Google in what to be called as an ambitious project undertaking an effort to notify roughly half a million people whose computers or home routers are infected from DNSChanger, a well-publicized form of malware. The search giant started showing warnings via a special message that will appear at the top of the Google search results page for users with affected devices.
The Domain Name System (DNS) translates familiar web address names like google.com into a numerical address that computers use to send traffic to the right place. The DNSChanger malware modifies DNS settings to use malicious servers that point users to fake sites and other harmful locations. DNSChanger attempts to modify the settings on home routers as well, meaning other computers and mobile devices may also be affected.
The company aims to raise awareness of DNSChanger among affected users and is expecting to notify over half a million users within a week time. These conditions aside, if more devices are cleaned and steps are taken to better secure the machines against further abuse, the notification effort will be well worth it, said the company.
