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New? Fake? Virus/malware alert

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  New? Fake? Virus/malware alert "Percival P. Cassidy" <Nobody@NotMyISP.net> - 2016-08-14 08:17 -0400
    Re: New? Fake? Virus/malware alert VanguardLH <V@nguard.LH> - 2016-08-14 17:27 -0500

#33336 — New? Fake? Virus/malware alert

I found a TV program on a Web site using my Linux desktop machine and 
sent the link to my Android phone, but when I clicked on the link I got 
a popup including the name "secure.thegossipclub.com" that warned my 
phone was in danger of having everything on it wiped out within 5 
minutes (and a countdown timer started running). There was a link to 
download some "security software" that would prevent this disaster.

Instead of clicking on the link, I powered off the phone, but when I 
powered it up again and started Chrome I got the same popup. I tried 
twice more with the same result. I thought of uninstalling Chrome, but 
that was not possible, so I clicked on "uninstall updates," which in 
fact uninstalled the current version of Chrome then installed the 
original factory-fresh version. Then I did the update again, and I no 
longer get that popup.

I suspect that something nasty would have happened if I *had* clicked on 
the link to download the alleged "security software".

I Googled that name "secure.thegossipclub.com" but found nothing.

Perce

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#33355

Percival P. Cassidy wrote:

> I found a TV program on a Web site using my Linux desktop machine and 
> sent the link to my Android phone, but when I clicked on the link I got 
> a popup including the name "secure.thegossipclub.com" that warned my 
> phone was in danger of having everything on it wiped out within 5 
> minutes (and a countdown timer started running). There was a link to 
> download some "security software" that would prevent this disaster.
> 
> Instead of clicking on the link, I powered off the phone, but when I 
> powered it up again and started Chrome I got the same popup. I tried 
> twice more with the same result. I thought of uninstalling Chrome, but 
> that was not possible, so I clicked on "uninstall updates," which in 
> fact uninstalled the current version of Chrome then installed the 
> original factory-fresh version. Then I did the update again, and I no 
> longer get that popup.
> 
> I suspect that something nasty would have happened if I *had* clicked on 
> the link to download the alleged "security software".
> 
> I Googled that name "secure.thegossipclub.com" but found nothing.
> 
> Perce

Unlike Firefox (for smartphone), Google Chrome has no option to NOT
reopen the tabs that were open when its window was previously closed
(which is NOT the same as exiting the app).  Firefox adds a Quit menu
entry to actually exit that app but that option only appears if you
enabled its "Clear private data on exit" privacy option (if the app
doesn't actually exit then you can only manually purge the private data
when you remember to do so).  Under Android, the OS typically decides
when an app actually gets unloaded, like when main memory is running
low.

https://developer.android.com/training/basics/activity-lifecycle/index.html
https://developer.android.com/reference/android/app/Activity.html#ActivityLifecycle

Just remember under Android that closing an app's window does NOT
necessarily exit (unload) that app.

When you next open Google Chrome, close all its tabs.  Actually there
are no tab in the smartphone web browsers, just a link to their pages.
There is a square icon to the right of the address bar.  Tap on it to
see all "tabs" that are still open.  Click their "X" button or swipe to
the right to remove/unload them.  Then exit Google Chrome.  When you
load Google Chrome the next time, it won't have any old remembered
"tabs" to reopen.

You might also want to tap-hold on the sites listed in the speed dial
(aka recently visited) page to select to Remove them.

When you hit a rogueware site, do not use their "X" button to close
their prompt dialog.  They have control over those graphical elements in
the web page so you don't really know what the "X" button does.  Same
goes for any "Cancel" or any other object their malcontent displays.
Just close the web browser.  If the web browser doesn't have an option
to purge history on exit then you are stuck having to close tabs before
exiting the web browser so those tabs don't reload on the next use of
that web browser.

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