CastleCops closed Options

[striker]

http://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=228740

[LilBambi]

That is so sad!

Thanks member of Corporate America for gobbling up and destroying yet another precious resource.

But then again, with the bandwidth bills CastleCops had to deal with from the DDoSes and the economy, who can blame Paul for taking them up on it.

I don't think any of us were all that surprised. Seems to always happen that way. And often within 6 mos.

[Tushman]

That is so sad!

Thanks member of Corporate America for gobbling up and destroying yet another precious resource.

But then again, with the bandwidth bills CastleCops had to deal with from the DDoSes and the economy, who can blame Paul for taking them up on it.

I don't think any of us were all that surprised. Seems to always happen that way. And often within 6 mos.

Bambi,

I don't get it. I read the thread at Wilders and no one seems to understand the true reasons for the shut down. Lots of speculations and certainly seemed to have caught everyone off-guard. This whole situation is confusing as heck to me. It could have something to do with the fact I have not slept in the past 18 hrs. Only 1 member over there mentioned getting a PM about an eminent shutdown. The rest of the people seem to be shocked and sadden by the sudden shutdown.

Was CC bought out by another company??

By the way, I encourage everyone to peruse the thread and download the google cache pages. One of the members created a compiled PDF file with links to the free security software. They are very valuable in my opinion.

This post has been edited by Tushman: Dec 25 2008, 10:49 AM

[LilBambi]

Paul went to work for Microsoft about 6 mos ago.

I saw the writing on the wall at that time. So many companies have gobbled up precious resources and then they often disappear and often within 6 mos. Or change drastically.

I can think of many that disappeared and many that changed drastically.

Usually they are bought out, but sometimes it's just their principals move on to corporate america and things change....drastically or they disappear.

It's sad. It always is.

[LilBambi]

I did grab the PDF and I created PDFs of the Understanding Infections (P1, P2, P3) from the links in the Wilders forum using Firefox save page as PDF feature.

[Tushman]

Paul went to work for Microsoft about 6 mos ago.

I saw the writing on the wall at that time. So many companies have gobbled up precious resources and then they often disappear and often within 6 mos. Or change drastically.

I can think of many that disappeared and many that changed drastically.

Usually they are bought out, but sometimes it's just their principals move on to corporate america and things change....drastically or they disappear.

It's sad. It always is.

I take it Paul is the owner of CC? Well I'm glad he got a job at Microsoft - never hurts to have something like that on your resume. On the other hand, I'm saddened to see such a great online resource vanish into thin air. The links on the google cache pages are all dead now. It's sort of odd how he [Paul] did not provide a more appropriate advance notice for the members. Something like "Hey I'm shutting down within 30 days, grab whatever links, articles you want because it will be all gone by the end of such & such date". In that respect, I can understand how some members might be a bit p*ssed off by the abruptness.

Speaking of changes.... I also read on Tom's Hardware last week that Abit will be kissing the motherboard market goodbye. I never built a PC using their MB, but seems like there were plenty of die-hard fans!

This post has been edited by Tushman: Dec 25 2008, 11:32 AM

[LilBambi]

I wish Paul and Robin all the best ... I think we all do.

It's just so sad when we as a whole lose things like CastleCops and so many others ...

I hope those who caused CastleCops so much distress over the years find that taking is not so great a thing as giving.

[striker]

The CastleCops "malware databases" moved to SystemLookup.com
See this post: http://www.wilderssecurity.com/showpost.ph...mp;postcount=51

[LilBambi]

This is great news!

Bookmarked!

[striker]

A Collection of Autostart Locations
http://gladiator-antivirus.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=24610

I think there are a couple of them we never knew about in that link ...

[nlinecomputers]

What in your opinions are the best sites for getting good quick help on malware issues these days. Most of the time I can fix'em myself but I hit a new one that had me stumped for a few days and it seems many of the old stand by forums are gone.

[LilBambi]

A Collection of Autostart Locations
http://gladiator-antivirus.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=24610

I think there are a couple of them we never knew about in that link ...

Thanks striker -- that is very much needed by malware fighters.

I have a PDF of that created by Firefox's Save as PDF function.

[LilBambi]

I really think that WildersSecurity Forums is likely one of the best these days for overall anti-malware information. Many of the best malware fighters are there.

There are many others as well that are still active -- the ASAP forums that have fought some of the worst of them. There is a wonderful list of these here: MalwareComplaints that is kept updated.

[striker]

yep,Wilders off course, and these (some already mentioned in the list Bambi posted):
http://gladiator-antivirus.com/forum/index.php?
http://www.malwarebytes.org/forums/
http://spywarehammer.com/
http://forum.emsisoft.com/

[zlim]

Corrine will know.
Her site http://securitygarden.blogspot.com/
and she mentions this site http://www.landzdown.com/

[goretsky]

Hello,

In addition to the aforementioned sites, I would also add the Geeks to Go Forums as a source of assistance with malware, as well as the Lockergnome Help Forums' HijackThis Logs section.

Regards,

Aryeh Goretsky

[Johnincal]

What in your opinions are the best sites for getting good quick help on malware issues these days. Most of the time I can fix'em myself but I hit a new one that had me stumped for a few days and it seems many of the old stand by forums are gone.

Hi,

I know there are many malware help forums around and many of those mentioned here are good, I would like to suggest one that has not been mentioned here.

It is TeMerc Internet Countermeasures . Tom (TeMerc) is a Microsoft MVP and has, along with his team, helped thousands of users rid themselves of adware, spyware, malware and rootkits from their computers for many years.

The best part is, unlike other sites that can take days to start helping you, most people receive help within hours, if not minutes. If you want good, quick help, this is the place to check out.

Beyond that, you can get the latest malware news and alerts to the latest threats, along with information about the latest software to protect yourself from getting infected (many of which are free!). The site is updated many times a day.

DISCLAIMER: I am a moderator in the forums.

But I think you should check it out. Even if you don't have a malware issue, there is plenty of interesting stuff in there.

The site and help is all free and there isn't even any annoying ads bothering you. Tom runs the site out of his own pocket.

[Temmu]

microsoft bought castle cops to prevent you from understanding its os
microsoft bought systernals to prevent you from understanding its of
microsoft bought giant software to...
you get the idea...

[striker]

If you can't beat 'em join 'em. Or buy them out and kill 'em, sloooooowly.

[goretsky]

Hello,

Running a forum, especially one as active as CastleCops is expensive in terms of both manpower and money.

You have to monitor constantly for hacking attempts, check every message for abusive content and malicious links (or, at least, review every report that comes in) and promptly respond to every issue--and it all has to be done on a system that runs with essentially zero downtime. On top of that, because it is a security forum, you have to manage a staff (recruit, train, review, promote and so forth), all of whom, like you, are putting their time and effort in on a volunteer basis.

It is one thing to do that as a business, hopefully a profitable one, but it is another thing entirely to do that on your own time as a labor of love, especially if you have bills that need to be paid and a family that you would like to see occasionally at the dinner.

I have no special insight into the closing of CastleCops, but knowing what I know of operating online communities, I can certainly see how someone who works in computer security--an industry known for working 'round-the-clock--would have to make a hard decision about whether they could continue to dedicate time to an unpaid endeavor; there are only so many hours a week one can work. Paul and Robin have done amazing things with CastleCops, and Paul is able to continue doing good work at Microsoft.

No doubt there are a lot of Microsoft employees who are saddened by the news as it was a resource for them just as it was for everyone else. To accuse the company of having a hand in CastleCops closure is ignorant and gratuitous. Paul and Robin have stated the reasons for the closure on the web site, and people should respect that.


Regards,

Aryeh Goretsky

[striker]

Fine.

Stepped out at the wrong side of bed today Aryeh?

[LilBambi]

I agree, Paul and Robin did do amazing things with CastleCops. I don't think anyone will quibble with that, nor did they, I don't think.

And we all wish Paul well in his future endeavors.

No worries there.

I think that many of us have been part of online communities from both user and admin prospectives, and realize the unbelievable amount of work involved.