Win32 Virus Removal

Restore Missing/Hidden Icons Wiped Out by a Virus – PCWorld

January 25th, 2012 | Author: admin

By Rick Broida, PCWorld Jan 25, 2012 12:34 AM

Viruses Last night my sister-in-law called me, just about in tears. "Something" had happened to her laptop--probably a virus, she guessed--but everything seemed to be gone: all her desktop and Start Menu icons, and, even scarier, all her data. It was like aliens had abducted her desktop.

Not aliens: hackers. Her system had indeed been infected by a virus, and it took me a few sweeps with Malwarebytes Anti-Malware (still the best recovery tool out there, IMHO) to get rid of it. (Here's a great malware-removal tutorial from PC World's Eric Geier.)

Just one problem: removing the virus hadn't restored all my sister-in-law's icons and data. The hard drive still showed nearly full, meaning nothing had actually been erased, but for all intents and purposes, the stuff was still MIA.

Fortunately, I found a utility that worked a seemingly major miracle: It brought everything back.

It's called UnHide. This free, self-contained utility is available via BleepingComputer courtesy of a user named Grinler. Just download and run the program, then be prepared to wait. On my system, it took 10-15 minutes to restore everything.

But restore everything it did: desktop icons, the Start Menu, and all the seemingly vanished data.

This was a first for me; I'd never encountered a virus that made almost the entire desktop disappear. Scary stuff!

If you find yourself in a similar situation, don't panic. I think it's the rare virus that actually does wipe out data. That said, this is probably a good time to remind you to make regular backups--not just to an external drive, but also to the cloud. Better safe than sorry!

Contributing Editor Rick Broida writes about business and consumer technology. Ask for help with your PC hassles at hasslefree@pcworld.com, or try the treasure trove of helpful folks in the PC World Community Forums. Sign up to have the Hassle-Free PC newsletter e-mailed to you each week.

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Avg 2012 Internet Security Key (7 Years)

January 25th, 2012 | Author: admin

Hey, check out these auctions:

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Posted in Internet Security | Tags: 2012, Internet, Security, Years | No Comments »

Microsoft says Russian anti-virus developer behind Kelihos botnet – VentureBeat

January 24th, 2012 | Author: admin

Microsoft has accused a Russian former anti-virus software developer of creating the Kelihos botnet, which sent out 3.8 billion spam messages every day in its prime.

Andrey Sabelnikov, who currently lives in St. Petersburg, Russia, was once a “software engineer and project manager at a company that provided firewall, antivirus and security software,” according to Microsoft’s amendment (PDF) to its original complaint with the U.S. district court in Virginia. Sabelnikov currently works for a software development and consulting firm as a freelancer. Microsoft alleges that software associated with the control of Kelihos identifies Sabelnikov as creator, operator, and controller of the botnet.

“Microsoft is informed and believes and thereupon alleges that Defendant wrote and/or participated in creating the harmful computer software that constitutes the Kelihos botnet,” Microsoft wrote in the amended complaint. “Defendant has used the software to control, operate, maintain and grow the Kelihos botnet, by among other things, infecting innocent users’ computers.”

Microsoft took down the Kelihos botnet in September, which had around 41,000 computers under its control. The discovery and eventual removal was done as a part of MARS (Microsoft Active Response for Security) program, created with its cyber crime unit to protect the internet as a whole. At the time, Microsoft was proud to name defendants, Alexander Piatti and 22 “John Does,” charged with owning “cz.cc” domains used to infiltrate to-be drone computers.

Sabelnikov allegedly purchased 3,723 of these “cz.cc” subdomains from Piatti and used them to operate Kelihos.

Though Kelihos is actually a botnet on the smaller side, Microsoft is pursuing the case to show domain owners there needs to be more responsibility for who is sold subdomains. The company uses the example of pawn shops in a blog post. Pawn shop owners require a name, address and other identifying pieces of information from those who wish to pawn an item. That way if something goes wrong or if the item is found to be stolen, the seller can be contacted. Domain owners, however, are not held to similar standard and are looser in who can use their subdomains.

“Currently no requirements necessitating domain hosts to know anything about the people using their subdomains,” said Richard Domingues Boscovich, a senior attorney in Microsoft’s Digital Crimes Unit, “Making it easy for domain owners to look the other way.”

hat tip The Verge

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Previous Story: The future of user interface design: understanding context & behavior

Tags: anti-virus, botnet, cz.cc, defendants, domain names, domain registration, Kelihos

Companies: Microsoft

People: Alexander Piatti, Andrey Sabelnikov, Richard Domingues Boscovich

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BioLineRx Signs Exclusive License Agreement for BL-8020, an Oral Treatment for … – MarketWatch (press release)

January 24th, 2012 | Author: admin

JERUSALEM, Jan 24, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- BioLineRx /quotes/zigman/5956062/quotes/nls/blrx BLRX +5.81% (tase:BLRX), a biopharmaceutical development company, announced today it has signed a worldwide, exclusive license agreement with Genoscience, a French company focused on viral disease therapeutics, to develop and commercialize BL-8020, an orally available treatment for Hepatitis C.

BL-8020 has been developed for anti-viral therapy by Professor Philippe Halfon, Co-Founder and President of Genoscience. Prof. Halfon is a founder of several biotechnology companies and is world renowned for his work on HIV (AIDS virus), HPV (human papilloma virus causing cervical cancer) and Hepatitis.

BL-8020 acts via a unique mechanism of action, by inhibiting Hepatitis C virus (HCV)-induced autophagy, which differs from the mechanism of currently used anti-HCV agents. BL-8020's safety and efficacy were demonstrated in pre-clinical studies. These studies have shown that BL-8020, when combined with other anti-Hepatitis C virus (HCV) agents, has a synergistic effect. BL-8020's synergistic effect on other therapies is likely to increase their potency and reduce the numerous adverse effects often associated with these drugs, by enabling utilization of lower dosages. In addition BL-8020 may reduce therapy duration, which is currently up to 48 weeks. The use of two drugs acting by different mechanisms is also likely to be beneficial for patients who have developed resistance to current treatments and is an effective strategy used against other viruses such as HIV.

Dr. Kinneret Savitsky, CEO of BioLineRx, said, "We are excited about entering the field of Hepatitis C therapeutics, which is a very important field in the pharmaceutical market today. The current global Hepatitis market is estimated at approximately $6.5 billion and is growing steadily. Current therapies are characterized by numerous severe side effects, long treatment duration and development of resistance. In these respects, BL-8020 has a demonstrated safety and efficacy profile, may shorten therapy duration and may combat resistance by acting as an add-on platform which can potentially be combined with other oral Hepatitis C therapies to increase their efficacy."

"We were impressed by the drug development expertise of the BioLineRx team and are very pleased to collaborate with them for the further development of our product for the treatment of Hepatitis C," said Prof. Philippe Halfon, Co-Founder and President of Genoscience. "There is clearly a huge unmet medical need in finding a safe and effective treatment for the disease, and based on pre-clinical results, its unique mechanism of action and synergistic effect, we believe that our product, especially when combined with other available Hepatitis C drugs, has the potential to bring remedy to millions worldwide."

About Hepatitis C

Hepatitis C infection is a blood borne infection of the liver caused by the Hepatitis C virus (HCV) which becomes chronic in about 85% of cases. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 170 million people worldwide are chronically infected with HCV. In addition, HCV infection is the leading cause of liver transplantation and is a risk factor for liver cancer. The global Hepatitis market was estimated at $6.5 billion in 2010 and is forecasted to grow to $11.5 billion in 2016.

About BioLineRx

BioLineRx Ltd. is a publicly-traded biopharmaceutical development company. It is dedicated to building a portfolio of products for unmet medical needs or with advantages over currently available therapies. BioLineRx's current portfolio consists of five clinical stage candidates: BL-1020 for schizophrenia has commenced a Phase II/III study; BL-1040, for prevention of pathological cardiac remodeling following a myocardial infarction, is currently undergoing a pivotal CE-Mark registration trial and has been out-licensed to Ikaria Inc. for a total deal value of $282.5 million, in addition to sales royalties; BL-5010 for non-surgical removal of skin lesions has completed a Phase I/II study; BL-1021 for neuropathic pain is in Phase I development and BL-7040 for treating Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) has completed Phase I. In addition, BioLineRx has 12 products in various pre-clinical development stages for a variety of indications, including central nervous system diseases, oncology, infectious diseases, cardiovascular and autoimmune diseases.

BioLineRx's business model is based on acquiring molecules mainly from biotechnological incubators and academic institutions. The Company performs feasibility assessment studies and development through pre-clinical and clinical stages, with partial funding from the Israeli Government's Office of the Chief Scientist (OCS). The final stage includes partnering with medium and large pharmaceutical companies for advanced clinical development (Phase III) and commercialization. For more information on BioLineRx, please visit www.biolinerx.com .

The estimates and judgments with respect to BL-8020 included in this release are considered forward-looking statements, which involve certain risks and uncertainties, and are based on information available to the Company at the time of this release. Such estimates may not be realized or may be only partially realized, due to the significant uncertainty characterizing research and development activities in general, particularly those of drug development, including changes in regulation or uncertainty relating to the application of regulation, unexpected delays in obtaining regulatory approval, unexpected delays in patient recruitment for clinical trials, unexpected delays in other clinical trial preparatory activities, inefficiencies, inability to manufacture, toxicity, a high level of risk/reward in comparison. Any forward-looking statements represent the Company's views only as of the date of this release and should not be relied upon as representing its views as of any subsequent date. BioLineRx does not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements unless required by law.

SOURCE: BioLineRx Ltd.



        
        KCSA Strategic Communications 
        Garth Russell / Todd Fromer 
        1 212-896-1250 / 1 212-896-1250 
        grussell@kcsa.com / tfromer@kcsa.com 
        or 
        BioLineRx Ltd. 
        Tsipi Haitovsky, Public Relations 
        +972-3-6240871 
        tsipih@netvision.net.il

Copyright Business Wire 2012

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Volume: 9,208

Jan. 23, 2012 4:00p

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Removing barriers in people’s minds will bring down walls – Irish Independent

January 24th, 2012 | Author: admin

ROBERT Frost, in his folksy way, wondered whether there was "something" out there that did not like a wall. In Belfast they love their walls, especially peace walls, to the extent, it seems of wanting them kept up forever.

Many outsiders may be surprised at the news that the International Fund for Ireland, which has such a distinguished track record in supporting imaginative strategic initiatives which will help heal the scars of conflict, should have committed £2m (€2.4m) to projects designed to lead to the removal of peace walls in Belfast.

That such an enterprise is necessary a decade and a half after the Good Friday Agreement will be disappointing to those eternal optimists who thought that peace should have broken out when the governments had ordained it to be so.

Others will be disappointed to learn that, far from crumbling or being demolished, such walls have trebled in number in the interval, and now extend to a cumulative 21 miles in Belfast alone.

Before rushing to judgment, we might ask how far this is different from the gated communities and estates which increasingly mark the more affluent areas of cities and towns. Walls built by the rich are an advertisement of power and possessions, those required to assuage the fears in poorer areas, a symbol of impotence and insecurity. Both are indications of a dysfunctional society.

In both cases, the need for a wall is based on fear and mistrust.

Called into use in the 1970s in order to protect communities from sectarian attack from the travelling gunman or invading mobs of recreational rioters, the walls have themselves become a barrier to peace-making in the wider sense, by literally cementing difference and division in a society that is trying desperately to get its act together. They inhibit movements across streets to shops and community facilities and even playgrounds, the sort of everyday activity which helps to integrate a society.

In particular, they produce, on the one hand, a siege mentality; on the other, the wall and the community behind it become the targets, something to be attacked simply for being there.

Perhaps too often peace walls were built as a political sop, as a quick-fix solution to a local problem without identifying the underlying problem, a classic case of treating the symptoms while leaving the underlying virus of sectarianism to develop its own immunity.

Some of these walls mark sites of sectarian strife which have been running sores since the early 19th century. Others resulted from population movement during the Troubles which hardened boundaries. However, once built, they became part of the furniture.

Ironically, the first peace wall in Belfast (which still exists) is a nine-foot high brick construction, sunk underground in the city cemetery at the behest of a Catholic bishop in Victorian times, presumably to ensure that the resurrection of members of his flock on the last day would not be impeded by Protestant fellow travellers or the sins of unbelievers.

It is characteristic of the more strategic approach of the International Fund that the immediate object of the current initiative is not so much the removal of brick and concrete as of barriers in people's minds.

They are funding, not bulldozers and wrecking balls but the slow, painstaking task of building networks of trusting and trustworthy individuals, and mutual confidence in separated communities that their security is better ensured by good neighbours than by the stronger and higher walls.

It is a serious reflection on political leadership that the Office of First and Deputy First Minster has been unable, yet, to publish an agreed community relations strategy which would support the valuable, if necessarily unheralded work being done on the ground by dedicated community workers and activists on both sides.

In the meantime, local initiatives need to be supported. Providentially, cutbacks in public services could promote sharing of community facilities on a cross-community basis, and the end of expensive duplication.

Falling numbers in inner city schools and threats of closures present an opportunity to educate young people together, or at least to reduce segregation.

Unless, of course, another bishop wants to build another wall.

- Maurice Hayes

Irish Independent

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ID Watchdog and Tech Live Connect to Protect Consumers at Risk of Identity Theft – Sacramento Bee

January 23rd, 2012 | Author: admin

DENVER, Jan. 23, 2012 -- /PRNewswire/ -- ID Watchdog, Inc. (TSX.V: IDW) (OTC: IDWAF), provider of identity monitoring and preservation tools, today announced a new partnership with Tech Live Connect, a service provider offering "TLC" for malware infected or otherwise troubled PCs via an elite remote technical support staff. Users with malware infections and out of date system files suffer impaired computer performance and are at increased risk of identity theft; TLC is able to remove malware, update system files and restore PC performance, while Identity Theft Protection from ID Watchdog provides ongoing service and protection after the service call.

Tech Live Connect and ID Watchdog are dedicated to protecting customers' digital lives both on the PC and beyond. This partnership will offer an added layer of protection to those who are at a higher risk of identity theft.

"Our customers are often individuals who have fallen victim to viruses or have security 'holes' on their PC. Today's viruses and hackers are pursuing profit, often through identity theft," said Brian Cotter, CEO, Tech Live Connect. "This partnership with ID Watchdog allows us to enhance our 'peace of mind' value to our customers, and provide ongoing protection from identity theft after we've removed the virus and nullified any security holes."

As part of the agreement, ID Watchdog's identity monitoring and preservation tools will be offered directly to Tech Live Connect's customers whose devices are infected with viruses, malware or spyware. Once a customer signs up, they will be able to routinely monitor for critical changes in their credit report and personal information with alerts and resolution services provided at no additional cost.

"Identity theft can devastate its victims financially, and victims often face countless hours of frustration attempting to repair the damage on their own," said Michael Greene, CEO, ID Watchdog. "This partnership allows us to protect users at high risk of identity theft, giving them an early warning of potential issues, and an expert staff that can do the heavy lifting to get their identities and their lives back on track."

About Tech Live Connect

As computers, mobile devices and connected communities become more sophisticated, so too does the task, cost and stress of protecting, maintaining, repairing and optimizing them. TLC offers a new model of remote technical support that combines best practices in live agent care with secure, smart, intuitive technology. Whether you need malware (viruses, spyware, etc) removal, mobility management, system or application set up support, or would simply like your PC optimized, TLC has a Live Expert standing by to remotely help you, your family or your business.

Tech Live Connect is headquartered in Glendale, CA. For more information, please contact us at www.TechLiveConnect.com.

About ID Watchdog, Inc.

ID Watchdog and its partners provide consumers with identity monitoring and preservation tools that provide the only real protection against identity theft: active knowledge about your online identity. Using these tools, consumers watch their credit reports and receive warnings about significant changes as first alerts to possible identity theft. ID Watchdog and its partners empower consumers to play a role in defending their online identity by remaining vigilant about changes to and inaccuracies in their credit reports and resolving any issues that do arise with the help of personal information agents.

ID Watchdog, Inc. was founded in 2005 and is headquartered in Denver, Colorado. All the company's services have been developed with input from industry experts; national consumer advocacy groups; federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies; consumer protection agencies; and adhere to guidelines published by the Consumer Federation of America. For more information, please visit www.IDWatchdog.com.

Forward-Looking Statement

This news release includes certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 which address future events and conditions which are subject to various risks and uncertainties. The actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements as a result of numerous factors, some of which may be beyond the Company's control. Although the Company believes that its expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, no assurance can be given that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ from these forward-looking statements are disclosed in the company's filings with Canadian regulators at www.sedar.com. ID Watchdog assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements of management beliefs, opinions, projections, or other factors should they change.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Company Contact:ID Watchdog, Inc.Jay B. Lewis, CFO303-339-8017jlewis@idwatchdog.com www.idwatchdog.com

SOURCE ID Watchdog, Inc.

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ID Watchdog and Tech Live Connect to Protect Consumers at Risk of Identity Theft – MarketWatch (press release)

January 23rd, 2012 | Author: admin

DENVER, Jan. 23, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- ID Watchdog, Inc. (tsx.v:IDW) /quotes/zigman/5234326 IDWAF -18.92% , provider of identity monitoring and preservation tools, today announced a new partnership with Tech Live Connect, a service provider offering "TLC" for malware infected or otherwise troubled PCs via an elite remote technical support staff. Users with malware infections and out of date system files suffer impaired computer performance and are at increased risk of identity theft; TLC is able to remove malware, update system files and restore PC performance, while Identity Theft Protection from ID Watchdog provides ongoing service and protection after the service call.

Tech Live Connect and ID Watchdog are dedicated to protecting customers' digital lives both on the PC and beyond. This partnership will offer an added layer of protection to those who are at a higher risk of identity theft.

"Our customers are often individuals who have fallen victim to viruses or have security 'holes' on their PC. Today's viruses and hackers are pursuing profit, often through identity theft," said Brian Cotter, CEO, Tech Live Connect. "This partnership with ID Watchdog allows us to enhance our 'peace of mind' value to our customers, and provide ongoing protection from identity theft after we've removed the virus and nullified any security holes."

As part of the agreement, ID Watchdog's identity monitoring and preservation tools will be offered directly to Tech Live Connect's customers whose devices are infected with viruses, malware or spyware. Once a customer signs up, they will be able to routinely monitor for critical changes in their credit report and personal information with alerts and resolution services provided at no additional cost.

"Identity theft can devastate its victims financially, and victims often face countless hours of frustration attempting to repair the damage on their own," said Michael Greene, CEO, ID Watchdog. "This partnership allows us to protect users at high risk of identity theft, giving them an early warning of potential issues, and an expert staff that can do the heavy lifting to get their identities and their lives back on track."

About Tech Live Connect

As computers, mobile devices and connected communities become more sophisticated, so too does the task, cost and stress of protecting, maintaining, repairing and optimizing them. TLC offers a new model of remote technical support that combines best practices in live agent care with secure, smart, intuitive technology. Whether you need malware (viruses, spyware, etc) removal, mobility management, system or application set up support, or would simply like your PC optimized, TLC has a Live Expert standing by to remotely help you, your family or your business.

Tech Live Connect is headquartered in Glendale, CA. For more information, please contact us at www.TechLiveConnect.com .

About ID Watchdog, Inc.

ID Watchdog and its partners provide consumers with identity monitoring and preservation tools that provide the only real protection against identity theft: active knowledge about your online identity. Using these tools, consumers watch their credit reports and receive warnings about significant changes as first alerts to possible identity theft. ID Watchdog and its partners empower consumers to play a role in defending their online identity by remaining vigilant about changes to and inaccuracies in their credit reports and resolving any issues that do arise with the help of personal information agents.

ID Watchdog, Inc. was founded in 2005 and is headquartered in Denver, Colorado. All the company's services have been developed with input from industry experts; national consumer advocacy groups; federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies; consumer protection agencies; and adhere to guidelines published by the Consumer Federation of America. For more information, please visit www.IDWatchdog.com .

Forward-Looking Statement

This news release includes certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 which address future events and conditions which are subject to various risks and uncertainties. The actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements as a result of numerous factors, some of which may be beyond the Company's control. Although the Company believes that its expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, no assurance can be given that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ from these forward-looking statements are disclosed in the company's filings with Canadian regulators at www.sedar.com . ID Watchdog assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements of management beliefs, opinions, projections, or other factors should they change.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Company Contact:ID Watchdog, Inc.Jay B. Lewis, CFO303-339-8017jlewis@idwatchdog.com www.idwatchdog.com

SOURCE ID Watchdog, Inc.

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Volume: 42,262

Jan. 11, 2012 3:16p

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Soyinka: don’t reduce anti-fuel subsidy removal protests to ethnicity – The Nation Newspaper

January 23rd, 2012 | Author: admin

•’Boko Haram is ethnic, destabilising agenda’

Nobel Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka yesterday berated some elements from the Southeast and Southsouth for giving the anti-fuel subsidy removal protests an ethnic colouration.

He noted that such perception was dishonourable, dishonest and unfair to the patriots who protested against maladministration on the streets.

The acclaimed writer decried the recurrent bomb explosions that have killed many Nigerians in the North, saying the Boko Haram sect harbours an intent to fuel ethnicity at the detriment of Nigerians.

The retired university don described the presidential system as a disaster, noting that it has shown Nigerian legislature as the personification of corruption.

He chided the Federal Government for deploying troops in Lagos, saying the soldiers were not out to protect the residents.

Soyinka spoke in Lagos at a town hall meeting, with the theme: Endemic Corruption: The Bane of Good Governance, organised by the Save Nigeria Group (SNG).

Other speakers at the lecture included the SNG Convener Pastor Tunde Bakare; an economist, Henry Boyo; leader of the Campaign for Democracy (CD), Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin; former Lagos State House of Assembly member Babatunde Ogala; Afro-beat musicians Femi Kuti and Dede Mabiaku.

Urging the government to halt the persistent bombings in the country, the literary giant said: “Boko Haram has embarked on a programme of inciting Nigerians against Nigerians.”

To frustrate the plan, he urged Nigerians to protect those who are endangered because they are from other parts of the country.

Soyinka noted that the activities of the sect resemble a virus, saying these should not dissuade Nigerians from sticking to the principle of good neighbourliness.

He rejected the moves by certain elements outside the Southwest to discredit the successful five-day protests in Lagos against fuel subsidy removal.

Soyinka said: “A new citizenship spirit has emerged and it is very interesting and stimulating. The organisation and spontaneity of the protests is worthy of being adopted by other countries.”

The Nobel Laureate warned that there should be no ethnic division in the course of the struggle against fuel subsidy removal, adding that this could easily break the Nigerian spirit.

He said it is dishonest, dishonourable and unfair to reduce the demonstration to an ethnic affair, recalling that the fight for resource control, true federalism and true fiscal federalism, which had similarity with the recent struggle, were pursued with nationalist fervour.

Soyinka said the motivating factor during that battle was the human principle of equity and fairness, and not because of the desire to promote ethnicity.

He recalled that when a Second Republic member of Bornu State House of Assembly (Alhaji Abdurahman Shugaba) was wrongly deported, those who resisted the attempt to make him a wanderer in the wilderness and target were from the Southwest.

The Nobel Laureate described corruption as a “hydrapus”, “an unending circle” and “a monster”. He regretted that perpetrators committed serious financial crimes in Nigeria and went scot-free.

Soyinka said: “In Greece, certain measures taken by the government triggered protest by people who refused to back the imprudent government. Nigerians felt the same when they took to the streets. Corruption is a universal disease. There is a way they deal with it in China. They settle it with bullet and the bullet is paid for by the family. In other countries, it is public shame. In Nigeria, they give you chieftaincy titles.”

According to him, it is impossible to tackle corruption in Nigeria without reforming the legislature. He said monies are paid into the accounts of legislators for trips they would not make.

Dismissing the cut in lawmakers’ salaries as a ruse, the renowned writer called for a systemic transformation, which he said has proved to be a financial burden on the country.

Soyinka referred to the Central Bank Governor Lamido Sanusi’s outburst over the rise in the recurrent expenditure, saying: “It is factual. It is ridiculous that some legislators are earning more than the President of United States of America.

“We call for a National Conference because we know that the legislators would not act against their interests. The presidential system is a disaster. The legislature is an “hydropus” sucking the nation. Why should we have full time legislators? All these liberalisation, privatisation, deregulation lead to deprivation. Cancer cannot be cured with bandage.”

On trops deployement in Lagos, he said: “The soldiers have not come to protect us. When it is time, people will rise to reclaim their space.”

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Comodo Antivirus 2012 – PC Magazine

January 23rd, 2012 | Author: admin

Going online without an antivirus utility to guard your back is just foolish. Even the safest, biggest site can be hacked so that just visiting it earns you an unwanted malware attack. Cost is no excuse, not when there are free choices like Comodo Antivirus 2012. But be warned: Comodo's behavior-based Defense+ module will enlist you as an essential member of the malware-fighting team.

Installation
Comodo Antivirus installed without difficulty on all but one of my 12 malware-infested test systems. The installation process felt rather long, with a required reboot followed by a lengthy antivirus signature update. Immediately on finishing the update, Comodo launched a full scan. That makes sense—the first thing most users want to do is make sure there are no lurking threats.

On the one problem system, Comodo's installation failed with an error message every time due to interference by malware. Installing in Safe Mode didn't work, so I cleaned up the system using Comodo Cleaning Essentials (free, 4.5 stars). After that, the antivirus installed without trouble.

Average Cleanup
At the end of each malware cleanup session, Comodo reported that it had found malware and offered to have a GeekBuddy expert handle the cleanup process. I found this a little misleading, since GeekBuddy service is not free. In each case, I clicked away the offer.

Comodo lists all the malware threats it found, along with the associated file and Registry traces. It assigns each found item a risk level, but marks threats of all levels for removal. In a few cases, it needed a reboot to complete the cleanup.

Comodo detected 85 percent of the threats, just a hair below average. Poor removal of the traces it did find earned it a mediocre malware removal score, 5.4 of 10 possible points. It left behind executable traces for close to half the detected threats, and for nearly half of those at least one process was still running after supposed removal. Comodo left behind all the non-executable traces for many of the rest. AVG Anti-Virus Free 2012 (free, 4 stars), our Editors' Choice for free antivirus, scored 6.5 in this test.

This antivirus proved especially weak against rootkits, detecting 85 percent of them and scoring a low, low 3.9 points, the same as McAfee AntiVirus Plus 2012 ($39.99 direct, 3.5 stars). Comodo Cleaning Essentials removed two rootkits in order to allow installation of Comodo Antivirus. Of those detected by the antivirus alone, all remained running with their rootkit technology still active.

Comodo Antivirus did detect all the scareware samples, but most products manage that feat. Comodo's score of 8.3 for scareware removal is actually low, given that well over half the current competition scored 9.5 or higher. Norton AntiVirus 2012 ($39.99 direct, 4.5 stars) and Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware Free 1.51 (free, 4 stars) aced this test with a perfect 10.

For an explanation of my testing technique, see How We Test Malware Removal.

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Demand for System Check virus removal increases – Product Reviews

January 23rd, 2012 | Author: admin

By: Jamie Pert | January 23, 2012 | Leave a Comment

Just after Christmas we started hearing about a new virus which was affecting Windows-based PCs, this is known as ‘System Check’ and it almost looks like a genuine program, however it is in fact malware which tries to trick you into purchasing unneeded dodgy applications. The good news is that the infection is pretty easy to remove, so for now ignore the fake messages such as: “Hard drive clusters are partly damaged. Segment load failure” and sit back and relax while we point you in the direction of some great removal guides.

Before we get started we will talk about this particular infection a little, once infected by System Check the program tricks you into thinking it is a genuine utility which is reporting legitimate problems with your computer, however it is scareware which tries to fool you into activating the “fully-functional” version of the software, by doing this you wasting roughly $40 and are at risk of having your bank account details compromised So don’t fall for the scam!

Below we have embedded a graph which shows just how much of a jump Google search has seen for the terms “System Check virus”. As you can see it first began to spike on December 27-28 and since then has been searched a lot by people around the World (especially in the United States), this shows just how far the infection spread and how many people have searched for information on how to remove it.

If you head over to BleepingComputer you can see a full removal guide, the process is pretty simple, just follow the instructions in full and you should be infection free within an hour or so, to summarize you must start your computer in “Safe Mode with Networking”, download and run rKill, download and run iExplore.exe, download and install Malwarebytes’ Anti-Malware and then update it and run a full system scan, once complete remove all of the infections the scan finds and restart your PC – you should now be infection free.

We have embedded a video below which we found over at YouTube, this shows you how to manually remove System Check, however in some cases the infection may disable such methods from working – the best thing to do is read Bleeping Computer’s removal guide in full and do exactly what they say.

Did this help you remove System Check from your computer? If you are still experiencing problems why not leave a comment below and the PR community may be able to help you…

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