Have you ever been infected by ransomware, malware or viruses?

Have you ever been infected by ransomware, malware or viruses?

  • Ransomware (I paid to decrypt)

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Ransomware (got it cleaned without paying)

    Votes: 8 9.5%
  • Malware that damaged files on my system

    Votes: 8 9.5%
  • Viruses that caused a clean reinstall

    Votes: 20 23.8%
  • No, never!

    Votes: 36 42.9%
  • Yes, but it didn't caused a clean reinstall

    Votes: 28 33.3%

  • Total voters
    84

Kardo Kristal

From Crystal Security
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Jul 12, 2014
1,143
Malware is undoubtedly one of the biggest banes when it comes to computer security. From spyware, trojans, and many more, these things can not only compromise the safety of our devices, but they can also place risks on our personal security as well. It really can no longer be said that only the Windows operating system is vulnerable to attacks from cybercriminals; Mac OS X, Linux, and even a mobile OS like Android are not safe. They can create terrible damage on all of our devices, which may sometimes render them unusable over time.

Moreover, with the meteoric rise of crypto-malware, or better known as ransomware, these malicious programs are increasingly becoming hard to ignore. Back in the day, we could easily combat viruses, worms, and other types of malware using antivirus programs. Running a quick scan was enough, and the culprit that makes our devices act up can easily be caught. Today, it has taken a more personal approach, prompting victims to pay using real money in exchange for the safety of their files. Reports indicate that criminals are raking in big amounts of cash through this gimmick, and this is of no surprise; aside from setting a high ransom amount, victims' computer files are important to them, leaving them no choice but to pay up.

With all of these things in consideration, we're eager to hear your experience in dealing with malware. Have you ever been infected with such nasty software with your time with your computer or tablet? How were you able to thwart the malicious program for good?

Cast your answer in the poll, and let us know your thoughts below!
 

LASER_oneXM

Level 37
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Feb 4, 2016
2,520
my infections (since the 90's: the beginning of internet/malware):

1) browser ad ware ( about 8 months ago) (EDIT: probably software/PUP from softonic.com )
2) browser hijacker ( about 3 years ago) (EDIT: probably outdated Flash)

.....i've never had serious infections: that means never had to format my system, never lost my data
(e.g. data/HDDs deleted by virus/malware etc.)....
 
Last edited:

SHvFl

Level 35
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Nov 19, 2014
2,342
I actually tried really hard to remember if i ever got infected but i really can't. Maybe i was many years ago but my memory doesn't go that early in time when dinosaurs roamed free. :confused:
 

BoraMurdar

Community Manager
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Aug 30, 2012
6,598
Added one more entry "Yes, but it didn't caused a clean reinstall".

Yes, it was somewhere between 2004-2006, cannot remember correctly, when some worm infected my home desktop. I remember that I used AVG Free Antivirus and I was updating it manually via offline update files as I didn't have internet back then. After I downloaded latest definitions AVG successfully removed all the worms from the system. Some files were remain hidden but I was able to unhide them (it was a real success back then as I didn't know so much about malware)
 

SHvFl

Level 35
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Nov 19, 2014
2,342
Added one more entry "Yes, but it didn't caused a clean reinstall".

Yes, it was somewhere between 2004-2006, cannot remember correctly, when some worm infected my home desktop. I remember that I used AVG Free Antivirus and I was updating it manually via offline update files as I didn't have internet back then. After I downloaded latest definitions AVG successfully removed all the worms from the system. Some files were remain hidden but I was able to unhide them (it was a real success back then as I didn't know so much about malware)
It somehow messed all the votes. No never became the one you added i believe.
 

DardiM

Level 26
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May 14, 2016
1,597
I checked :
  1. Malware that damaged files on my system
  2. Viruses that caused a clean reinstall
I use PC since a lot of time (24+ years with school equipment into account), so before I was "security aware", I got several virus or malware

=> First PC
=> First CD-ROM from friend with half life, etc
=> First Virus : CIH (computer virus) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (also known as Chernobyl)

But I must admit that when I began ASM16 and ASM32 on my PC, "I" then often was the "virus" that caused clean reinstall (windows 95 when I first coded)

(At university, it was first win 3.11 version... and When I stopped school, win 95. My Study Leader was using the last PC available : A Pentium 120 MHz :confused: - I was working on a Pentium 75 MHz ...)
 
Last edited:

Cohen

Level 7
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May 22, 2016
328
I checked the following two:
Viruses that caused a clean reinstall
Ransomware (got it cleaned without paying)
By "without paying" I assumed you meant without paying the people that ran the Ransomware to get my files back, we had to pay someone in our town to fix the computer so we could use it again.

Being infected and causing me to panic when I was about 10 (both times were in the span of about a year) was the thing that showed me how scary it can be to get infected and taught me that I need to be careful online. I'm somewhat glad I was stupid enough to get infected otherwise I wouldn't have as much computer knowledge as I do today, and I would have no idea what MT is.
 

Windows_Security

Level 24
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Mar 13, 2016
1,298
I added a firewall and some proper protection because my son (13-14 years ago) became a script kiddy, when he was 12 or 13 and cut off from the router by me (he had to finish school and stop playing Battlefield). He managed to hack our neigbours routers, so he could continue gaming (while I thought he was doing his home work, because he had no access to the internet).

Bad luck happened when I caught my son messing around with someone other people's PC in Spain. So I left a note on the desktop of this spanish guy (your friendly hacker was here with a tip to add a firewall). My bad luck was that the Spanish guy was a real hacker and he returned the favour by hacking our network. My wife was so unfortunate to be at home when he broke in and and he deleted all her data. Luckily i did had a offline backup, so we did not lose our photo's. She did lose some work related stuff though.

My search for information turned into a hobby. First on Wilders, years later on Malware TIps. After that incident we never ran into any problems any more.
 
Last edited:

Damcp04

Level 1
Verified
Aug 14, 2016
41
In my first PC I had, well, it was a virus nest as I downloaded everything I saw without Anti-Virus (really dumb from me), when I made my first can it found like 200 viruses.. Since then I am afraid of getting malware so I am always updating my AV and searching for any security issues.. Now on the PC I am I have just got like 2 viruses, nothing serious..
 

Damcp04

Level 1
Verified
Aug 14, 2016
41
I checked the following two:
Viruses that caused a clean reinstall
Ransomware (got it cleaned without paying)
By "without paying" I assumed you meant without paying the people that ran the Ransomware to get my files back, we had to pay someone in our town to fix the computer so we could use it again.

Being infected and causing me to panic when I was about 10 (both times were in the span of about a year) was the thing that showed me how scary it can be to get infected and taught me that I need to be careful online. I'm somewhat glad I was stupid enough to get infected otherwise I wouldn't have as much computer knowledge as I do today, and I would have no idea what MT is.
It is scary to get infected, I once connected my phone to my PC and my AV found viruses and I started sweating and trembling waiting for my AV to delete them..
 

ElectricSheep

Level 14
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Well-known
Aug 31, 2014
655
In my first PC I had, well, it was a virus nest as I downloaded everything I saw without Anti-Virus (really dumb from me), when I made my first can it found like 200 viruses.. Since then I am afraid of getting malware so I am always updating my AV and searching for any security issues.. Now on the PC I am I have just got like 2 viruses, nothing serious..

When I had my "incident" a couple years back - drunk downloading - the initial MBAM scan had something like 1,200 different things:eek::eek::eek:
Took me ages to get it all cleaned up properly and had to go to the Removal Assistance section to get the remnants all cleaned out, which is what brought me here in the first place! I ended up staying to learn more about security, etc and haven't had a reinfection at all since, apart from a couple of minor easily removed PUPs.

JUST REMEMBER ONE THING: DON'T DRUNK DOWNLOAD!!!!:p:p:p:D
 

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