Hello, I took some videos using my iPhone. Then, uploaded to mediafire to share with a company. They replied saying that when they tried to access the files, their computer got infected due to virus. Is this possible? Is mediafire a reliable site?
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Virus on my Mac or mediafire?
- Thread starter hajime
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keysofanxiety
macrumors G3
Yeah MediaFire are legit.
I assume the company in question who you sent your stuff to are using Windows and got a virus that wouldn't affect your Mac (an executable file or a VBScript infected Excel/Word file).
However it could be purely coincidental that they got an infection at the same time as downloading your files. Alternatively there may have been a file on there that affected them.
Regardless, there's one thing for sure: if they got a virus from downloading your files, it wouldn't have happened unless they opened one of the infected files. So poor choice on their part for: 1) not virus scanning 2) allowing any old user on their network to have Admin credentials 3) using Windows. 😀
I assume the company in question who you sent your stuff to are using Windows and got a virus that wouldn't affect your Mac (an executable file or a VBScript infected Excel/Word file).
However it could be purely coincidental that they got an infection at the same time as downloading your files. Alternatively there may have been a file on there that affected them.
Regardless, there's one thing for sure: if they got a virus from downloading your files, it wouldn't have happened unless they opened one of the infected files. So poor choice on their part for: 1) not virus scanning 2) allowing any old user on their network to have Admin credentials 3) using Windows. 😀
willmtaylor
macrumors G4
If you took the video and uploaded to their website directly from your iPhone, it's impossible for your files to have been responsible for the virus on their system.
keysofanxiety
macrumors G3
Very good point Will; if the OP uploaded it directly using their iPhone, there's no chance one of the files was infected. If they synced to their Mac and then copied, possibly there might have been some Windows infection on there. Invoice.xml or something, which they decided to open.
I'm still not convinced that's the case though. 🙂
mastermamo
macrumors member
Unless your video files suddenly renamed themselves to .exe, .mxl etc etc and transmutated into some strange virus during the upload process it's IMPOSSIBLE.
The fault seems to be on their side. Upon downloading your files they probably had a dormant virus which then happened to "awaken" when your files went through. It's not your fault.
Or maybe, just maybe...they just loved your footage and "stole" it for themselves and blamed not receiving it on a virus lol.
Hehe I know I'm dramatic but u get the point I'm sure
The fault seems to be on their side. Upon downloading your files they probably had a dormant virus which then happened to "awaken" when your files went through. It's not your fault.
Or maybe, just maybe...they just loved your footage and "stole" it for themselves and blamed not receiving it on a virus lol.
Hehe I know I'm dramatic but u get the point I'm sure
Toutou
macrumors 65816
Thanks all for the reply.
I took the videos using my iPhone, transferred the files to my Mac. Then, uploaded then to MediaFire.
I took the videos using my iPhone, transferred the files to my Mac. Then, uploaded then to MediaFire.
The company guy told me that the link I provided to download the videos from MediaFire contains advertisements. Those advertisements have virus...
Toutou
macrumors 65816
Pretty much every webpage is now covered in advertisements, so… I don't get what their problem is.
And how exactly are the advertisements supposed to "have a virus" is beyond me. A web ad is almost always a picture or an animation that can't really do anything except being displayed.
To be clear, I'm accusing the company of spreading ********, not you.
And yes, MediaFire is legit.
And no, if you took a video with your iPhone, moved it to your Mac and then uploaded to MediaFire, the chance of it being "infected" is literally zero point zero zero nothing. Let's think about it:
1. your iPhone — definitely safe, produced a video file and didn't let anything/anyone touch it
2. iPhone -> Mac transfer — definitely safe, the file got copied and saved to your Mac's filesystem
3. your Mac — potentially unsafe, there are ways (extremely complicated ways) to abuse a video file using all kinds of programming magic and media players' bugs and force it to do something besides playing. For this to happen you'd have to do it intentionally or there would have to be some kind of malware running on your Mac that looks for video files and tries to inject malicious code into them. Note that this sounds really improbable, creating all this would be an arduous task and — in the end — this vector of attack is unreliable, which is why infected video files are extremely rare.
4. Mac -> MediaFire transfer — potentially unsafe, but again, it would require catching the video file somewhere between you and MediaFire, infecting it in realtime (!!) and sending it back on its way. All of this while the connection is secured via https (encrypted). Virtually impossible.
And how exactly are the advertisements supposed to "have a virus" is beyond me. A web ad is almost always a picture or an animation that can't really do anything except being displayed.
To be clear, I'm accusing the company of spreading ********, not you.
And yes, MediaFire is legit.
And no, if you took a video with your iPhone, moved it to your Mac and then uploaded to MediaFire, the chance of it being "infected" is literally zero point zero zero nothing. Let's think about it:
1. your iPhone — definitely safe, produced a video file and didn't let anything/anyone touch it
2. iPhone -> Mac transfer — definitely safe, the file got copied and saved to your Mac's filesystem
3. your Mac — potentially unsafe, there are ways (extremely complicated ways) to abuse a video file using all kinds of programming magic and media players' bugs and force it to do something besides playing. For this to happen you'd have to do it intentionally or there would have to be some kind of malware running on your Mac that looks for video files and tries to inject malicious code into them. Note that this sounds really improbable, creating all this would be an arduous task and — in the end — this vector of attack is unreliable, which is why infected video files are extremely rare.
4. Mac -> MediaFire transfer — potentially unsafe, but again, it would require catching the video file somewhere between you and MediaFire, infecting it in realtime (!!) and sending it back on its way. All of this while the connection is secured via https (encrypted). Virtually impossible.
There are some problems with their product. I sent them a short video. No reply. Then, I uploaded several videos to show them the problems. The next day they told me that when they tried to access the files, their computer got infected and became unusable. They told me to check my computer. I took them what we discussed in this thread. They mentioned about the advertisements.. Next, they said that due to possible virus infection again, they are not going to try to access the videos I uploaded. They told me that they forwarded the first short video I sent to them to the manufacturer and asked me to wait!
