How do I find out if I have back door port issues.

Question

I recently got to looking at my MacBook Pro and noticed that I had a couple of programs most likely put there by my kids that download movies and stuff. One was Limewire and there was another one called torrent something. I dont know a lot about them but have friends that are telling me that these programs will install some sort of back door access to my computer that will slow it down. I have recently deployed to the Middle East so our internet isn't fast to begin with so I cant be sure why it is running slower. I have since deleted the programs as I have no need for them. How do I tell if there are any of these back door programs and stop them. I am fairly new to the Mac world so I am just learning a lot of how they operate.
Thanks for any guidance on this issue.

Answer 1

Camelot wrote:
Bit-torrent rubbish and limewire are usually used for downloading illegal material and much of the software downloaded is filled with malware
That is a false statement.
BitTorrent and Limewire can be exploited by malware authors, and there may be illegal content passing over the network, but to say that this is the usual case is a little too much. Your statement implies that by installing the software you immediately become a criminal and your machine gets infested with malware. That is not the case. There is a lot of legitimate traffic on such peer-to-peer networks.
Downloading content via a torrent carries the same risks and responsibilities as downloading content from anywhere else. Consider how much you trust the source before installing/opening anything you download. The main issue, of course, is that you don't know who the source is, and that's the real concern.
Not true
Bit-torrent is not the same as simply downloading material. It is connecting to a large user-shared internet network, and usually allows other people to access your computer when you are a seed.
And I maintain that most bit-torrent activities are for downloading "shared" files which are usually copyright protected. I have personally checked and verified this. If you believe that being able to download Leopard or Apple products via bit-torrent sites is legal, then we have our differences.
I reference
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legalissues_withBitTorrent
and others.
The claim is that the "sharing" is legal because it's user-to-user. So it's OK for someone to "share" the Leopard OS?
I stand by my original statements 100%. I would take the opposite stand, Limewire and bit-torrent "can" be used legally, but for the most part when reality strikes home, they are not. Those who say it's OK to "share" files are either naive or are involved in the "sharing" but in any case, just look at what is being shared and that proves my point.
Naturally, the fact that "sharing" is popular is why much malware is associated with the processes.
This old link is a mere bagatelle of what goes on with file "sharing"
http://www.neowin.net/news/main/08/05/07/malware-outbreak-blamed-on-file-swapped -mp3s-mpegs
BTW, it's illegal to share copyrighted files no matter what, and it's illegal to own them unless they were legally purchased.
Message was edited by: nerowolfe
Message was edited by: nerowolfe