Cleaning out Windows crapware... and...
 

Ok, this is a kind of awkward story.

My sister downloaded some file (image.jpg.pif) or something when she was chatting with her friend over AIM, who I guess was also infected with the malware, after installing it, a ton of "SCAN YOUR COMPUTER FOR SPYWARE NOW!" and "DOWNLOAD FREE SMILIES NOW!" messages appered over and over and over again. I went to clean it out, and started to download Spybot S&D, AdAware, etc. At that moment, my sister entered the room, and a ton of pr0n popups appeared and filled the screen. :eek: (?!)

She said "Hi...", stood there for a second, then yelled out "Ewww why are you looking at that?!", and ran away. I realized what happened, panicked, and pressed the reset button on the PC. Now she thinks i'm looking at porn on her computer, and keeps avoiding me. I told her it was the adware, but it doesn't seem she believes it. I'm guessing it seemed even more suspicious or something because the door was closed.

I cleared out all of the "TitanShieldAntispyware" (probably the one that was making those fake antispyware messages) and and "IsearchBar" and "MyWebSearch" and "MySexLinks" (F@#$ you!) and tons of "Generic" and it seems the computer is normal again.

I also installed AVG Free, with background scanning and whatnot to prevent it from happening again.

But, what do I do now? What should I tell her? What happens if she end up telling my parents?

Erm.. Well, depends..
How old is she in contrast with you?

Erm... Well I'm 16 and she's 13.

felix dont ask what i think your gonna ask... .

anyways... well tell her that its her picture that got the virus...and if that doesnt work..assert your authority as the elder sibling... if you know what i mean (no violence, black mail her :))

Yea, he's kinda right. You could tell her that she got the viruses from a a site she wasn't supposed to be on and you could threaten to tell on her to your parents:D.. If that doesn't work, you could send me her aim or email, and I could talk to her:rolleyes:

Or ya know, you could always tell your parents first and explain that you don't want them to get a partial story. If for some reason you can't do that because it would come out that you or your sister had been using the computer in a way that you shouldn't have, then I think you can only go for the blackmail.

I think you should go to your parents though. I'd think it would make them trust you even more.

I second fracai:s suggestion. Otherwise she will have that as a possible threat later.
Besides your parents might see traces of these pages on the computer....

yeh.... I'll vote for the 'tell the parents yourself option' too...

then your in the clear..

perhaps you should also suggest she buys a Mac :)

Yeah, on second thought telling your parents is a better idea, as you will eliminate the threat of her blackmailing you, and kinda get more of your parents' trust.:rolleyes:
And buying a mac would definitely be a good idea. You could even use this story as another reason for her to get a mac. :)

(P.S. Photek, you made a grammar mistake.:p It's you're not your in that case, as it stands for you are:D)

What is it with you non english and grammar... we (being me and photek) invented the language, so we can use it however we please

Well, I've lived in the US for a while now (3 years in September), and I try to use proper grammar as much as possible, except on AIM, but you already know that ;). And not that you would care, but I got a perfect score on my writing standards of learning exam (only 4 in the whole school :p).

Actually, like it or not, there are more english language speakers in the US than anywhere else so the future of the language is pretty much in their hands.

Windows - can't live well with it, can't kill it.

noo lol i ment actual english people..

I tend to write phonetically on emails and websites... to try and get my 'Englishness' across and sound less formal.... I also add a lot of breaks and full stops to try to make my posts read more like I was speaking them.... its done mostly on purpose. :D

I for one, personally think this topic is inappropriately awkward. We have a 16 year old discussing porn on this site with a 13 year old. Please moderator, lock or delete this topic as something of this nature shouldn't be reflected on this site particularly in the presence of minor.

At the very least, set some strong guidelines if people are going to discuss this with minors.

where are the minors? me and felix are both 15 and a 1/2

Minor - a person under the age of full legal responsibility. That'd be you.

Certainly that argument can be made. From the rules of participation

Some will find the topic objectionable, and perhaps it could veer into indisputable violation of the rules, and I wouldn't fault the moderators for whatever decision they make - also from the rules:

I think the topic can be discussed appropriately - and tactfully.

The question is how to respond to accidental exposure to inappropriate content. Unfortunately, although understandably, the O.P. is worried about consequences.

As a parent, I would want my child to talk to me right away. This is the kind of thing parents needs to know. Making them aware of the problem reinforces trust, and presents an opportunity to review the family computer policy, especially regarding internet access and safe browsing habits.

And a parent would be in a better position to explain the reality of the situation to a younger sibling, which, if truthfully described, may be awkward but not inexcusable.

With that said, I leave the moderators to make their decision.

We have some minors discussing porn that unintentionally popped up while correcting a problem. In addition the porn discussion was limited to the first post in order to frame the larger problem. In addition the discussion is about how to properly handle any future reaction to this incident. This isn't a discussion about where to find porn or anything such as that.

what he said..

I'll second that.

'fes up to the parents and remember the experience in case you ever write a sit-com.

For the moment, I'm inclined to let this one stay -- as long as the discussion relates to the general topic of dealing with the consequences of the situation.

-rob.