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View Full Version : How can I check my Hotmail account for malicious 'scripts'.


G-CPTN
7th Feb 2012, 12:47
I've been receiving batches of 'Delivery Status Notifications (Failure)' from [email protected] (eight at 00:50 to 00:55, four at 02:53 and one at 12:52).
Each one has an attachment (which I haven't opened!) and were addressed to addresses that I don't recognise - ie not from my address book.
I also notice that my 'sent messages' contain about the same number (maybe more) of emails sent at the same times (00:52 and 02:53) with the subject line 'Career Builder / Job for you ID #1328583 etc' - also to addresses that I don't recognise (not from my address book).

I've run Malwarebytes and it detects no problems, but it doesn't scan my Hotmail account (as far as I know).

How can I check whether I have been infected?

Is there a means of scanning a Hotmail account and removing any malicious 'scripts'?

mixture
7th Feb 2012, 13:27
G-CPTN,

Unless they are particuarly stupid (:E), I suspect you'll find Microsoft already run some form of filtering on their Hotmail service.

The scripts will only run if you open the email, therefore the old adage applies... if you're not expecting it, don't open it.

Milo Minderbinder
7th Feb 2012, 15:20
There was a major hack of Hotmail accounts around two weeks ago. Somehow someone managed to crack a large batch of user passwords. I had several customers all complaining of the same symptoms over a three day period. You may be suffering from something similar
You need to go online and change the passwords for your account. Also - and this is important - also change the security password reset / recovery questions. If someone has managed to hack your password, they also have the ability to hijack it again once you're reclaimed it - unless you change those security questions
So
1) reset the password to something hard to guess. Either a completely random string, or if your memory is not up to that, then three or more UNRELATED works (e.g. pink BANANA sleeper)
2) make the recovery questions impossible to guess by making the answers unrelated to the question e.g. if you have a question "what your favourite colour", make the answer "reliant robin" or "biggles". Something that no-one who knows you is going to be able to guess