Kickass.to

cloud_dog

Hi

I know this is going to be a bit vague in detail but...... Outpost, my firewall occasionally 'traps' an outgoing request to 'kickass.to'.

Unfortunately it doesn't appear to provide any info on which app / service is executing the connection and reviewing the logs really doesn't show much of anything.

I beleive kickass.to is (was) a torrent site but I'm not a torrent user and haven't knowingly downloaded anything which utilises torrent.

Anyone any thoughts?

Kendall80

cloud_dog wrote: »

Hi

I know this is going to be a bit vague in detail but...... Outpost, my firewall occasionally 'traps' an outgoing request to 'kickass.to'.

Unfortunately it doesn't appear to provide any info on which app / service is executing the connection and reviewing the logs really doesn't show much of anything.

I believe kickass.to is (was) a torrent site but I'm not a torrent user and haven't knowingly downloaded anything which utilises torrent.

Anyone any thoughts?

You may have downloaded (perhaps inadvertently) something like utorrent or frostwire etc. Check your list of programs and consider uninstalling anything unfamiliar.


It'd also be wise to run the free version of malwarebytes antimalware (mbam).


Kickass.to has now been renamed to kickass.so - however the former still redirects to the latter.


Edit: The recent update and domain name change apparently required any users downloading directly from the website to now download a small program. This may very well be what is initiating the request to the site, especially if you've downloaded from there within the past week. I'm afraid I don't recall the file-name as I read it briefly on a forum. Should be easy enough to find though.

cloud_dog

Hi

Thanks for your comments.

I have run Malwarebytes, which didn't throw up anything.

I'll keep an eye on things to see if I can spot anything out of the ordinary.

Strider590

Perhaps install something like the old version of Zonealarm (the new one is bloatware), this flags all outgoing connections and tells you what program is requesting internet access.

Also, i've never used this myself but:

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=4865

cloud_dog

Strider590 wrote: »

Perhaps install something like the old version of Zonealarm (the new one is bloatware), this flags all outgoing connections and tells you what program is requesting internet access.

Yes, I used to run Zonealarm. I had to switch, I think it was because I got a 64-bit PC and there wasn't a compatible version at the time (not 100% on that).

I liked Zonealarm, it suited my skill level and its invasiveness was acceptable.

Big_Graeme

Kendall80 wrote: »

Edit: The recent update and domain name change apparently required any users downloading directly from the website to now download a small program.

Nope, the torrent files work fine with a regular download and using magnetic links.

Kendall80

Big_Graeme wrote: »

Nope, the torrent files work fine with a regular download and using magnetic links.

Yes the regular downloads via magnets do work fine but instead of a direct download are now managed by a small file. This is not obvious when downloading - everything still appears as normal.


According to their own forums on the day of the update many users were complaining about the file that was placed on their computer.


This adds a further degree of traceability that torrent users might not appreciate, aswell as raising possible system security issues.


Those using torrent software also had issues on that day. The page/cache that manages the torrent downloads (torcache) is usually accessed but not displayed. However, the page was loading and presenting an error message suggesting the page may have been cloned. Downloading was therefore prevented without the users explicit permission to proceed regardless (inadvisable). The torrent software failed to initialise.

System

cloud_dog wrote: »

Hi

I know this is going to be a bit vague in detail but...... Outpost, my firewall occasionally 'traps' an outgoing request to 'kickass.to'.

Unfortunately it doesn't appear to provide any info on which app / service is executing the connection and reviewing the logs really doesn't show much of anything.

I beleive kickass.to is (was) a torrent site but I'm not a torrent user and haven't knowingly downloaded anything which utilises torrent.

Anyone any thoughts?

Hi

There is a browser add-in for Firefox which could also be an area to check.

Cant really help much more, VM blocks any access to said sites.