Can Malware Infect and Damage a Router?

My bro is thinking of getting a PC and well, this has somewhat irritated me and scared me, as he doesn`t really know how to use a PC, and so i`m worried he`s gonna attract/get viruses real easy.

So my main question is can viruses/malware get into and damage the router and the computers attached to it?
I saw this earlier:
http://emcosoftware.com/network-malware-cleaner
is it any good? it claims that you/it can scan all computers attached to that network silently,even if you don`t have a password, is that true?
If not are there any out there that can scan all computers on that network silently, without needing to know the password?

Cheers

LW

 

There are a couple out there, but it takes someone finding a way into the router from the outside, or someone from the inside to infect the flashrom on the router. Majority run some kind of Linux derivative, so do not worry about. When I ran pfsense or smoothwall as my router, I would never worry, due to they ran not as a file server for Windows files, but just as a router.

The link of that software you posted is for computers, not a router. It would be the same type that is used on domains, so that you do not have to load each computer with a complete product, but just the part that triggers the server to perform the scan.

 

I am struggling with the same issue -- malware found by MS Security Essentials on 2nd machine [found nothing on first--even though importing apparently benign files from first caused problem] included streaming Java, trojan, and 2 variants Java exploit] -- after working on computers for well over a week no malware seems to be found but router has gone completely dicky. Cuts off all the time, but most noticeably when I am doing something like creating new webmail account or enquiring online about Java malware. Could it be just a worn-out router or is it malware. Old Verizon Westel.

Please advise [no I am not a lawyer or litigant]
:cry

 

I think I have the same problem. I inadvertently downloaded some very nasty stuff. Nothing could be found by Malwarebytes or Windows Security Essentials on my main machine [where the deed was done] even though my browser was seriously infected by a bunch of uglies: iminent, yontoo, incredibar etc but when I took an innocuous bunch of files over to my laptop on a flash drive [mostly Word files] it went bananas. Windows SE found 4 major threats: streaming Java, trojan, 2 variants of Java exploit and apparently removed them.

But my router cuts off all the time and seems particularly likely to do so when I
1. set up web email accounts
2 do any searches or visit forums with regard to issues relating to the infestation.

Please advise [and no I am neither a lawyer nor a litigant -- just mizzable]

:cry

My router is an ld Verizon Westel. My PC is HP touch-screen all-in-one and laptop is also HP touchscreen--both running windows 7

while I tried to search this and write this, router went out 3 times. I lost all my previous write.

please advise

 

Theoretically, it isn't possible that malware could infect the router. However, you can expect anything from a genius network programmer!

 

It has happened to the Cisco professional line routers, but less to happen with the consumer ones, unless it is a "roll your own" type, like pfsense, m0n0wall, smoothwall.