[ANSWERED] HTML Validator generating false positive

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paulp575
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[ANSWERED] HTML Validator generating false positive

Post by paulp575 »

Using version 22.0400.

Every time I open HTML Validator to check a file, I get this warning:

Riskware error message.jpg

HTML Validator is trying to access survey-smiles.com

Never seen that before.

Is there a problem with my installation of version 22.0400? Did I inadvertently download a file that contained malware? I download only from this site.

I did a scan using Malwarebytes and nothing was found.

Thanks,
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Last edited by paulp575 on Sat Jun 17, 2023 12:18 am, edited 1 time in total.
paulp575
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Albert Wiersch
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Re: HTML Validator false positive

Post by Albert Wiersch »

Hello,

Do you have the integrated web browser open? If so then it might be trying to access a website that is causing that.

You can close the integrated web browser or change the site/URL it is trying to show.
Albert Wiersch, CSS HTML Validator Developer • Download CSS HTML Validator FREE Trial
paulp575
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Posts: 170
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Location: Spokane WA

Re: HTML Validator false positive

Post by paulp575 »

No idea.
I did look at View -> Other and see the controls are not checked. I don't see the "Browser" tab (did see it when I clicked on the controls).
paulp575
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Albert Wiersch
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Re: HTML Validator false positive

Post by Albert Wiersch »

Was there anything in the browser tab? Like a website or something?

It could also be the link checker because that accesses the web in order to check links. Was the link checker active (working in the background) when you saw this message/dialog?

Other than that I really have no idea why you would see that. I do not recognize that domain or IP address.

If you can also do a scan using Microsoft's anti-virus (Microsoft Defender) then I would also do that, just to be safe.
Albert Wiersch, CSS HTML Validator Developer • Download CSS HTML Validator FREE Trial
paulp575
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Posts: 170
Joined: Tue Aug 09, 2005 1:20 pm
Location: Spokane WA

Re: HTML Validator false positive

Post by paulp575 »

Link checker was NOT activated.
It appears shortly after pressing F6 to check a document.
I don't use Microsoft Defender in favor of Malwarebytes - which is the program that flagged it as riskware.
I did a scan today and Malwarebytes found nothing.
Just did a scan using Windows Defender - nothing found.
This started about a week ago.
paulp575
paulp575
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Posts: 170
Joined: Tue Aug 09, 2005 1:20 pm
Location: Spokane WA

Re: HTML Validator false positive

Post by paulp575 »

Just out of curiosity I just did a Google search for survey(space)smiles.
Wow! Everyone is reporting this started happening about a week ago and just about every program is reporting it as some type of threat.
So I guess it's something HTML Validator can't do anything about. Thankfully my antivirus/malware programs are up-to-date!
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Albert Wiersch
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Re: HTML Validator false positive

Post by Albert Wiersch »

Thank you for that. I also did a search and found some hits as well.

This may offer a possible solution:
https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/pro ... aa3aa68e3d

"Disabling or deleting both of the Baidu Spark services stops the connections."

Do you have any services like the above installed?

I'm not sure how or why it seems that something is attaching itself to CSS HTML Validator and doing this.... but it is definitely not native to CSS HTML Validator.
Albert Wiersch, CSS HTML Validator Developer • Download CSS HTML Validator FREE Trial
paulp575
Rank IV - Intermediate
Posts: 170
Joined: Tue Aug 09, 2005 1:20 pm
Location: Spokane WA

Re: HTML Validator false positive

Post by paulp575 »

I don't have any of the services mentioned in the Microsoft article installed.
I did run a scan of not only drive C, but also "Computer - which accesses ALL my drive partitions and nothing was found.
Did a registry scan and found it in several places linked to Internet Explorer.
However, I'm not about to delete a DLL!

Guess I'll just have to live with the annoyance.
paulp575