Kazaa to use your "unused computing power and storage space"?! (1 Viewer)

[CameronS]

Very Interesting story...
http://msn.com.com/2100-1105-873416.html

 

[Matt Stryker]

I don't know about you guys, but the words GIANT SECURITY HOLE come to mind here.

This makes me love ad-aware and other privacy programs that much more.

 

[JasenP]

AdAware didn't find the BDE projector program that Kazaa installed on my system. I have since switched to Kazaa Lite and I am jim dandy now.

 

[Wayne Bundrick]

Thanks for the heads-up. Completely removing BDE is difficult. There are quite a few keys in the registry and I'm not sure I found them all.

I think I'm going to block all access to brilliantdigital.com at my company's firewall. While I'm at it, does anybody have a list of domains and/or IP address ranges for other a**holes that violate privacy through cookies (like doubleclick.net), create adware/spyware (like cydoor.com), or sponsor pop-up windows (like x10.com)? I'll block as many as I can find.

 

[Brett DiMichele]

I sure wish the government would pass a freaking law against

this type of "Hidden" scam ware...

These people not only need put out of business but they also

need put behind BARS..

 

[Bill Balcziak]

Completely removing BDE is difficult.

So how do you do it?

 

[Wayne Bundrick]

I expect that in the next few days there will be many web pages that will explain how to eliminate BDE better than I can. If Ad-aware adds BDE to their search that would be great.

Delete the c:windowsbde folder and the c:windowstempbrilliant folder. There's also a bunch of files in the system folder that start with "BDE" which can be deleted, but be careful if you use Borland Database Engine because apparently it also has DLL files with the letters "BDE". Check properties of each file and if it identifies itself as coming from Brilliant Digital, nuke it.

If you know your way around regedit, look for references to the above deleted files. There are numerous keys in the classID section, plus a section called "Brilliant" and a section called "ZUpdate". And there will also be an entry in the "Run" section. Putting stuff in the Run section is Pure Evil.

Kazaa Lite is interesting. I'll bet Kazaa is not too happy with that, however, I think I read in the DMCA that it is not illegal to circumvent encryption or reverse engineer code that violates your privacy.

 

[Brett DiMichele]

Buzz,

"Music Traders" in the know.. Don't use such programs to

begin with. It's much easier to log onto your nearest

Dalnet,Undernet,EFnet IRC Server and join one of the hundreds

of channels dedicated to such a thing.. No need for spy ware.

IMHO

 

[Scooter]

What's a good efnet server these days? I can't seem to get there anymore. Undernet, dlanet just fine..but not ef.

 

[Brett DiMichele]

Scooter,

Good question.. I have the SAME problem..

 

[Larry Seno Jr.]

"Music Traders" in the know.. Don't use such programs to

begin with. It's much easier to log onto your nearest

Dalnet,Undernet,EFnet IRC Server and join one of the hundreds

of channels dedicated to such a thing.. No need for spy ware.

IMHO

I take it you aren't in the know then? IRC is a piece of shit for getting files. I fully guarantee in a competition I could get a complete album from Audiogalaxy quicker than you could find a song. ESPECIALLY obscure songs. IRC was good for files about 7-8 years ago, it's crap now and the people on IRC are scum.

 

[Brett DiMichele]

Larry,

I completly disagree.. You must be going to the wrong IRC

channels.. I have been on the net for a very LONG time and

I've seen most of it so far.. For me IRC works.. Well...

Not only can you file serv right at the IRC Client Level

but you can also establish friendships and do direct FTP

Level access.. Leech all night long...

 

[Jeremy-P]

I don't see the appeal in begging people on IRC when I can use audiogalaxy or grokster to get al my MP3s with one search. Sharing can also be done on grokster as well as downloading one file from multiple users for very fast downloads. You can also choose the bitrate you want and specify anything else. I can get a full album very quickly but it's usually for a cd I own that I can't find.

 

[Larry Seno Jr.]

The odds of me wanting a full album are zero. Music died about 30 years ago. Well, pop music. I get live releases I couldnt buy in a store if I wanted to.

 

[JasenP]

Here are the instructions from cnet for removing the BDE trojan horse:

1. In the Windows Control Panel, select an option called "Add/Remove Programs." One of the options will be "b3d Projector." Highlight this and click the "Change/Remove" button.

You may get a message that the uninstall has been successful. Search your computer for a "BDE" folder, which most likely will be found in the "WinNT" or "Windows" directory. In this folder will be a file called "bdeclean.exe". Run this to finish the first part of the process. Delete the BDE folder.

Caution: An unrelated piece of software called Borland Database Engine also creates a BDE directory. If you think you may have this software installed, or if there is any confusion whatsoever, do not delete this directory.

2. In the "Temp" directory (this will normally be found inside the "Windows" or "WinNT" directory) is a folder called "Brilliant." This contains many files. Delete the entire folder.

3. After performing steps 1 and 2, you will need to locate and remove some additional Brilliant Digital files that have been placed in critical system-level computer directories. CAUTION: Deleting the wrong files could interfere with the normal functioning of your computer. These files will most likely be in the "WindowsSystem" or "WinNTSystem32" folder:

bdedownloader.dll

bdedata2.dll

bdefdi.dll

bdeinsta2.dll

bdeinstall.exe

bdesecureinstall.cab

bdesecureinstall.exe

bdeverify.exe

bdeverify.dll

Delete these files.

 

[Patrick Larkin]

..or simply buy a Mac.
I'm sure glad I don't have to worry about these headaches. (well, not as much)

 

[JasenP]

..or simply buy a Mac.

Do they still make those? I thought the last working model was the LISA.

 

[Patrick Larkin]

Yes, indeed, and they now run UNIX.

 

[Brian Duke]

There's another file sharing tool called WinMX that claims to not have shareware and when I looked into it about a month ago, I didn't see any posts or references on the Net claiming otherwise.
- Brian

 

[MichaelPe]

What's a good efnet server these days? I can't seem to get there anymore. Undernet, dlanet just fine..but not ef.

Try:
http://www.efnet.org/ircdb/servers.php
http://www.irchelp.org/irchelp/networks/efnet.txt