Yes, it was another Tech Issue Day. And, with this "issue" I will take issue with Conduit, a creepy, sneaky, shockingly legal application that is attached to various program downloads and Will Not Go Away!
One usually isn't aware that Conduit will be involved in your download…whether from a Supposedly Safe Site or a risky Free Application. You don't know anything about it until you realize that your computer is Running Slow and an Ugly Unwanted Toolbar suddenly pops-up on top of Your Every Page on Anyplace you travel on the I-Nets and will change Your Search Engine To Theirs! It not only clogs your system, although it's not a Virus (supposedly), but will also interfere with the ability to Start Your Computer!
Virus scans don't see it. You think you uninstalled it, as it no longer shows-up in your Programs/Applications Location after you "thought" you removed it. Nevertheless, you'll discover that It Is Still There!
The list of complaints goes on – and as there are so many awful stories, conflicting opinions on what it really is, I won't provide a link. If you do your own Search, you'll find a dizzying array of nice people trying to find solutions receiving info about Supposed Fixes that aren't effective. Don't bother unless you have it, too, or are a Partial Geek Like Me.
To calmly handle the Latest Glitch, I ran a Deep Scan to remove it…which, after 6 Hours utilizing an excellent anti-Malware program, removed a lot of Adware and other Junk, but Not Conduit! I've been reading many reviews, forums and basic info on this Insidious Hijacker only to discover Everyone who has been in my place has had the most difficult time of it to toss that thing into Cyber Rejection Hell. The many ways in which people are guided to rid themselves of the Unwanted Pain In The Arse is ridiculous! One almost has to be a Computer Programmer to handle the process.
First, I did manage – after another 4 (count 'em) hours of Scanning Again with a specific program guaranteed to Get Rid Of It and discovered that, yes, I could see that it caught all of the Bad Things from Conduit (which has at least 3-4 other things stuck to it that you also get with your Not-So-Fun-Internet-Surprise!) and that, if used, would probably Fix The Problem. But, You Must Pay For That Service. I wonder if Conduit and the particular application are connected somehow. What a clever scam that would be, eh? Create something that is so High Tech in its ability to be bypassed by The Top Anti-Malware options that the Main Easy Way to dump it will create revenue. My Detective Skills are itching to do a bit of Deep Research about it.
Why is Conduit allowed to remain on the I-Net?
I manually fixed everything I could to stop a few annoying elements from overtaking my Search Preferences, etc. But the Toolbar and the Start-Up Glitch remain. I do know how to remove Tracking Cookies (one of it's ugly attributes) as well as utlize excellent software to handle tougher jobs. But now I'm pissed. Unless I MUST, I will not send money to the program mentioned earlier as I feel the entire mess is a rip-off.
I'm writing about this latest Tech Problem/Challenge to warn all of you to Beware Of Conduit should you ever run across it before you download anything…IF you are fortunate enough to see that it will become part of your Java or Flash Player (or other) needed application upgrades and/or downloads.
Meanwhile, I intend to file a complaint against the so-called "company" – or whatever it is – which could be NSA for all any of us know. I don't file complaints unless I see a scam. In fact, I've only done it once, and it was with Classmates.com – a story I wrote about in the early days of this blog in 2010.
And, as a note to Possibly Smug-Laughing MAC Users who think they can't get a virus, or Malware, because, well, you know, it's a MAC! – don't laugh too long or too hard. The Mac user in my abode was recently Hacked and ended-up with a virus. They also spend more time at The Apple Store at The Grove than I do at fixing my PC issues. And they have had 3 new Mac's in almost as many years caused by malfunctioning elements.
Ah, the supposed Age Of Ease Via Technology has become The Age Of Dissonance.
Until tomorrow, Be Well, and thanks for stopping by!
Image via: http://static.ddmcdn.com
THEY ARE SCAMMERS & CAUSED MY COMPUTER TO CRASH TO THE COST OF THOUSANDS. I HATE THEM! WHAT DID YOU DOWNLOAD TO BRING IT? HATE THEM>
ReplyDeleteSo sorry for you, Anon. It was a download of an Adobe product from an Adobe site. I doubt that Adobe was aware.
ReplyDeleteThe blog/site called www.bleepingcomputer.com is very very good in taking care of this stuff. I highly recommend them. First they will tell you how to get in your browsers and delete conduit and I didn't even know it was there. Then you go to the registry keys and remove all these separate strings of information, but they are listed on Bleeping computer. Don't go to MY bleeping computer because its not the real site and you will end up with another headache. well your blog looks great.
ReplyDelete