Why buy Virus/Adware/Spyware when free stuff is better?

I've purchased BitDefender (full version with adware/spyware protection) and
have Microsoft's Window's Defender installed -- firewall is ON (both
software/hardware). So I'm surfing via the help system provided in VS 2005
and during my search come to what appears to be a development type of site,
next thing I know I've got a flashing systray icon (red sphere with X in it)
and a message that says "Warning your computer is in Danger!" (this one does
registry hacks to prevent Task Manager from loading, changes my desktop
background, and creates startup files, etc. etc.). I ran Active Ports and
sure enough I find a program called dlh9jkdq2.exe running and communication
to some other drone hijacked PC. Tracert shows the drone PC is still
relatively local to my area (SFO1).

1. How did this malware make it thru all my protection?

So I run a full scan via BitDefender and then another one via Windows
Defender -- Windows defender was completely useless and found nothing wrong.
BitDefender finds "suspicious files" but does nothing to fix the problem (I
tried Symantec also, same story). So I download Adware (lava soft) and
SpyBot Search & Destroy -- both free versions. Run them both and they do
indeed remove the malware/virus.

2. So payware virus/spyware protection like Symantec, BitDefender don't
catch these problems, yet freeware tools do??

Makes me wonder if the Anti-Virus/Spyware companies actually hire hackers to
produce viruses? And then it begs the question, that M$ might just leave
enough holes open so that these companies can continue.

Oh, and yes my WinXP was completely up to date.

This is yet another example of the crap that Microsoft likes to call an OS?
Every 5 years we're promised a more secure OS and every 5 years we get the
same crap that is usually compromised before it is even released.
Microsoft's response "it's up to the user to ensure their system is
secure" -- yeah pearls of wisdom from the money machine. Microsoft security
is a joke, this forum is just a facade to make people actually think M$ care
about security, they don't, they never will, and they doom themselves to
mediocre.

Rob.


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