# You are distributing malware **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [January 15, 2017, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205 "2017-01-15T03:42:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/62 "2017-01-20T00:27:53Z")
I have logged out on my android device and browsed the boards a bit. I think I’ve recreated the issue so hopefully that helps the ad folks track it down. I did a video capture and have forwarded it. Hopefully this is the one people are talking about and we can resolve. We appreciate your patience. ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Gay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3ab097/32.png) [@Enola\_Gay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Gay)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/63 "2017-01-20T00:41:47Z")
> [@Bone](#): > > I have logged out on my android device and browsed the boards a bit. I think I’ve recreated the issue so hopefully that helps the ad folks track it down. I did a video capture and have forwarded it. Hopefully this is the one people are talking about and we can resolve. We appreciate your patience. Thank you, Bone. I also got malware when I accidentally clicked on a banner ad at the bottom of the screen, when I was trying to reply to a post. Appreciate your efforts to resolve things. ---
**Author:** ![HeXen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@HeXen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeXen)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/64 "2017-01-20T00:54:47Z")
I use Adguard. I’ve never seen an ad here, I often forget how many sites are littered with them. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/65 "2017-01-20T02:51:01Z")
> [@raventhief](#): > > The hijack says to install Avira but that is not what it takes you to in the store. That antivirus seems to change. Yeah, I wasn’t familiar with the product and looked it up expecting to see a lot of “OMG WTF Malware” warnings but was surprised to see that it’s actually a fairly well regarded antivirus product. Which I guess helps fool people into clicking the link. ---
**Author:** ![raventhief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raventhief/32/4_2.png) [@raventhief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raventhief)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/66 "2017-01-20T03:06:06Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > Yeah, I wasn’t familiar with the product and looked it up expecting to see a lot of “OMG WTF Malware” warnings but was surprised to see that it’s actually a fairly well regarded antivirus product. Which I guess helps fool people into clicking the link. After accidentally clicking (somehow…) the Go to Store link, whatever AV was linked to had mostly great reviews but also a couple of reviews that indicated that they used shady marketing techniques/hijacks. For the record, those reviews where answered by the developer saying “Those aren’t our ads! Please tell us more so we can figure out what’s going on.” ---
**Author:** ![4kad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/4/7cd45c/32.png) [@4kad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/4kad)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/67 "2017-01-20T03:17:07Z")
Oh that’s why I received that message on my phone about a virus earlier today. I wasn’t sure what was going on ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/68 "2017-01-20T14:07:29Z")
I’ve been getting these pop ups for quite a while as well. It got so bad last night that I broke down and downloaded Tapatalk. So far me no likee. I’d rather use my browser to surf. ---
**Author:** ![raventhief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raventhief/32/4_2.png) [@raventhief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raventhief)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/69 "2017-01-20T14:53:22Z")
> [@Jack\_Batty](#): > > I’ve been getting these pop ups for quite a while as well. It got so bad last night that I broke down and downloaded Tapatalk. So far me no likee. I’d rather use my browser to surf. I recommend ghostery browser. I installed it last night and no more issues! Thanks to Johnny bravo. ---
**Author:** ![tenacious\_j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/439d5e/32.png) [@tenacious\_j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tenacious_j)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/70 "2017-01-20T14:58:30Z")
> [@stillownedbysetters](#): > > The situation with the malware has escalated to the point where I can no longer use this site. I can open one internal screen upon entering this site (thus the ability to make this post), but any attempts to view additional pages results in the malware hijack. > > Hopefully this can get corrected soon as I will miss my daily visits. This is nuts. I realize that [ol] [li]It is not mission critical to learn what others think of the new Big Mac[/li][li]I haven’t bothered to get a paid membership, which is entirely my fault and may be ad-free (???)[/li][/ol] However, to get a malware pop up every other page I try to open is truly not worth the effort. Add me to the list of people who won’t be visiting the site via mobile. Makes my work breaks a little sadder. ETA: I don’t think it’s up to me to figure out a workaround, and tapatalk sucks. ---
**Author:** ![Arcite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/67e7ee/32.png) [@Arcite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arcite)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/71 "2017-01-20T17:12:34Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > Here is what [the initial pop-up](http://i.imgur.com/8s4ALKv.jpg) looks like. You have to hit Ok then you get the [second screen](http://i.imgur.com/MAw5XrO.jpg) with the product link. You can’t hit Back or otherwise return to the SDMB – you have to close the tab and open a new one. I’m getting this too while browsing the boards in Chrome on Android. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/72 "2017-01-20T20:02:16Z")
I manually upgraded to the Pyrope browser on my Android phone by uninstalling the old one and installing the new one and haven’t been hit again. ---
**Author:** ![Ed\_Zotti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/fbc32d/32.png) [@Ed\_Zotti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ed_Zotti)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/73 "2017-01-20T20:50:38Z")
It appears our initial guess on the source of the problem ads was incorrect. We’ve halted some additional ad types. Please let us know of any further difficulties. Again, send screen shots if you can. **Bone** was able to get a video capture of an offending popup; this sets some kind of record for staff hustle. Thanks for your continued patience; we hope to get this squared away soon. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/74 "2017-01-20T20:58:23Z")
> [@Ed\_Zotti](#): > > It appears our initial guess on the source of the problem ads was incorrect. We’ve halted some additional ad types. Please let us know of any further difficulties. Again, send screen shots if you can. **Bone** was able to get a video capture of an offending popup; this sets some kind of record for staff hustle. Thanks for your continued patience; we hope to get this squared away soon. Thank you Ed. ---
**Author:** ![raventhief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raventhief/32/4_2.png) [@raventhief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raventhief)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/75 "2017-01-20T21:27:28Z")
Pulled up the Dope on Chrome on my phone after seeing the note that certain ads had been disabled and got hijacked again. Same thing as before. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/76 "2017-01-20T23:02:46Z")
> [@raventhief](#): > > Pulled up the Dope on Chrome on my phone after seeing the note that certain ads had been disabled and got hijacked again. Same thing as before. Yes, this is what happened to me. I can’t get on the Dope without getting zapped by these people. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/77 "2017-01-20T23:18:01Z")
> [@raventhief](#): > > Pulled up the Dope on Chrome on my phone after seeing the note that certain ads had been disabled and got hijacked again. Same thing as before. Same here - Android phone, Chrome browser. Loaded site at 3:15 pm PST and am still getting the same hijacks linked above. ---
**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/78 "2017-01-20T23:22:12Z")
One thing that I have noticed is that there are two sets of ads that load right below the first post in a thread. See the screenshot in the link posted below. If the ads on the left (circled in red) load first, then the page loads normally and there is no hijack. If the ad on the right (circled in green) loads first, then the hijack takes place about a second later. This behavior is consistent on my device. [![Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/uRSpMAJ.jpeg "imgur.com") ](https://imgur.com/uRSpMAJ) ---
**Author:** ![tenacious\_j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/439d5e/32.png) [@tenacious\_j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tenacious_j)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2017, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/79 "2017-01-21T03:22:26Z")
thanks to all the mods and admins for working on this. Still happening… [[Album] imgur.com ![](https://i.imgur.com/zIWxuWk.png?fb "imgur.com") ](https://imgur.com/a/UObQq) ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2017, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/80 "2017-01-21T04:24:56Z")
Still happening. I really don’t want to use any other browser, as Pyrote is the only one that makes the text on the Dope readable on a 5" screen. It’s obvious your ad provider is untrustworthy - how hard is it to find another one? ---
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2017, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205/81 "2017-01-21T04:35:10Z")
First, we appreciate everyone’s feedback and especially the images of the offending items. Second, I understand that the ad folks are systematically testing different ad providers to try and isolate the offenders. Doing this takes different forms and at times it involves external coordination with various ad providers. At each itteration we attempt to replicate the issues as a sort of regression test. There are many permutations so it does take a bit of time so we appreciate your patience. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-distributing-malware/777205.md?page=5)