Patching the Hosts File to Stop Hackers and Block Websites
By admin on Jul 7, 2011 in Security, Windows 7
One sneaking way that hackers and identity thieves can get inside your head and steal your personal information is by executing an application on your computer that will patch your hosts file. Once your hosts file is patched, not only can they block you from certain websites, they can also redirect you to “fake” sites that they constructed to look like your bank or your credit card company in order to steal your information. Luckily, you can edit your hosting file yourself to stop hackers and avoid these elaborate phishing scams. Not only that, you can also patch your own hosts file to avoid dangerous and malware-filled sites.
Editing Your Hosts File (Windows 7)
- Click the Start (Windows) button
- Click on Computer
- Navigate through Windows Explorer through the following path:
- C:/Windows/System32/drivers/etc
- In “etc” folder, select the hosts file and copy and paste it to your desktop.
- Double click on the hosts file you just pasted to the desktop
- Select to open it through Notepad
- Make edits to it in Notepad
- Save using Ctrl+S
- Drag and drop the hosts file back into the “etc” folder
- Select “move and replace file” to overwrite the original file
How to Block Websites
Editing your hosts file to block a website is actually very simple. With your hosts file open in notepad, add the following to the bottom:
127.0.0.1 SiteYouWantToBlock.com
If I wanted to block Yahoo, I would type:
127.0.0.1 yahoo.com
If I typed in yahoo.com into my browser or clicked on a link to yahoo, I would experience this:
Many people who pirate software, such as the Adobe Creative Suite, will often patch the hosts file to avoid any type of activation or tracking software that Adobe can then link back to your computer. Typically they would type (in addition to many other adobe activation website URLs) the following:
127.0.0.1 activate.adobe.com
Some pirated software will try to patch the hosts file for you. Be extremely wary of these, as they can easily patch your hosts file to redirect you into phishing scams or block a bunch of sites to convince you to buy their “anti-virus” software which simply repatches your hosts file.
Still, you can also patch you hosts file for entirely legal reasons, such as blocking bad or unwanted sites that could contain malware or other things that could harm your computer. HYPERLINK “http://www.mediafire.com/?ydoeikgmtoi” Here is a long list of flagged websites that are already prepped for you hosts file. All you have to do is download the text document, copy the blocked website codes, and paste them into your hosts file.
Remember, if you are using other lists of dangerous websites prepped for blocking in your hosts file, be sure that every website is preceded with the code: 127.0.0.1. This IP address defaults to nowhere and will just result in a blank page when the URL is typed or clicked on. If there is any other IP address written in the code, it could be redirecting you to dangerous sites or phishing scams.
This guest post is contributed by Lauren Bailey, who regularly writes for best online college. She welcomes your comments at her email Id: blauren99 @gmail.com.
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