Mind the PUP: Top download portals to avoid

Unchecky was part of a few problem programs on a recent cleanup I did for a client. Serious browser hijacks and "Cannot display webpage" problems until it was removed. Then all was normal.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Dual Boot: Windows 8.1 & Server 2012r2 VMs: K...A10 7700 Kavari SteamRoller8GB DDR3 SDRAM PC3-85001024MB ATI AMD Radeon R7 Graphics
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom
OS
Dual Boot: Windows 8.1 & Server 2012r2 VMs: Kali Linux, Backbox, Matriux, Windows 8.1
CPU
A10 7700 Kavari SteamRoller
Motherboard
ASUS A88XM-PLUS (FM2+ )
Memory
8GB DDR3 SDRAM PC3-8500
Graphics Card(s)
1024MB ATI AMD Radeon R7 Graphics
Sound Card
Realtek High Definition Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Samsung
Hard Drives
SSD Crucial 120gb
WD VelociRaptor 1tb
PSU
Rosewill Gaming 650w
Case
Rosewill Galaxy 2
Internet Speed
55/12
Antivirus
Malwarebytes, MSE, SAS
Browser
FireFox, Chrome
I now run all downloads thru Virus Total before I put it on my machine. The run it thru 60 of all the well known AV programs. And since I do the download and the checking in one of my Linux virtual machines, I am safe from any manipulations. If Virus Total raises red flags, I trash it.

Here is an example of the Picasa downloader from the Cnet site:
 

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My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8from 1.6GHz Duo to i7
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP, Dell, Gateway, Toshiba - 4 laptops and 2 desktops
OS
Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8
CPU
from 1.6GHz Duo to i7
Monitor(s) Displays
2x HP w2207
Hard Drives
5x HDD, 7x SSD, 12x Externals
Keyboard
with trackball - no mices
Mouse
Trackball mice
Internet Speed
DSL 6000
Cnet is one of the most scary sites on the net.
I won't even go there to read articles let alone download something.
 

My Computer My Computer

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Windows 10 Pro. 64/ version 1709 Windows 7 Pr...Intel i7-6800K @ 4.3Corsair Platinum 16 gig @2400EVGA GTX 1070 OC
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Home made Desktop
OS
Windows 10 Pro. 64/ version 1709 Windows 7 Pro/64
CPU
Intel i7-6800K @ 4.3
Motherboard
ASUS X-99 Deluxe II
Memory
Corsair Platinum 16 gig @2400
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA GTX 1070 OC
Monitor(s) Displays
Asus 27" LED LCD/VE278Q
Screen Resolution
1920-1080 or 1280-720 HDMI
Hard Drives
INTEL SSD 730-240 Gb Sata 3.0/
PSU
EVGA Platium 1200W
Case
Phanteks Luxe Tempered Glass 8 fans/ one radiator
Cooling
XSPC/ Water Cooled CPU
Keyboard
Das 4 Professional
Mouse
Logitech M705/MX Anywhere 2-S
Internet Speed
100 mbits
Antivirus
Microsoft Security Essentials/ Malwarebytes Premium 3.0/ SAS
Browser
I.E. 11 default/Firefox/ ISP Time Warner Cable/Spectrum
Other Info
LG BluRay Burner/
Sound system-KLipsch-THX/
Icy Dock ssd Hot Swap bays.
Right Jack, that's why I picked it to show the example.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8from 1.6GHz Duo to i7
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP, Dell, Gateway, Toshiba - 4 laptops and 2 desktops
OS
Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8
CPU
from 1.6GHz Duo to i7
Monitor(s) Displays
2x HP w2207
Hard Drives
5x HDD, 7x SSD, 12x Externals
Keyboard
with trackball - no mices
Mouse
Trackball mice
Internet Speed
DSL 6000
I just noticed on mbam site they boast about having a CNet high rating :p
How can they be so weird to even list anything about CNet being they serve so many with pupware :confused:
I imagine even if some dip downloads mbam from CNet :p
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Win-7-Pro64bit 7-H-Prem-64biti7-5930K 2nd i9-9940x both water blocked VRM'...Trident-z 3200C14 2nd Trident-z 3600C16EVGA 1080ti ftw3 2nd Titan Xp both water blocked
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom assembled by me :}
OS
Win-7-Pro64bit 7-H-Prem-64bit
CPU
i7-5930K 2nd i9-9940x both water blocked VRM's too
Motherboard
ASUS SABERTOOTH X99 2nd ASUS x299 Apex
Memory
Trident-z 3200C14 2nd Trident-z 3600C16
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA 1080ti ftw3 2nd Titan Xp both water blocked
Sound Card
Built-in Realtek
Monitor(s) Displays
1-AOC G2460PG 24"G-Sync 144Hz/ 2nd 1-ASUS VG248QE 24" 144Hz
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080 144Hz
Hard Drives
2-Samsung M.2 Evo & Evo Plus
2-Samsung 850 EVO 500GB SSD's/ 3-2.5 W.D. Black 1tb-&3-1tb/3-3.5 WD Black 1tb hdd's
PSU
EVGA SuperNOVA 1000-P2 2nd 1200-P2
Case
2-Corsair Obsidian Series 450D Black ATX Mid Tower
Cooling
Custom water loops
Keyboard
Logitech G710+/ 2nd Logitech G910
Mouse
2-RedDragon M901 Perdition 16400 dpi Gaming mouse = wired
Internet Speed
Comcast Ping 19ms 89.31mbps download speed 6.12mbps upload
Antivirus
Malwarebytes Pro/ Superantispyware Pro
Browser
FireFox & Pale moon
Other Info
2nd ASUS X299 Apex/Intel i9-9940x with Custom water loop/7H-Prem-x64/Corsair 450D case/Ram Trident-z 3600C16 4x8gb / Samsung970Evo plus 500gb SSD/Dual ssd EZ swap evo/PSU EVGA SuperNova 1200w-P2 80+Platinum/GPU Titan Xp /8-ML-140 on push-pull on 2-280GTX rads
ThrashZone said:
I just noticed on mbam site they boast about having a CNet high rating :p
How can they be so weird to even list anything about CNet being they serve so many with pupware :confused:
I imagine even if some dip downloads mbam from CNet :p
Click to expand...

Its funny, isn't it? This is just another example of our backwards society. No matter how bad you are, if you're popular, people will endorse you for their own gain.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Dual Boot: Windows 8.1 & Server 2012r2 VMs: K...A10 7700 Kavari SteamRoller8GB DDR3 SDRAM PC3-85001024MB ATI AMD Radeon R7 Graphics
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom
OS
Dual Boot: Windows 8.1 & Server 2012r2 VMs: Kali Linux, Backbox, Matriux, Windows 8.1
CPU
A10 7700 Kavari SteamRoller
Motherboard
ASUS A88XM-PLUS (FM2+ )
Memory
8GB DDR3 SDRAM PC3-8500
Graphics Card(s)
1024MB ATI AMD Radeon R7 Graphics
Sound Card
Realtek High Definition Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Samsung
Hard Drives
SSD Crucial 120gb
WD VelociRaptor 1tb
PSU
Rosewill Gaming 650w
Case
Rosewill Galaxy 2
Internet Speed
55/12
Antivirus
Malwarebytes, MSE, SAS
Browser
FireFox, Chrome
Yep possibly mbam passed on CNet's auto pupware addition package :)
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Win-7-Pro64bit 7-H-Prem-64biti7-5930K 2nd i9-9940x both water blocked VRM'...Trident-z 3200C14 2nd Trident-z 3600C16EVGA 1080ti ftw3 2nd Titan Xp both water blocked
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom assembled by me :}
OS
Win-7-Pro64bit 7-H-Prem-64bit
CPU
i7-5930K 2nd i9-9940x both water blocked VRM's too
Motherboard
ASUS SABERTOOTH X99 2nd ASUS x299 Apex
Memory
Trident-z 3200C14 2nd Trident-z 3600C16
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA 1080ti ftw3 2nd Titan Xp both water blocked
Sound Card
Built-in Realtek
Monitor(s) Displays
1-AOC G2460PG 24"G-Sync 144Hz/ 2nd 1-ASUS VG248QE 24" 144Hz
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080 144Hz
Hard Drives
2-Samsung M.2 Evo & Evo Plus
2-Samsung 850 EVO 500GB SSD's/ 3-2.5 W.D. Black 1tb-&3-1tb/3-3.5 WD Black 1tb hdd's
PSU
EVGA SuperNOVA 1000-P2 2nd 1200-P2
Case
2-Corsair Obsidian Series 450D Black ATX Mid Tower
Cooling
Custom water loops
Keyboard
Logitech G710+/ 2nd Logitech G910
Mouse
2-RedDragon M901 Perdition 16400 dpi Gaming mouse = wired
Internet Speed
Comcast Ping 19ms 89.31mbps download speed 6.12mbps upload
Antivirus
Malwarebytes Pro/ Superantispyware Pro
Browser
FireFox & Pale moon
Other Info
2nd ASUS X299 Apex/Intel i9-9940x with Custom water loop/7H-Prem-x64/Corsair 450D case/Ram Trident-z 3600C16 4x8gb / Samsung970Evo plus 500gb SSD/Dual ssd EZ swap evo/PSU EVGA SuperNova 1200w-P2 80+Platinum/GPU Titan Xp /8-ML-140 on push-pull on 2-280GTX rads
whs said:
I now run all downloads thru Virus Total before I put it on my machine. The run it thru 60 of all the well known AV programs. And since I do the download and the checking in one of my Linux virtual machines, I am safe from any manipulations. If Virus Total raises red flags, I trash it.

Here is an example of the Picasa downloader from the Cnet site:
Click to expand...

Whs,

If you have an oem that wouldn't work, you couldn't use an oem in a Virtual Machine. The way you did it, you would need to retail licenses of Windows 7. One for the computer itself, the other for virtual machines.

I just discovered how I got the new bug. If updating Mini-wizzard partition magic don't download it from cnet, use Majorgeeks. I really surprised that CBS allows that to go on.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

W10 32 bit, XUbuntu 18.xx 64 bitIntel(R) Celeron(R) CPU G1620T @ 2.40GHz, 240...4GBIntel HD graphics
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Dell All in one Inspiron 2020
OS
W10 32 bit, XUbuntu 18.xx 64 bit
CPU
Intel(R) Celeron(R) CPU G1620T @ 2.40GHz, 2400 Mhz
Motherboard
Dell
Memory
4GB
Graphics Card(s)
Intel HD graphics
Sound Card
High Definition Audio Device
Monitor(s) Displays
20 inch Screen
Screen Resolution
W7=1280 x 720 & Linux Mint Xfce=1360 x 768
Hard Drives
500 GB hard drive
Keyboard
Usb
Mouse
Usb
Internet Speed
High-Speed
Antivirus
MSE
Browser
Main Browser Firefox
Other Info
I have done a clean install of Windows 7 using Dell re-installation disk (Dell sent me one). I also use Free Macrium reflect backup and restore.
I actually prefer to use my Mint Mate in a virtual machine. It is the safest and malware has no chance.

Yes, CNET is a real malware box. It is rare that a download from them come in clean. Best is to always run everything thru Virus Total. Then you know how the download is.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8from 1.6GHz Duo to i7
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP, Dell, Gateway, Toshiba - 4 laptops and 2 desktops
OS
Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8
CPU
from 1.6GHz Duo to i7
Monitor(s) Displays
2x HP w2207
Hard Drives
5x HDD, 7x SSD, 12x Externals
Keyboard
with trackball - no mices
Mouse
Trackball mice
Internet Speed
DSL 6000
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