linksys router dilemma

Status
Not open for further replies.

madmonk888

Baseband Member
Messages
67
hey guys.. i have a linksys router.. and .. well .. i just use it to split the cable modem connection to 3 computers around the house.. now .. that works fine .. however... at one point or another .. i got a bunch a spyware... and didnt really have too much protection ... the spyware spread.. and .. it was on ALL 3 computers.. iwould format one ... the other 2 would share the spyware through the router.. without me even going on the internet..id have popups after a fresh format.. finally .. i got sick and tired... and formatted all 3 of them .. and got like .. 3 spyware programs on all of them ... its fine for now...BUT .. my sister.. which knows very very little about computers.. types about 3 wpm, has NO idea how to deal with spyware programs and personal firewalls.. so .. is there any way i can block the spyware comming from her computer to mine and vice-versa.. like .. completely close all connections to her computer .. but still share internet connection? also .. is there a way that spyware could be stored on the router? as far as im concerned it only has flash memory, but like i said .. i know very little about networking in general =D
 
hmm, that does sound strange.
The router can not store spyware as far as I know. You can't really block the traffic from her computer. I have not actually heard of spyware propogating over a small network either, but I could be wrong.
Might start bt getting a few spyware blockers. Adaware se is good, Spy bot is good. Also change from IE to Firefox or opera and see how that works for helping. You do have virus protection running on your machines right?
 
yah .. virus protections at all times.. but im sick of her calling me every 5 min asking waht that on the screen is .. ex: whats this " =random program name= is trying to connect to the internet.." and other firewall deals
so no way of closing all ties with her computer huh?
 
If the spyware really is spreading through the network, there's a few things I can recommend.

If you have Windows XP, you can turn on the built-in XP firewall. If you don't have XP, you can try using something like ZoneAlarm as a firewall.

Although I think it would theoretically be possible to spyware to be stored on your router, the chances are near 0. Even if the possibility existed, simply changing your router's password from the default would prevent the spyware from installing itself on the router.

If the router's password is still the same as when you first bought it, someone could have rewritten some router software to look like your current router's software but also have some spyware embedded. After all, Linksys routers DO run Linux and people have written their own versions of the Linksys routing software. A program could simply upload the new firmware to your router and you would never know the difference. Quite an ingenious idea, actually.

But like I said, try installing a firewall on the computers and see if that helps. The XP firewall and ZoneAlarm have options to block everything except web traffic and not to show alerts when something is trying to connect. You can simply manually add the applications that need to go through the firewall (Instant Messaging applications for example). One last thing: Spybot is one of the best spyware removal tools. Try running it to get rid of your existing spyware.
 
have spybot .. and am running norton firewall 2003 at all times. .. linksys router password? if i have one .. i dont remember it LOL
 
Nevermind about the password lol

If the firewall software you are using doesn't have an option to not show alerts, you could simply add exceptptions for the programs she uses (AIM, MSN, etc) and just tell her to always click "not allow" if it comes up.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom