# Torrent sites highly infected



## whiteskunk (Apr 16, 2009)

The torrent sites btmon, isohunt, mininova and pirate bay are heavily infected with a variety of computer viruses. I am currently restoring my system from one such virus. A result was the loss of all the raw/btmp art.

So if you download from such sites, be aware of this.


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## Toaster (Apr 16, 2009)

whiteskunk said:


> The torrent sites btmon, isohunt, mininova and pirate bay are heavily infected with a variety of computer viruses. I am currently restoring my system from one such virus. A result was the loss of all the raw/btmp art.
> 
> So if you download from such sites, be aware of this.



DO NOT download from torrent sites.


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## whiteskunk (Apr 16, 2009)

Ornias said:


> DO NOT download from torrent sites.



Won't anymore. Also have removed Utorrent downloader from my system.
It;s buy the dvds/blu-rays or nothing from now on.


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## Toaster (Apr 16, 2009)

Torrents = shit.

There are better sites out there, better yet  most of them don't allow torrents.


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## ToeClaws (Apr 16, 2009)

Yep - that doesn't come as a shock at all.  Torrent sites are all infested with malware because, from a hacker view point, what better place to spread your stuff than in a batch of media and programs everyone wants to download?

P2P sites should be avoided, and if you must use them, they make sure the site that insists on using them also provide you a MD5 checksum of the file so that you can confirm the file has not been compromised.  You can get free checkers for just about any OS - just Google them.


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## Zero_Point (Apr 16, 2009)

I'm glad to say that I've yet to catch anything nasty from torrents. 

It helps to read the comments. If people say something about catching something nasty or their computer acting weird, I avoid that file at all costs.


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## Irreverent (Apr 16, 2009)

Zero_Point said:


> It helps to read the comments. If people say something about catching something nasty or their computer acting weird, I avoid that file at all costs.



That's a good strategy, but having a fully patched OS, firewall and antivirus  program is a good idea too.  Quarantine everything, and test/scan it before using.

When you go wading in a swamp full of alligators, its best to bring more than a sharp stick.  

I've never had a problem with torrents (or any other site for that matter).  I find the general issue with torrents is poor quality.


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## lilEmber (Apr 16, 2009)

Torrent sites are fine, Pirate Bay and Mininova are the two you should use, if you use them; look at the comments, if there are none don't download it; look at how many seeders/lechers there are, chances are if there's a low number of seeds (under 20-40) there's a virus; beware of false positives, just because your anti-virus detects a crack as a bug, doesn't make it so; use AVG and Spybot Search & Destroy and if it does detect a false positive wipe it anyway and either get another torrent or another crack.

There's nothing wrong with torrents if you're smart about it, people won't seed a virus.


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## ArielMT (Apr 16, 2009)

Zero_Point said:


> I'm glad to say that I've yet to catch anything nasty from torrents.
> 
> It helps to read the comments. If people say something about catching something nasty or their computer acting weird, I avoid that file at all costs.



Fourthed.

No matter what P2P network you use, you can't trust that what you're getting is what you think you are.  Any such trust will soon be violated, and the price will be your computer or its files.  Research your source, and scan what you get with up-to-date malware detection tools.

The same really goes for strange and/or little-documented downloads from any source, not just peer-to-peer.


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## net-cat (Apr 16, 2009)

I've not had issues with torrents. A few things to bear in mind, though:

If you're downloading TV, check the release date. If a show is being posted before it airs, chances are its a fake download and will either be in a password protected RAR file or require you to download a virus codec.

If you're downloading a movie, it's much the same as TV shows. If it's claiming to be a DVD rip but the DVD isn't scheduled to be released for months, be wary. (It's not uncommon for them to show up a week or two before release, though. They have to ship them to the stored, after all.)

If you're downloading music, make sure it's in a legit format.

If you're downloading applications, a good virus scanner is an absolute must. In fact, I highly recommend trying it out in VirtualBox or something similar first.

*If it's asking you to download a non-standard codec or go to a website to get a password for a RAR file, it's a fake download. Always. Without exception.*

Also, read the comments. If it has 45 people responding with "VIRUS" or "BAD QUALITY," well...

Also: Fur Affinity and Ferrox Art LLC do not condone piracy. The forum rules state "No warez, cracks, keygens and other related piracy." BitTorrent is not inherently piracy, so the discussion may continue. Though do steer clear of posting step by step guides of "how to download things illegally."


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## Werevixen (Apr 16, 2009)

I'm torrenting right now, never had any problems Avast couldn't pick up immediately. Always scan before use, always be careful, you're only getting infected if you're not careful. :v


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## Pi (Apr 16, 2009)

Water is wet and you can drown in it


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## whiteskunk (Apr 16, 2009)

Irreverent said:


> That's a good strategy, but having a fully patched OS, firewall and antivirus  program is a good idea too.  Quarantine everything, and test/scan it before using.
> 
> When you go wading in a swamp full of alligators, its best to bring more than a sharp stick.
> 
> I've never had a problem with torrents (or any other site for that matter).  I find the general issue with torrents is poor quality.



Well it happened at btmon. No sooner did I enter the site did the virus attack.
It was that &%@$! "anti-spyware protect. . ." bug.


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## lilEmber (Apr 16, 2009)

Pi said:


> Water is wet and you can drown in it


Oh god Pi, this post is made of pure win; I love it. <3


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## Bellini Tabloid (Apr 16, 2009)

Ornias said:


> DO NOT download from torrent sites.



I will do it, and enjoy it.


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## Shino (Apr 16, 2009)

Torrent sites infected? Really?!?

*facepaw*

Torrent sites are one of those things where if you get yourself infected, you probably shouldn't have been there in the first place. If you know what you're doing, it's very easy to avoid infection. The problem is that the vast majority of i-net users don't have good AV software, or don't maintain it.
Personally, I have more layers in place than a victorian ball gown. That being said, I am still incredibly vigilent when on questionable sites.

Remember the old saying: a ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.


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## Runefox (Apr 16, 2009)

This is why I stick to Demonoid for downloading my backups/etc, and even then I check:

-> The number of seeds and successful downloads
-> The reputation of the member who posted the torrent (Demonoid only, AFAIK)
-> Comments
-> *The size and type of the files (are they consistent with what I'm expecting?)* - People tend to ignore this one quite a bit. Especially bad is any urging to install a certain codec or file in order to run something.

Downloading off peer-to-peer networks is a bit of a mind game. The "evil" guys out there tend to try and pull social engineering tricks on people, but you really should learn to know better than that. Do research into what it is you're downloading and what you'll need for it. If you're downloading a backup image of XP, for example, and you find that you need to install "the Ultimate Universal Video Codec" or something silly like that, then you're probably being conned - Same for, well, video, like anime raws/non-localized subs (which I use as an example because I'm fairly sure it's perfectly legal until the anime is licensed for localization). Just use VLC. =D


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## Zero_Point (Apr 17, 2009)

net-cat said:


> If you're downloading music, make sure it's in a legit format.



This too. If it's a .zip or a .rar and there's only the one song, then DON'T DO IT, FAGGOT! D:
Shareaza was notorious about this.


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## Runefox (Apr 17, 2009)

> Shareaza was notorious about this.


Shareaza uses the same network as Limewire, Gnutella2.


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## Kryn (Apr 17, 2009)

Runefox said:


> -> *The size and type of the files (are they consistent with what I'm expecting?)*



A friend of mine totally didn't do this. He's a bit of a comp noob but I taught him how to use torrents anyway. He tried downloading a full movie that was only *3MB* 

An hour of formatting later and he's a bit more cautious now.


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## Bellini Tabloid (Apr 17, 2009)

I don't see what's the big deal, I download torrents all the time and I've never gotten a virus (and I use AVG).


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## Eevee (Apr 17, 2009)

whiteskunk said:


> Won't anymore. Also have removed Utorrent downloader from my system.
> It;s buy the dvds/blu-rays or nothing from now on.


how did you manage to get infected by a video file


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## Runefox (Apr 18, 2009)

Eevee said:


> how did you manage to get infected by a video file



My guess would be he was given a "codec" to install, or downloaded a 3MB "HD 1080p Blu-Ray release".


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## Shino (Apr 18, 2009)

Is it just me, or did humanity check common sense at the door regarding computers? Maybe it's only common sense to me because I'm good with computers, but a non-car-person like I knows that you don't put antifreeze in the oil resevior on a car, or some other bad analogy that would be cars 101 to a mechanic.

I don't understand the mentality of "I don't understand this, but that's ok. What's the worst that could happen?"
I want to duct tape a Geek Squad price list to their monitors. Maybe they'll think twice before surfing to a questionable porn site or opening up limewire.


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## Takun (Apr 18, 2009)

This music is awesome.  It even comes in .exe format!


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## Armaetus (Apr 18, 2009)

Irreverent said:


> That's a good strategy, but having a fully patched OS, firewall and antivirus  program is a good idea too.  Quarantine everything, and test/scan it before using.
> 
> I've never had a problem with torrents (or any other site for that matter).  I find the general issue with torrents is poor quality.



Let's not forget anti-malware/spyware protection, active (Spybot S&D, A2 Squared) and passive (S&D's Immunize function, Spywareblaster)

Do note the latter do NOT protect against virii, only prevents crapware from being installed on your browser/system, which IE is notoriously vulnerable to..especially sleazy ActiveX "applets".

And if you're using Internet Explorer, *STOP USING IT...NOW* . At least use Opera or Firefox.


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## Zero_Point (Apr 18, 2009)

Shino said:


> Is it just me, or did humanity check common sense at the door regarding computers?



"Pray, Mr. Babbage, if one were to put in wrong figures, would the device output the correct answers?"

The world's first-ever stupid computer question. :V


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## Shino (Apr 18, 2009)

Zero_Point said:


> The world's first-ever stupid computer question. :V


 
Didn't an exec at IBM say once that computers had no practical application and would never become anything more than intresting diversions?

Re-reading this thread made me think of a particular quote:

"The internet is for porn, the internet is for porn, why you think the net was born? Porn, Porn, Porn!"

100 bogus points to the first person to name the quote.


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## xjrfang (Apr 18, 2009)

the pirate bay is nice because it is adminsterd by staff, any uploads from the staff are safe, in the torrent list you will see either a purple symbol or a green symbol, if you see that next to the torrent name it should be safe. but without one your taking a chance. i usually read the comments that people leave, if many users say its a virus or infected i usually avoid it.

i download many things, and im sitting here not even running an antivirus program or anti spyware. its all about common sense.


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## Irreverent (Apr 18, 2009)

Shino said:


> "The internet is for porn, the internet is for porn, why you think the net was born? Porn, Porn, Porn!"
> 
> 100 bogus points to the first person to name the quote.



Wasn't that Avenue-Q and their spoof musical?  Bunch of guys from Weird Al's band if I recall right.


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## Zero_Point (Apr 19, 2009)

Shino said:


> Didn't an exec at IBM say once that computers had no practical application and would never become anything more than intresting diversions?
> 
> Re-reading this thread made me think of a particular quote:
> 
> ...



And Bill Gates once said that 640K of RAM was more than enough for anybody. :V


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## Runefox (Apr 19, 2009)

Zero_Point said:


> And Bill Gates once said that 640K of RAM was more than enough for anybody. :V



No, no he didn't. I really wish people would stop saying he did.


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## WarMocK (Apr 19, 2009)

Shino said:


> "The internet is for porn, the internet is for porn, why you think the net was born? Porn, Porn, Porn!"


God, I just LOVE the WoW version of it. xD

@topic: what do you except from sites where the majority of Ads are for pr0n? ;-)
Pics from hot chicks, hormones are climbing over each other to have a better view, brain's going into auto-pilot mode - MEEP, link clicked and virus successfully added to your registry. ^^


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## DarkMettaur (Apr 19, 2009)

I remember one time I had a friend who downloaded some music in a .exe file. Of course, I went VIRUS RETARD.

He opened it, a window popped up--It said 'This could have been a virus'-blahblah don't download EXE files, it unpacked itself and left a notepad file explaining how to be safe on the internet, and, the actual music file he was looking for.

I lol'd.


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## Shino (Apr 19, 2009)

Irreverent said:


> Wasn't that Avenue-Q and their spoof musical? Bunch of guys from Weird Al's band if I recall right.


 
YAY! 100 bogus points for 'Rev!

Anywho, back on topic: yeah, I realize that hormones tend to override common sense in the case of porn, but you'd think people would look twice at the file contents before downloading a .torrent file.

Oh, and regarding pirate bay, I wouldn't unless you use a small-town ISP. A lot of the bigger ones already have gotten subpeonas for their records, Comcast, mainly. You're welcome to continue using it, as it's my personal favorite, too, but be careful. The last thing anyone needs is a pack of laywers beating a path to their door. Well, if you live in the US anyways. I'm not sure if you Canadians are safe from this.

Eh, whatever. If viruses don't stop people, I doubt the cloud of legal doom will.


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## Irreverent (Apr 19, 2009)

Shino said:


> I'm not sure if you Canadians are safe from this.
> 
> Eh, whatever. If viruses don't stop people, I doubt the cloud of legal doom will.



File sharing is legal here in Canada, we pay a premium or tax on media (disks, cdr, dvd's, tapes etc) to accommodate for this.  The fact that 99.99% of all content is on magnetic disk escaped the legislators at the time.  

You can bet that I am watching what happens with TPB *very* closely.


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## Ruko (Apr 19, 2009)

Either don't use windows or install a good antivirus blocker and you shouldn't have this problem. So long as you scan each thing you download.


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## Runefox (Apr 19, 2009)

Yeah, at one point we also had a tariff on iPods and other MP3 players, skyrocketting the price and stalling the market.


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## CAThulu (Apr 19, 2009)

Irreverent said:


> That's a good strategy, but having a fully patched OS, firewall and antivirus  program is a good idea too.  Quarantine everything, and test/scan it before using.
> 
> When you go wading in a swamp full of alligators, its best to bring more than a sharp stick.
> 
> I've never had a problem with torrents (or any other site for that matter).  I find the general issue with torrents is poor quality.



^ this.

I check the comments, download from what I know are good providers (eztv), and test the files before trying them out.  Never had a problem *knocks on wood*


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