What is a bloodhound virus?

Answer 1

Lots of computer users refer to the "Bloodhound Virus" like it is a specific thing - as in "How do I remove the Bloodhound Virus"? While we may know what they mean, what they are asking is technically incorrect. "In reality, a 'Bloodhound Virus' is spyware" Bloodhound is a technology that was developed by Symantec. It has the ability to detect various types of viral activity using heuristic algorithms. (techno mumbo jumbo for "symptom search") Think of it like going to the doctor - you may have a symptom like red spots on your back. It could be measles, Allergies, or just mosquito bites. The doctor knows its not normal and by asking a few questions can get a better idea of whether or not its serious and how to treat it. Bloodhound works in much the same way, sniffing around looking for something that isn't quite right. Sometimes what it finds is no big deal, but usually its something harmful and sometimes it is extremely serious for your computer. The latest nasty spyware compounds the problem by executing certain actions that are virus-like. Bloodhound notices the abnormalities and assumes that the file is harmful (which it is) and identifies it as an unknown virus and the Norton Antivirus program reports it as one of a large list of virus names such as: Bloodhound.AOLPWS Bloodhound.Boot Bloodhound.Boot.String Bloodhound.DirActCOM Bloodhound.DirActEXE Bloodhound.ExcelMacro Bloodhound.ExcldFile Bloodhound.FileString Bloodhound.Hybrid Bloodhound.HybridCOM Bloodhound.HybridEXE Bloodhound.MBR Bloodhound.NeuralBoot Bloodhound.NeuralMBR Bloodhound.Poly Bloodhound.ResCOM Bloodhound.ResEXE Bloodhound.Unknown Bloodhound.VBS.Worm Bloodhound.W32 Bloodhound.W32.EP Bloodhound.W32.1 Bloodhound.W32.2 Bloodhound.W32.3 Bloodhound.WordMacro Bloodhound.ExcelMacro Bloodhound.VBS.1 (probable IRC worm) Bloodhound.VBS.2 (probable IRC worm) Bloodhound.VBS.3 (probable Outlook worm) Bloodhound.VBS.4 (probable VBS worm, created with worm generation tool) Bloodhound.VBS.5 (probable VBS worm, created with worm generation tool) Bloodhound.JS.1 (probable IRC worm) Bloodhound.JS.2 (probable IRC worm) Bloodhound.JS.3 (probable Outlook worm) To further complicate the issue, Bloodhound.AOLPWS (the first one in the list) is actually a Trojan Horse program (A program that claims to do something useful white it's actually allowing your computer to do nasty things for a hacker). To date there is about 30 different names that this file can be called on your machine. So, in reality a "Bloodhound Virus" is spyware that Norton knows is bad for your computer. So, how do you remove the Bloodhound Virus? If you are comfortable following instructions that include phrases like... These Trojans can load from the registry, and they need to be removed from the \Run key:" "We strongly recommend that you back up the system registry before making any changes. Incorrect changes to the registry could result in permanent data loss or corrupted files. Please make sure you modify only the keys specified." then you may want to tackle this. Simply do a search and follow the instructions from a trusted source. If you have no idea what the registry is PLEASE - DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME. You run the risk of doing serious damage to your computer and are dealing with a problem that is way out of your league. Seek professional support to remove problems identified by bloodhound.