security weakness

[Fabian Wenk]

Hello Sam

Is this computer running FreeBSD or Mac OS X?

If a computer does answer ICMP PING requests, then this is not a 
security problem. Even if turned off this will not really help in 
protecting it from abuse (if there are ways to do it).

Do you run a mailserver on the computer which tiscali spotted as a 
source of spam?

If not and this is just your desktop computer, then something else 
(eg. a program) running on your computer does send out spam. This 
could happen through several methods. If your computer could have 
been infected by a virus (or could have a break in), then it would 
be a good idea to do a fresh install from the install CD/DVD.

To keep your computer secure you should install all available 
security updates for the Operating System and also for all 
installed applications. It is also highly recommended to have good 
passwords for the accounts on the computer.

Did you install or enable any applications / services which run as 
a server and can be reached from the whole internet? Could this be 
abused because of a missing or weak password?


This are just some hints to check out. I can not really help you 
any further, as this is to time consuming to do with a computer 
novice and without direct access to your computer. It would be 
better if you get some professional computer support in your area, 
which could be able to find the real source of your problem with 
the sending out of spam.


bye
Fabian