do you get viruses from searching for art/references?

ScottHoneycutt

Do you get viruses from searching for art/references? I've been having repeated issues getting things on my PC but of course not on my Macbook. I'm beginning to believe the only work around is to search the internet with the Macbook, save images to my Pinterest page and only access them on my PC by staring at them on Pinterest.

InvertedVantage

What sites are you using to search for art and references?

SuperFranky

I use Malwarebytes Anti-Malware against malware and sometimes do a check with Avast. Viruses are never a problem for me. Dunno how you manage to get them while searching for references. Must be some interesting references

ScottHoneycutt

I'm using Microsoft Security Essentials. I have no reason to believe i'm doing anything unwise. Most of my image searching is Google images. I don't get it honestly.

Two Listen

...what manner of "references"?

I haven't had a virus on my PC in years, and any references I need I just grab from the usual places (Google Images, mostly.) I've had my free antivirus (Avast, old habit) block some "unsafe" results I've tried to open from Google image search results ("Blah blah we've blocked a harmful webpage for you 'cause we're so nice"), which may well have been false alarms, but other than that example I can't think of a time when I've encountered anything I thought was suspect or potentially harmful to my PC while reference scouting. It is usually pretty easy to find references from historical websites or legit photo galleries or what have you.

From my experience (personal and also having done the tech support thing for awhile), 90% of most viruses come from people downloading (and usually installing/unzipping) things they probably shouldn't be downloading (illegal apps and torrents, porn, trying to find hacks for a game, etc). Either that or it's the spyware type stuff that comes bundled with seemingly legit programs that you could by all means not install if you read the fine print and uncheck relevant boxes. Not saying you're guilty of any of those things, just saying that's usually where they come from as far as I can tell. Getting viruses simply from like, google searching for images of a 14th century carriage is something I'd consider difficult to do - especially if you're using a browser like Firefox with potentially helpful add-ons (noscript, etc.)

tl:dr - No. Anyone who practices smart web browsing and uses an up-to-date browser with a couple helpful plugins should have no issues.

Fuiosg

You can get crap from chrome extensions, if you use chrome, gotta watch out for that.

Otherwise if you're that concerned, I'd get a paid anti-virus. I run webroot secure anywhere and you barely know it's there until something gets flagged. You can occasionally get really good deals on a subscription at newegg.

ScottHoneycutt

Two Listen wrote: »

Either that or it's the spyware type stuff that comes bundled with seemingly legit programs that you could by all means not install if you read the fine print and uncheck relevant boxes.

This could be it. I'm constantly being told to update my flash player and Java and do so. It has a tendency to give me random things like McAfee and such that I don't need. I do typically uncheck anything in front of me I don't want. I do sometimes uninstall things that show up in my programs list that I don't know about, usually after downloads like mentioned above. Microsoft Security Essentials is telling me that I'm clean but I'm getting this:

http://s357.photobucket.com/user/chillerone/media/AT/rr1_zps379c9b02.png.html

I've had different issues in the past, this is what I have now. It locks up every system in my network until I click on the top link saying I will look into the issue. It came one days randomly, then it showed up today a few days later. I was simply on Polycount.

ambershee

I managed to get a virus once through google image search using Firefox with no extensions about two years ago. I was looking at photographs of potential holiday destinations, of all things. I followed a dodgy link, and it managed to do something dodgy in the background.

I'm still not sure what the mechanism was, but it was one of those annoying things that locks you out of certain parts of your machine and tries to extort you for money. Booted into safe mode, ran Malware Bytes, and that got rid of it pretty quickly.


This is the only time I've ever managed to pick up a virus though.

AtticusMars

Generally speaking its pretty hard to get a virus just from browsing, normally you have to install something.

It is possible though, I managed to get a virus a while back because Java's web plugin is an insecure piece of trash. What's annoying is I was using MSSE at the time and it didn't catch it, I found out only when I decided to scan with another piece of software when the security vulnerability made the news.

I disabled Java's web plugin and got Avast instead of MSSE and all is well.

TL;DR: If you have java installed, disable the web shit...

Two Listen

@ScottMichaelH Hmm, well it sounds like you should probably do some manual looking-over on your machine and any other machines on your home network. Open up your task manager's processes list, make sure the "Show processes from all users" box is checked - google anything you don't recognize that's running. If you find anything suspect, search your PC for that .exe and see if you recognize its parent folder(s) or remember anything based on the date modified. If you find something that definitely looks unwanted, make note of the date it was created/modified and search your System32 folder for other files created on the same date/time, again google anything that seems suspect - pretty much every legit file you'll find there has been documented online. Knowing what you have and how you got it can be a big help, often times you will find tools online to fix your very specific problem.

AtticusMars

It could be coming from aonther system on your network. Scan them all with MalwareBytes and Avast. MSSE is basically bare minimum protection, it's going to miss a lot of stuff.

thomasp

application of common sense when being prompted to click on things seems to help most. but indeed you can end up in some dark places when using an image search engine. i don't trust windows on the net generally - it's just too popular, making it the main target for exploits - and keep anything internet-facing mostly to my mac. i lock down the PC as much as possible which includes blocking most apps including many core parts of windows from accessing the net.

now what about getting sick from staring at nasty reference - gore, etc. happens far more regularly here.

DireWolf

Beware of Baidu. I think it's as bad as virus.

ScottHoneycutt

Thanks for the responses everyone.

PyrZern

... I don't know how you get viruses from browsing for reference... I could watch porn easily without worrying about them... O o' But yes, Pinterest and Tumblr are pretty safe bet for getting reference; and they're safe.

Xoliul

I don't get how people are so afraid of 'all those evil viruses and malware' on the web. I've ran my computer without an antivirus or firewall for years and have only had something on my pc once (which i just removed manually), back when I used to visit unsavory website that allowed you to circumvent payment for copyrighted materials. Now that I pay for things there's almost zero risk.

ScottHoneycutt

Xoliul wrote: »

I don't get how people are so afraid of 'all those evil viruses and malware' on the web. I've ran my computer without an antivirus or firewall for years and have only had something on my pc once (which i just removed manually), back when I used to visit unsavory website that allowed you to circumvent payment for copyrighted materials. Now that I pay for things there's almost zero risk.

I'm hearing this quite a bit. The most frustrating thing to me is that I'm not going to anything illegal, not downloading porn, etc. I have email, facebook, Pinterest, art and references sites, Polycount and occasionally checking sports standings ... these are 99% of what I do, but I've gotten several viruses over the years. I get asked, "What sites are you going to - STOP IT" ... I don't know what I'm doing wrong! I'm beginning to strongly suspect the theory about getting things install along with legitimate updates. Updating my Flash Player and Java are especially on my thinking at this point.

McGreed

If you are running firefox, always install noscript add-on for it, which stops executing JavaScript from sites unless you approved them. I haven't had a virus for decade, and the only viruses I did get on my harddisk, was only in zip files, which was always scanned before opening and removing the problem.

Goeddy

ScottMichaelH wrote: »

I'm hearing this quite a bit. The most frustrating thing to me is that I'm not going to anything illegal, not downloading porn, etc. I have email, facebook, Pinterest, art and references sites, Polycount and occasionally checking sports standings ... these are 99% of what I do, but I've gotten several viruses over the years. I get asked, "What sites are you going to - STOP IT" ... I don't know what I'm doing wrong! I'm beginning to strongly suspect the theory about getting things install along with legitimate updates. Updating my Flash Player and Java are especially on my thinking at this point.

uninstall java. that shit is nothing more then a security risk.

also blocking flash is not bad idea. you can manually enable it if you want to watch a video that requires it.

leslievdb

be smart what you click , i see my facebook feed flooded a little too often with people clicking the "omagerd celebrity X nudes leaked"
mallware links are usually very obvious, just use common sense when browsing the web.
Also use pinterest for reference, a lot of people have done the sorting for you already

Stromberg90

I do run ad block as a extension using chrome.
And security essentials, but most of the time I have not had a anti virus software.

And last time I got a virus is like 8 years ago, I got it by pressing a link someone sent to me on msn.
So I have no idea how some of you get it by searching on google.

Shiniku

Nope, I've never got a virus while searching for... "references" .

Actually, I haven't had a computer virus since I was 13 years old. I don't use any anti virus software either. It's just a common sense thing.. once you've had a few viruses, you learn what to avoid, and it becomes pretty easy.

ambershee

The google image search ones are pretty hard to avoid. Common sense doesn't save you there

Fuiosg

could also try this: www.googleimageripper.com/

CJFerguson

Malwarebytes anti malware and windows security essentials are awesome. Also Adblock is really helpful.

leslievdb

what? so you`re telling me that just googling without actually clicking the image or visiting the links gives you a virus? that cant be true

throttlekitty

I've learned not to visit certain types of sites when I was looking for hair references, strange places.

iconoplast

Images can contain viruses, and those viruses can be obtained without clicking the image or visiting links. Generally, however, you need to be using an older browser for that to work. The simplistic explanation: Bad person puts virus code at end of really long metadata. Browser loads metadata, but metadata is too big. Metadata overflows (buffer overflow, to be specific) and writes over other things in memory. Computer says, "Hey, I'm supposed to do stuff with this memory," and executes the bad code. User is then sad. I know that still works in older versions of IE for sure. Not having an interest in writing viruses or doing QA anymore, I can't say what the newer methods might specifically be, but I'm sure initiating buffer overflows is still a popular tactic.

A quick search tells me that .png files were used in virus spreading specifically designed to try to hit people via image searches as recently as Feb. 2014. For those curious: http://threatpost.com/png-image-metadata-leading-to-iframe-injections