need help

[kilted redleg]

Is anyone else having this problem?
Whenever I go to this website I immediately get a notice that my security system has captured a virus called "blacklist" and requires a scan. This occurs even when I switch pages yet when checking my security system for quarantined virus's nothing shows up. Anyone else having this happen it's only on the X marks site.

[Steve Ashton]

I have never had a message like you describe. No other member has reported a similar message. I have virus protection and ran a full virus scan on my own computers 2 days ago and found nothing like you describe. Our hosting service runs virus protection and monitors the servers that host this site continually. They have not reported finding anything like you describe.

Yes, this site may be listed as "Not Secure" by some browsers, but that is a function of the browser software, not any indication of the health of the forum software.

As far as I know, this forum is safe, secure and virus free.

But - it is possible that your particular browser, or the search engine that you use, has one or more of the IP addresses or URL's used by our hosting company on its "URL Blacklist" lists. This would cause a similar pop-up message.

This message has nothing to do with the security of X Marks forum or our internet host. It is a function of the browser or search engine that you are using.

Let's say that you use Chrome as your browser and Google as your search engine. At any time, Chrome or Google may have detected what they deem as some sort of threat. They put that IP/URL on their "Blacklist", and send out a notification in the form of a pop-up when anyone searches or visits the site.

I do not know, and in fact no one can be 100% sure that the connection between our hosts servers and your computer has not been routed in such a way that it may have gone through some listed or Blacklisted IP/URL.

Especially if you are using a VPN. VPN or Virtual Private Networks, were originally designed so an employee of a company, working remotely, could log onto the companies servers and have secure access to company data.

In the past few years VPN subscription services have popped up. Their advertising is that they provide a more secure internet connection. This is not always true.
Some VPN subscription services simply bounce your connection through servers that they contract with. These servers may be located anywhere in the world. So someone on the receiving end of a connection will see the person as coming from a location other than their original URL or internet provider.

VPN subscription services became popular when streaming arrived. Most streamed content is protected under Copyright. Movies, music and many other forms of material are Copyright protected. The Copyright is supposed to provide income, in the form of fees to stream that content. Streaming services such as Netflix has copyright contracts and can control where they allow their copyrighted material to go. So the list of movies available on Netflix is different countries. For example, where I live in Canada the list of movies available on the Canadian version of Netflix is about 40% smaller than that of the list in the US.
So, theoretically I could contract with a VPN subscription service, (pay the VPN company instead of the artists and companies that produced the content and are rightfully due that income) and the VPN routes my connection through a location that may not be blocked. So a person could gain access to movies or music that would not be available in their country due to Copyright contracts.

Another reason some use a VPN is the belief that it is more secure, or less detectable, when they surf porn. You may not realize that porn is the single largest source of internet traffic, and the largest single revenue source, on the internet today. I just read a report that just one porn streaming service has an annual income that makes it the third largest economy in the world behind the US and China.

Well, the problem comes with with the fact that not every VPN subscription service is totally honest and above board. Some are downright dangerous as they do not care, or may not screen the servers that they contract with. They just want the largest contracted server list they can get for the advertising.
Some of the same servers that your connection may be routed through are the same as used by hackers, scammers, +spammers and bots. You now have no control over where or how your internet connection is routed. You cannot tell if your connection has been routed through the servers in the bedroom of some scammer in some far flung corner of the third world. And you have no way of knowing, controlling, or preventing that scammer from piggybacking onto your connection and scamming everyone you connect with.

Yes, there are published lists of these IP addresses and URL addresses. They are sometimes called "Blacklists". But as you can imagine these lists must be continually updated and changed. X Marks is a member of some of these lists and uses them to try to control who has access to, or who tries to join this forum to gain access. The forum's Blacklist is currently over 15,000 IP/URL addresses.

So yes, kilted redleg, you may be getting a Blacklist pop-up. But it has far more likely to come from your browser or search engine than it does from X Marks.

[Father Bill]

I've not had such a notification, and I'm on here constantly. I'll run an extra scan now.

[Father Bill]

Nothing found on the deepest scan. Sorry not to be of further help.

[COScotsman]

I had a similar issue about 2 years back. I, nor the admins, could find no source for the issue. I waited a couple of days and it never reappeared and could get access to the forum. No problems since then. It was strange.

[Stoff]

I'm on here almost every day and I have been getting this kind of alert from my anti-virus software. FYI; I use Avast.
Stoff

[kilted redleg]

I use Avast also and after receiving Steve's email I contacted my computer shop who contacted Avast, they were told that while the virus may not be malicious it was detected by the Avast system and not by other systems. Here's the link https://howtofix.guide/url-blacklist/

Thanks Stoff I'll keep an eye on it.

[MacKenzie]

I'm on here almost every day and I have been getting this kind of alert from my anti-virus software. FYI; I use Avast.

The only thing I can add to Steve's thorough reply is that anti-virus/spam/malware software vendors maintain their own blacklists in addition to those that are known/published.

It may be possible within your AV software to whitelist this site. If so, enter the top level domain... www dot xmarksthescot dot com