About DRIDEX..Malware detected – Error Code DXRW2#19X80XD tech-support scam
DRIDEX..Malware detected – Error Code DXRW2#19X80XD is a fake virus alert falsely claiming that your computer is infected with Dridex malware. It’s classified as a tech-support scam because it promotes a fake tech-support number. The point of this scam is to trick users into calling the number, which would allow professional scammers to scam users out of hundreds of dollars. Tech-support scams are fairly common and are usually pushed on questionable websites. It goes without saying that this pop-up is nothing more than a scam. And your computer is not infected with anything.
This tech-support scam claims that “Access to this PC has been disabled for security reasons”. Supposedly, because your computer is infected with Dridex malware, Microsoft has blocked it to prevent further damage. The mentioned Dridex trojan is actually a legitimate malware infection that mainly steals bank credentials. However, this alert is completely bogus. The name Dridex is merely used by cybercriminals to scare users. In case you were not aware of this, browsers will never display legitimate virus/malware alerts. Notice how the alert displays “Windows Defender – Security Warning”. But legitimate virus alerts from Windows Defender (now known as Microsoft Defender) do not appear in your browser. This particular alert is very clearly an ad. Furthermore, Microsoft does not block computers when they become infected with malware. Nor does it display a phone number for tech support in legitimate virus alerts.
If you were to call the shown phone number, you would be connected to professional scammers. They would make the situation seem very dire and try to convince you to give them remote access to your computer. If you were to agree, they would pretend to fix your computer while stealing your files, installing questionable programs, and setting a password for your computer. By the end of this supposed repair session, they would demand hundreds of dollars. Scammers can get quite aggressive if you do not agree to pay. Furthermore, if they were able to set a password for your computer, they would refuse to give it to you unless you paid.
These scams are very common so you should become familiar with what they look like. And if you’re interested in seeing what the scams actually look like, there are many videos on YouTube of professionals purposely engaging with tech-support scammers to waste their time as well as to make educational content. Software engineer Jim Browning has an entire YouTube channel dedicated to exposing these kinds of scams.
What causes redirects to tech-support scams
If you are redirected to tech-support scams, it’s important to determine what triggers them. In most cases, the redirects are triggered by questionable sites users visit. Certain sites are considered to be high-risk because of the ads they expose users to. For example, clicking on anything when browsing sites with pornographic or pirated content can trigger a redirect. An adblocker program can usually block both redirects and other intrusive ads.
If you’re redirected on a more regular basis, and it happens even when you’re browsing safe sites, your computer may be infected with adware. It’s a minor infection that mainly focuses on exposing users to advertisement content. Infections like adware and browser hijackers install via the free software bundling method. The way it works is these infections are added to free software as extra offers. The offers are permitted to install alongside the freeware automatically unless their installation is manually prevented by users. The offers are technically optional but they need to be deselected by users. In many cases, users are unable to prevent these unwanted installations because the offers are hidden.
As long as you correctly install free programs, you will be able to prevent unwanted installations. During installation, you need to opt for Advanced (Custom) settings instead of Default. The installation window will recommend using Default settings but following this advice will result in all added offers installing alongside. Advanced settings, on the other hand, will make all added offers visible. You will also be given the option to deselect all offers. We always recommend deselecting all offers because none of them will be of any use to you. Software bunding is a very controversial installation method, and programs that use it are often detected as potential threats by anti-virus programs. Even if an offer seems useful at first sight, do not allow it to install. It’s much easier to uncheck a couple of boxes than it is to get rid of fully installed adware.
DRIDEX..Malware detected – Error Code DXRW2#19X80XD scam removal
Because you’re likely redirected by the sites you visit, you don’t need to do anything. You should, however, install an adblocker program to block these redirects, as well as intrusive ads, in the future. There are plenty of great adblockers so you have a wide range of programs to choose from. We also recommend scanning your computer with anti-malware software in case an adware infection is present on your computer. If it is adware, only removing it would stop the redirects.