Ad auto-downloads! Possible trojan??

EpY


Joined
Jan 18, 2012
Messages
1
Reaction score
0
Points
1
Hey guys, and thanks for reading this post. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! This is a pretty LONG post, so I would appreciate it if you could
acually finish it =)

So, I was on a normal website the other day, and one of those annoying ads (the ones that play a video of an advertisement) started going.
In the past, when I was on this site, one of these video ads started going, and I simply muted it (like a youtube video) or paused it. Little did
I know, this ad was of a completely different nature. This particular ad CONTINUOUSLY spins (as if it is loading/buffering a video), and there is text saying
something to the effect of "you need to download a plugin to play this video". In summary, it was one of those ads that you should never click because it
is SO obvious it is trying to trick you into clicking it! But me, thinking it was one of those legitimate video vides, clicked pause on it. A new blank tab
opened up, and a download automatically began. The file name was RealPlayer.exe. When asked if I wanted to open a file from the internet, I clicked cancel, put it in the trash bin, and cleared the trash.

Fortunately, I was able to replicate the advertisement. On my other Mac (that didn't store personal data), I visited the same website again, and kept refreshing it until I was presented with the same ad (of the "supposedly" buffering video). This time, upon clicking on it and automatically downloading the
file, I clicked Open. It pulled up a TextEdit document of a script (I'm assuming). The TextEdit document read "This program cannont run in DOS mode.", and was followed by a LONG chain of random symbols and other stuff (going on for literally FOREVER!).

After some research of RealPlayer.exe, I learned that apparently Real Player was known for its spyware/malware embedded in its programs.

I, myself, am a NOVICE (at most) of how programs, files, and downloads work. All I know, I have posted above. Is there any possible whatsoever that the downloaded file could have ANY negative effect on my personal computer? I'd always heard rumors about how trojans/keyloggers/other things can be on someone's computer, and the user not even KNOW of its presence? As far as I know (which isn't much, believe me!), Macs can't run .exe files, right? So am I correct to assume that the download was intended for Windows computers? In general, are most of these ads that automatically download files malicious in nature? Or am I simply overreacting?

What was especially interesting to me was, if you remember, the VERY first time I came across this ad on my personal desktop, the file RealPlayer.exe was downloaded on my personal computer. When I tried to replicate it on my other, non-personal mac, the file that was downloaded was one called Ultimate_Media_Player_2.exe. However, when I copied the link address and opened it in another tab, and clicked on the link, the ORIGINAl file (RealPlayer.exe) began downloading. I find this interesting because it's like 2 files are in one ad? (maybe I'm interpreting this completely wrong!)

I don't know if this helps, but when I copy the link, the link begins with (adserving.cpxinteractive.com) and a LONG url follows the .com part.

I know thhis was a very long post, and if at any part, more information is needed, let me know and I will elaborate. This has been buggin me for the last 2 days, and I REALLY want to know!!

Thanks in advance!
 
Joined
Oct 22, 2007
Messages
8,967
Reaction score
287
Points
83
Location
London
Your Mac's Specs
Mac Mini Core i7 2012 | White 2009 MacBook 2 Ghz | 733 Mhz G4 Quicksilver
Its a common trick to get a trojan infection, but it only works if you download and install a program

So if you just ignored the prompts to download a player or codec then nothing has happened. Even if you did download it, you would then have to install and give your admin account password to the installer to install any dodgy software

If you haven't installed anything, and given it permission to install then no worries, there is no possible infection.

If you ever receive a prompt to update flash or anything else, then close the web tab and check with adobe or Real Player to get updates from them, never at the prompting of a third party website
 
Joined
Dec 11, 2010
Messages
1,808
Reaction score
40
Points
48
Location
Chicago
Your Mac's Specs
late 2012 mini w/SSD
louishen is correct, but ...

Did you know that files with the .exe ending are Windows programs?
It is possible that you just needed the Mac version of RealPlayer to see the darned ads.
Do you have RealPlayer installed?
 

Shop Amazon


Shop for your Apple, Mac, iPhone and other computer products on Amazon.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.
Top