Grande Communications - FAQs ; How-Tos

Frequently Asked Questions & How-Tos

FAQs

How-Tos

Will I be protected from viruses with Grande high-speed Internet?

Computers catch viruses in many ways, primarily by execution of a program containing a virus. Caution must be exercised on any online service and virus protection is always the responsibility of the computer owner.

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People are receiving emails that say they are from me but I am not sending them. Why is this happening?

Most viruses that generate email have forged their "From" field -- in other words, the email appears to come from someone who in fact is not actually not the originator of the email. If your name is forged as the sender of the virus this does not mean that your account has been compromised. The email has not been sent from your account -- instead it has been sent forged in your name.

If someone reports an Email that you did not send you should instruct them to view the email headers and use the senders IP address to report the message to the abuse department of the provider from which it was sent.

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I received a bounce message indicating that the attachment I sent was infected with a virus, however I didn't send it!

You probably have nothing to worry about. A lot of recent viruses will randomly pick a return address from the victim's address book to use when automatically propagating itself. So most likely one of your email correspondents has picked up a a virus which is forging your address. Still, it is recommended that you keep your AntiVirus software current and running! As far as the actual bounces, you can safely delete them - they will stop coming when the person with the virus disinfects his/her computer.

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Are there any utilities that disinfect recent viruses?

Yes, McAfee makes a program called AVERT Stinger. It can be found here: http://vil.nai.com/vil/stinger/.

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My computers homepage keeps getting changed to about:blank or when I go to google.com I get sent somewhere else.

Your computer might be infected with the 'CoolWebSearch' which is a browser hijacker/spybot. Ad-aware and Spybot Search & Destroy do not currently catch this, nor do most antivirus programs. The best tool currently available to fix this problem is CWShredder. Please download this tool and run it to get rid of this particular version of Spybot.

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Do I really need an antivirus program?

Yes. We highly recommend that you install antivirus software and also keep the definitions up to date. Most modern antivirus software will permit you to periodically download updated definitions automatically. Each software package is different, so be sure to check the documentation and keep those definitions current!

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What antivirus software do you recommend that I install?

For Windows, either McAfee or Norton. A reasonably good free package for Windows is available at Grisoft. For Macintosh, Norton makes a version that you can purchase online at http://www.symantec.com/purchase/

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I am receiving emails from people I don't know with songs or documents attached, what should I do?

Delete them. They probably contain a virus. We recommend installing a good antivirus package like McAfee or Norton and keeping the definitions up to date.

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Why can't I connect directly to a Microsoft Exchange server or map a network drive outside of my home from my cable modem?

These actions require the use of port 135 which is now blocked on the Grande network for the protection of our customers. The block is due in part to a security vulnerability in several Microsoft operating systems that may allow unauthorized access to computers on the Internet via this port. A port filter is the optimal response as recommended by the US Department of Homeland Security.

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What should I do if I'm infected with the Novarg/Mydoom worm?

This worm forges emails to (and from!) everyone in your address list and includes a dangerous payload that when executed will infect them and send itself to everyone they have in their address book. On February 1, 2004 all infected hosts will perform a Denial of Service attack aimed at http://www.sco.com/ and on February 12, 2004 the worm will stop spreading itself. To remove it from your computer, update the virus definitions in your existing antivirus program or install the free version of AVG. Once your definitions are updated or AVG is installed, run a full scan on your computer. Once thats done you should be clean.

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I'm infected with Welchia, what should I do now?

Please follow the instructions at Symantec to download and use the Welchia removal tool. You will also want to update your operating system by using the instructions from Microsoft to prevent further infections using this exploit. We also recommend that you install and keep the definitions updated on a good antivirus package such as McAfee, Norton, or AVG.

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I am infected with MSBlast, how can I get rid of it?

Please visit the Symantec website and download the removal tool and follow the instructions with it.

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How can I prevent being infected with MSBlast?

This worm only affects Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003. You must download a patch to update your operating system from the Microsoft website. Also, you will want to install antivirus software or update the definitions on your existing software.

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I think I am infected with the virus (Sobig.b), what do I do?

Please visit the sobig.b removal page for a tool to remove the current infection from your computer. You will also want to install antivirus software or update the definitions for your existing software. The tool above cannot prevent reinfection, only remove whats already there.

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I am infected wtih klez, what is it and how do I get rid of it?

Klez is a worm that searches your computer for any email address and then hides itself in one of your files and sends itself out along with one of your files. You can find a tool to remove it here: klez removal tool.

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I am infected with Sircam, what is it and how do I get rid of it?

Sircam is a worm that collects email addresses from various places on your computer. It then sends itself along with randomly chosen .doc or .txt files that are on your computer to the addresses it has collected. To get a fix for it, please visit the sircam removal tool.

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How do I remove the CodeRed virus from my computer?

CodeRed is spread through unpatched Microsoft IIS web servers. If you don't need to run a webserver, disable it. If you do, please patch it. You can find a cumulative patch here to prevent you from being reinfected. To clean off your current infection, please visit this link for a tool that will remove it for you.

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How do I remove the Nimda virus from my computer?

Nimda is a worm that spreads itself via email and attaches to infected Windows IIS Servers. If you don't need to run a webserver, disable it. There are two variants of nimda, each with their own tool. Please see w32.nimda.e@mm.removal.tool and w32.nimda.a@mm.removal.tool for each of them. You will have to run both to determine which you are infected with.

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How do I remove the Deloader virus from my computer?

This worm is spread through unprotected or easily guessed passwords on shares on port 445 on Windows 2000 and Windows XP systems. Once its in it installs itself and starts to spread to other users. Please visit this link for information on how to remove it. To protect yourself, turn off any unneccesary shares and configure better passwords on shares that do exists to include numbers and special characters.

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What if I am infected with a virus not listed here?

Symantec has provided a number of removal tools. If you know the name of the virus, you can download the removal tool for it and follow the instructions to remove it. However, to prevent infection from the same virus or other viruses in the future, you will need a good antivirus software package installed.

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