Metallica_Band
2[H]4U
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2002
- Messages
- 3,437
Hey there...I was wondering if AIM was bad...like if it installed *-ware (i.e.: spyware, adware, etc...)
Just wondering
C'YA
Just wondering
C'YA
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RS3RS said:Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think it has anything that's even remotely ...a security risk.
you win the bingo buzzward contest for "infection vector"Ice Czar said:IM clients themselves are a major infection vector
http://www.infoworld.com/article/05/02/11/HNimvirus_1.html
http://www.wwwcoder.com/main/parentid/472/site/4607/266/default.aspx
there was a 400% increase in malware detected last quarter that targeted IMs
Ah yes, like you suggested in the OS Forums. Normally good advice, but Metallica_Band is famous for asking the most simplest, easiest-to-find-on-your-own questions.Carnival Forces said:use google to answer your "what is XYZ" questions.
oh really?! DAMN how i want to kill it...if i remove it via Add/Remove programs, will it come back next time i run AIM?The Bryophyte said:It is supposedly a "media player". I don't really know what it does other than play those stupid animated AIM ads.
Your not spamming at all. It's good for people to know that AOL IM has some questionable content, whereas some free alternatives do not.The Bryophyte said:It seems to find its way back onto my computer fairly frequently, thought I'm not sure if it does it every single time I run AIM. I really haven't looked up how to kill it once and for all. I just got sick of messing with it. I'll stop spamming the thread now....
after you do, mind posting which one you found was better? thanks!WillowHawk said:ive used trillian for what seems like years, i actually only use the aim IM network, but because of its simplicity and functionality, trillian it is.
ive never heard of Gaim, but like any alternative software...i'll play around with it...see if i like it...
Metallica_Band said:EDIT: Oh wait...I'm thinking about GAIN...what's GAIM???
Not paranoid enough! I avoid it, and it is banned from my home network. The person can e-mail my Gmail account, and leave their phone number. I'll call them on my company's cell phone. Does that qualify for a tinfoil hat, or do I need to use a prepaid long distance card from a pay phone?Ice Czar said:... when I do employ IM I generally do it for a pre-arranged session and dont constantly leave it on.
no, you need to buy prepaid cellphones through a fake swiss acct on ebay.mosin said:Not paranoid enough! I avoid it, and it is banned from my home network. The person can e-mail my Gmail account, and leave their phone number. I'll call them on my company's cell phone. Does that qualify for a tinfoil hat, or do I need to use a prepaid long distance card from a pay phone?
mosin said:Not paranoid enough! I avoid it, and it is banned from my home network. The person can e-mail my Gmail account, and leave their phone number. I'll call them on my company's cell phone. Does that qualify for a tinfoil hat, or do I need to use a prepaid long distance card from a pay phone?
IM security: The worst is yet to come
A virus analyst at Kaspersky Labs has done little to allay fears of an upcoming epidemic of malware spreading via instant-messaging services
The number of instant-messaging (IM) worms is on the rise but users should expect only a short-lived surge before tech administrators act against IM in their companies, a security expert has claimed.
There have been around 40 different worms or variants spreading via IM applications so far this year, the majority of which have targeted Microsoft's MSN Messenger service. Alexander Gostev, senior virus analyst at Kaspersky Labs, said most of these worms were written in Visual Basic and contain similar source code a sure sign that script kiddies were most likely responsible.
"VB is one of the easiest programming languages to master, but it's unsuitable for serious projects The source code for some early IM worms was published on a number of virus writers' sites, and most of the new worms are clearly based on this code," said Gostev. "The evidence currently points to IM worms being the domain of script kiddies."
According to Gostev, IM worms are at a similar state of evolution to worms that spread using peer-to-peer (P2P) applications three years ago, which means in the short term a significant increase in the amount of malware targeting IM applications should be expected.
"Between 2002 and 2004, when P2P worms first appeared, they were also mostly written in VB and targeted one P2P client, Kazaa, the most popular client at the time As P2P-worms were simple to create, and spread rapidly, several hundred families appeared, with numerous versions in each. The increase in this type of malware reached its peak in 2003, with more than 10 new versions being detected every week," said Gostev.
Gostev said that the rate at which P2P worms were evolving slowed rapidly in 2004, which is how he also expects the IM worm 'lifecycle' to unfold.
"The rapid evolution of P2P worms slowed dramatically in 2004 and they currently comprise an insignificant percentage of contemporary malware. It seems likely that IM worms will have the same life cycle," said Gostev.
As administrators realised the dangers of P2P applications and restricted or denied access to those services, they became less of a problem, which is what will have to happen if IM attacks are to be contained.
"System administrators and security managers should be focusing their attention on the potential threat which IM applications represent. One option would be to forbid the use of IM applications in enterprise settings until security improves," said Gostev.
Secure AIM Conversations via AOL's Instance Messanger
A number of my friends have asked me how you can talk securely over AOL's Instant Messenger. By default messages are sent in the clear in plain text and any hacker, corporate security, or government snoop can listen in at will.
For my secure conversations, I use the excellent Gaim program with the Gaim-Encryption plugin. Gaim is an open software program with a rich plugin architecture and a good support community. Gaim-Encryption is a good security plugin which uses the NSS libraries to encrypt and decrypt messages between users with the RSA algorithm. The person you are chatting with will need to also be using Gaim with the plugin for this to work.
Metallica_Band said:Hey there...I was wondering if AIM was bad...like if it installed *-ware (i.e.: spyware, adware, etc...)
Just wondering
C'YA
as intended.Carnival Forces said:
QFTstumpy said:trillian > AIM.