if not, why not? And if so, why are you trying to do this over the phone?
Getting paid doesn't necessarily mean getting paid enough to 1. take a week off one's day job and 2. pay for round-trip airfare.
Signed hashes only assure you of the source of the files. They don't in themselves provide any assurance of trust.
In the majority of these cases, the only thing it would achieve would be that you can state with some confidence that it's definitely the fault of a particular asshat.
LINUX has SOFTWARE REPOSITORIES, did I mention this?
The software repositories associated with major desktop Linux distributions, such as Fedora and Ubuntu, have a drawback: not all applications, even useful and legitimate ones, satisfy the licensing requirements of the repositories. For example, almost no major label video games are completely free software and free assets.
If this person is important to you (ie, a relative, family friend), then set up a CD-R with A/V and malware detection on it such that it autoruns, and mail them a new, fresh copy once per month that includes the latest A/V definitions. Hell, include a defrag as part of the autorun process. What does this person do for updates to Windows? I'm betting nothing. Include those too.
90% of maintaining my computer semi-literate parents' and relatives' computers is basically this: (1) update antivirus, (2) run A/V, (3) update Windows, (4) defrag.
Put my fist through my alarm clock with its ding-dong death inside my ear. - The Blackjacks.
Macs are dumbed down. So you gotta be smart to use them. Or something like that.
And a quick check of Ubuntu Forums should convince anyone that Linux has long since joined the party. If posts on /. don't.
BitTornado, an application I administer, was once available via ZDNet, a site which distributed freeware and shareware apps much like Download.com. At some point someone began offering download mirrors for BitTornado and other apps, with installers that were modified and apparently contaminated with malware. I complained twice; the second time, they nastily asked whether I wanted them to remove BitTornado from their site. I told them yes.
Just because software is available via some popular gateway, you can't be 100% certain what you download will be perfect and free from malware.
There is a legit package named PDF Suite. It's unclear whether that installation was legit or not. If "PDFs stopped working," it's entirely likely that the trial period for the legit software expired. No idea. I wasn't weighing in on either side of that.
The problem as stated in this article's question is almost something of a fools errand: "I have a connection to the Internet that at best can give me benign but worthless stuff, and can give me unbounded amounts of virulent crap. I can't use this connection to download anything useful or helpful, nor can I bring anything with me that's useful and helpful. How do I avoid the crap?"
Perhaps I overstate it a bit, but not by too much, I don't think.
Program Intellivision!
Are you getting paid? And if not, why not? And if so, why are you trying to do this over the phone?
Because some people are actually nice and want to help out their friends and family?
Yeah, I feel the same way with any service I provide. Want me to hold the door for you? Pay up. Want me to help you move? Pay. Pick up a coke while I'm up? Pay. Jumpstart your car? Fix your collar? Point out your shoe's untied? That's right, PAY.
Who needs friends as long as you have money?
Tic-Tac-Toe, Global Thermonuclear War, and relationships all have the same winning move.
because someone has to [xkcd.com]
Just download http:///www.amilegit.com.ru/legit_app_detector__win32_trojanfree!!!!.exe and it will scan the app and tell you if it is legitimate.
"Doubleclick it until it opens up a Finder window, and then drag the icon into the Application folder on the left hand side of the Finder window".
Um, yeah. In December, my parents asked me to set up file sharing between Dad's Mac and Mom's PC, and the documentation on the Mac talked about a Finder window and some other stuff. I had to do a web search to learn how to decipher the MacSpeak. Intuitive, it's not. I sure was glad to go home to my Linux laptop.
"Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past." -- George Orwell
I agree, virustotal answers the original question of an online-resource to check a file. A similar scanning service is http://virusscan.jotti.org/. Remember, take the answers with a grain of salt. These are both multi-scanner services, in which the file is examined by multiple virus-scanning software packages.
Computers obey me.
And a quick check of Ubuntu Forums should convince anyone that Linux has long since joined the party. If posts on /. don't.
How is this a troll? He's right. Not everyone who uses Linux is a computer expert. Hell, when I started using Linux I was a beginner with Linux and just took a blind plunge. Wasn't hard with Ubuntu and thats why the forums are there, to help beginners and solve problems. It's the online FOSS version of Apple's Genius Bar in there stores and Microsoft store's Guru Bar. OSX and Linux are gaining speed with all users, not just the hardcore users.
Attention... all grammer nazi"s! Is they're anything; wrong with: my post,
If they (or you) can't tell then running Antivirus and Malware detection isn't "too heavy consider" it's mandatory, even if it means a few hours on dialup. If they can download the crapware they can download the AV.
(And you're being overly dramatic. Daily updates should take a few minutes to download at most, even on dialup.)
If the King can't afford a food taster then he gets poisoned or he starves to death.
Outside of scanning and known definitions - the only difference between software and malware is intent. Creating a complete, current and accurate list of potential and existing "malware" is like trying to find a list of door and window manufacturers burglars use.
...I pretty much stick with Malwarebytes, CCleaner, SpywareBlaster, and MSE.
Actually, I got this tip off another /. post...researched each (non-MS) application, determined for myself that they were legit, and have not looked back. In fact, I just spent a few minutes last night eradicating the trojan "Microsoft" Antivirus 2010 on a friend's computer using the Malwarebytes app on a USB. Worked like a charm.
But don't take my word for it...do your own evaluation. I think you'll like what you find.
Get the ISO from http://trinityhome.org/Home/index.php?wpid=1&front_id=12 for the Trinity Rescue Kit. Run it. Update it and save the updated ISO image. Burn that to a CD and give it to your friend. He can run it and disinfect his computer without an Internet connection. Give him an updated CD every month.
"I believe in Karma. That means I can do bad things to people all day long and I assume they deserve it." : Dogbert
You can get one at Big lots for $10 for a 4Gb, or if you check with surpluscomputers occasionally you can get bundles of 1Gb to 2Gb sticks for dirt cheap. So get a really cheap stick and then get the Computer Repair Utility Toolkit V2 which is like the Swiss Army Knife of PC Tools. So much more than simple malware repair it has fixes for networking, file recovery,info, scripts and tweaks, and it is simple to add you own. Just add Malwarebytes Antimalware and portable Firefox along with updating the included ClamAV and you have a one stop PC shop in your pocket.
but trying to guess what is a nasty and what ain't, especially when dealing with dialup, is simply a fool's game. There are literally thousands of new pieces of nasty released every day, and even if you guess right on this one there is no telling what else could be on that machine. Take the Toolkit I linked to above, add installers for Comodo AV and MalwareBytes, along with the latest Firefox, and simply stick the flash on your keyring and be done with it. Just plug the stick into any PC USB port once a week to update it and you have a full toolset in your pocket. So what if you don't do it everyday? The few times you DO run into something like this you will be able to handle it easily and look like a genius at the same time, all for a few dollar flash stick and less than 5 minutes a week.
ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
I call bullshit on the premise. If the user has bandwidth enough to download malware, he has bandwidth enough to download malware detection software and updates.
Currently hooked on AMP
This. AC has stated my policy, plainly. If I've never heard of it, and I don't know what it is, it's malware. In the computer world, it's "Guilty, until proven innocent."
And, when you think about it, the problem with malware is not so much that it exists. The real problem is that every gullible fool in the world automatically TRUSTS anything they find on the web.
Trust. Let the software distributor EARN some trust, don't just give it to him. And, those 10, 100, or even 1000 glowing reviews posted on his home site? He paid his niece to type those up, and she never saw the crap ware that her uncle developed.
"Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br
It is much easier to deal with the rare piece of software that is not in the repo, than lots and lots of software that is not in the non-existent repos.
Gamers are rarely completely naive users, and are rarely Linux users anyway.
There is usually a recognised non-free repo which should be enabled on installation for free-as-in-beer proprietary software. The problem only needs to be solved once.
Proprietary paid for software is usually safe-ish anyway (no worse than on Windows) and only a small proportion of all the software you install (serious gamers aside, again)