I need some PC tech help ASAP Please

[Hawk]

I know this belongs in the tech section. But many R-pagers only check General Discussion.

Here's the background.

My mother gave her old PC to a college kid (20) who goes to Lockhaven University. Yesterday at 2:00 am, my cousin (mid 30s) received a sexually explicit instant message from my mother's instant messenger.

I contacted the boy and his mother.

At first the boy and his mother agreed to give the computer back. But now they refuse to do so.

The Lockhaven police are involved, but at this point they are telling me nothing that was done was criminal.
They have contacted the boy, who may or may not have been the sender. It could have been a friend of his.

It was with AOL AIM.

I do not use AOL.

How can I contact AOL and get that account deleted. I have no idea how the guy accessed it.

Any suggestions on what I can do to protect my mother, or stop this from happening again ? All help and all suggestions are welcomed.

Thanks
Bill

[f.sciarrillo]

Change your user name and only give it to people you know and trust. Also, set on your security features to only accept messages from people on your buddy list.

On another note: AOL are the most stupid computer illiterate people on the planet. The will be no help to you at all.

[Colton]

Wow, little late now, but you should have cleaned out that computer before giving it away. What other kind of info did you leave on it?

Ever check "remember my username and password" on any websites when you used that computer?

Chances are he doesnt have your password known, but its just stored on the instant messenger. Log into the AIM name he was using, change the pass. Then go back to every website youve ever logged into and change those passes. Then never give a computer out with information on it.

[MeYatch]

Wow, little late now, but you should have cleaned out that computer before giving it away. What other kind of info did you leave on it?

Ever check "remember my username and password" on any websites when you used that computer?

Chances are he doesnt have your password known, but its just stored on the instant messenger. Log into the AIM name he was using, change the pass. Then go back to every website youve ever logged into and change those passes. Then never give a computer out with information on it.

Nothing else to add, I just thought you might want to read this again...

I'm just being a smartass. What he said.

[PanzerFaust]

Gotta agree with Colton on this...

It'll store the passwords in encrypted form for ease of log in, so the kid doesn't really know your password.. So just log in again and change the passwords you think are saved on the old computer

[Hawk]

Thanks guys ! I'm going to follow through with that.

[Primates]

The police or AOL cant do anything about this. No laws were broken. But next time you give a PC away...make sure you wipe it. Maxtor and other software groups have applications to completely erase a harddrive. Then all you have to do with load windows or any other OS and you're set.

[Punkinhead]

Wow, little late now, but you should have cleaned out that computer before giving it away. What other kind of info did you leave on it?

Ever check "remember my username and password" on any websites when you used that computer?

Chances are he doesnt have your password known, but its just stored on the instant messenger. Log into the AIM name he was using, change the pass. Then go back to every website youve ever logged into and change those passes. Then never give a computer out with information on it.

This is about all you can do now. If it were me, I'd try to completely wipe her online presence in the form of removing every account she used online and then signing up for them with new username and password. Might be a lot of work but, will be better than a $1000 purchase on a credit card from an Ebay account that was found because it was left on the machine.