Internet shutdown on July 9 2012 and DNSChanger malware attack

Internet shutdown July 9 2012 is making headlines across the world. DNSChanger malware attack is one of the most feared topic for millions of internet users. Here are some important details

Are you using a Windows PC? Check out and make sure your system is not affected by the DNSChanger malware. It is time for you to have a look at whether your PC is under the attack of the villainous malware. Four million Windows PCs including as many as 64,000 in the U.S. are to go dark on Monday, July 9, 2012 as part of defending the malicious virus. Well, there are multiple ways on the web to verify whether your system is affected by the malware, which has been there since 2007.


Confirm your PC is secure against DNSChanger
To check the status of your computer, please visit any of the following sites

Code:

http://www.dns-ok.us

OR

https://forms.fbi.gov/check-to-see-i...sing-rogue-DNS

OR

http://www.siteadvisor.com/dns_checker.html?cid=109273

The first and last ones have more easier process since they can automatically track your IP address and tell you whether your computer is under attack or not. The FBI site, remember FBI is an agency that has been working for a long time to fight the virus, has a bit complicated process. You will have to type your IP address manually to find the result there. However, the result from FBI is more genuine than the ones from DNS-OK or MacAfee.

What is DNSChanger?
DNSChanger is a severe malware attack against Windows PCs from a set of hackers, who try to make money from online ads through it. Seven hackers – six Estonians and a Russian – are behind the malware attack, which was started back in 2007. Since then, they have been attempting to hack Windows PCs across the world to get clicks for their online ads. As per a last year indictment from the U.S. Attorney General’s Office in New York, the hackers have the goal of generating money through automatic impressions and clicks for their online ads.

The name DNSChanger also stems from the job the hackers are doing with the malware. The virus will automatically change the DNSes of the websites you search on your PC to their sites. That is, as per ABC News (thanks to FBI), “if your computer was infected and you clicked a link to go to Netflix, you would wind up at BudgetMatch.” The practice is simply called ‘click hijacking.’ Well, put it simply, it is a habit of changing the domains of sites you search to the wish of the hackers, who can make some money out of it.

Internet shutdown on July 9
Blackout of internet on July 9 (for the affected PCs) is not anyway the direct result of the contagion as it has been hyped up by some sources for a while. It is actually a precautionary step on the part of FBI, which has been fighting virus for a long time. The U.S intelligence agency earlier created alternative servers for the affected PCs. Since those PCs will not have functioning DMNS on the coming Monday, the agency has decided to shut down the servers of those systems. The result will be that no DNSChanger-affected PC can access web on the day. It will secure the PCs from further complications of the malware attack, as a result.

“Once the FBI got around to fixing the problem in 2011, it realized it couldn’t simply shut down the rogue servers because infected computers would be left without a functioning DNS, leaving them virtually Internet-less. So it set up temporary servers to give malware-infected Internet users time to fix their computers,” says ABC News.

Conclusion
Indeed, it is a matter of concern for all Windows PC users in the world now. There have been discussion over the DNSChanger attack for a while. Some sources even reported that the World Wide Web is facing a crucial end by that day. That is not the case. The Monday internet blackout is just another step against the DNSChanger virus. By the way, you can just make sure whether your PC is not affected using the above noted sites.