Please Help Save My Spyware Ridden Laptop?

Question

Dear Tech Community,
My laptop is completely overriden with viruses, spy and adware. I hardly can go online anymore as the dozens of popups come flying at me and for some reason wikipedia searches no longer work. I currently own Norton, S and D, and Adaware. Please help me to clear away winfixer and the like as fast as possible before I lose my comp!

Answer 1

If you can get to this site run an online scan and allow it to remove all it finds. Be sure to write down the names of the infections exactly as the programs list them. Do not change anything. Ignore writing down the cookies.

http://housecall.trendmicro.com/

For any infections not removed you need to now download some programs and use this procedure. Download and update the programs. Run them as called for in the procedure.

http://www.filehippo.com/download_ewido/

http://www.filehippo.com/download_cwshredder/

MALWARE REMOVAL

Removing infections from your computer is never as easy as aquiring them. Malware infections are not meant to be removed so it takes TIME and PATIENCE to get rid of them. If you do not have T & P then you can always do a Reformat.

Malware is a general word for all form of Viruses, Spyware etc. This procedure works for all Malware. Use the appropriate program.

You might be unable to access the Internet after removing the Malware so you will need to run LSPfix or Winsockxpfix (as appropriate). Download one, but do not run until later, if required.

LSPfix: all Windows OS except 95.

http://www.cexx.org/lspfix.htm

Winsock XP Fix: Windows XP only.

http://www.spychecker.com/program/winsockxpfix.html



UPDATE YOUR ANTI-VIRUS OR ANTI-SPYWARE PROGRAM.


Let's get cleaning

Part 1

• Temporarily show hidden files.

For Windows XP:

1.
Click Start, and then click Control Panel.

2.
Click Appearance and Themes, and then click Folder Options.

3.
On the View tab, under Hidden files and folders, click "Show hidden files and folders", and clear(uncheck) the "Hide protected operating system files" check box.



For older systems:

1.
Double-click My Computer, click View, and then click Folder Options.

2.
On the View tab, under "Hidden files and folders", click "Show hidden files and folders", and clear (uncheck) the "Hide protected operating system files" check box.


IMPORTANT: Files are hidden by Windows for a very good reason. It is not wise to experiment with these files. Unfortunately, to successfully remove modern spyware we must turn this protection off temporarily. Please turn the protection back on when you have finished cleaning your system.


Empty your Internet Explorer cache and your other temporary file folders:

1.
On the Internet Explorer Tools menu, click Internet Options.

2.
On the General tab, in the Temporary Internet Files section, click the Delete Files button. This will delete all the files that are currently stored in your cache.

3.
Select the Delete all offline content check box in the confirmation dialogue box that appears, click OK.

4.
Click OK again.

Restart in Safe Mode:

To do this you need to hold down or repeatedly tap the F8 key while the computer is booting (when the computer is displaying a black screen with white text). When the boot menu appears, use your keyboard arrows to select "Safe Mode."

Safe Mode can look quite ugly. The color may look bad, and all of your desktop icons will be very large. This is normal.



START RUNNING YOUR SCANNER.


When the scan and removal are completed REBOOT COMPUTER. This will restart you in normal mode.

If you are unable to access the Internet after removing Malware you will need to run LSPfix or Winsockxpfix (as appropriate).


If you are using Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) and are unable to access the Internet after removing Malware, there is a command that may fix the problem, removing the need to run Winsockxpfix. It works by resetting the winsock catalogue. Click on Start, then Run and type CMD in the dialogue box that appears. Click OK. Type "netsh winsock reset" (no quotes)into the DOS window that appears.


The last steps

If you are running Windows XP or Windows ME, and your computer has been successfully cleaned of Malware, there is one more thing that needs to be done.

Delete any old restore points and then create a new restore one. The old ones may, of course, be infected with the Malware and cannot be used.

First, start and then stop the Restore Service. This is done differently depending on what operating system you are running.

Windows XP:

1.
Click Start, and then click Control Panel.

2.
Click Performance and Maintenance, click System, and then click on the System Restore tab.

3.
Select the Turn Off System Restore check box, click Apply, then restart your computer.

4.
Return to the System Restore Tab and turn System Restore back on.


Windows ME:

1.
Click Start, click Control Panel, click System.

2.
Click Performance, click File System, and then click Troubleshooting.

3.
Enable the option Disable System Restore, click Apply then restart your computer.

4.
Return to the Troubleshooting tab and turn System Restore back on.


To set a manual restore point complete the following steps:

1.
Click the Start button.

2.
Point to Programs, then navigate to Accessories, then System Tools, then click System Restore.

3.
Choose Create a restore point, and then click Next.

4.
In the Restore point description box, type a name for your restore point, and then click Next.

5.
Click OK.


There are Trojans that fall into the Smitfraud family. These require the use of a specialized program for removal. Here are two sites that specialize in removing these:

http://www.internetinspiration.co.uk/roguefix.htm

http://siri.urz.free.fr/Fix/SmitfraudFix_En.php

Answer 2

If you can, update Norton, Spybot S&D, and Ad-Aware. Right clicjk on "My Computer", choose "Properties", "System Restore" and check box labeled "Turn off System Restore on al drives". Click "Apply". This will eliminate all the bad guys hiding in your restore points.

Reboot into Safe mode (Press F8 repeatedly while booting, choose "Safe Mode" option.

Run Norton, Spybot, and Ad-Aware repeatedly until they don't find anything.

Reboot and let your system come up normally.

Go back and turn your restore points back on.

Good Luck!

Answer 3

there are some virus with your PC. perhaps you can get a more powerful antivirus software to scan for virus, adware and spyware .

i recommand you to try CA Internet Security Suite. It provides comprehensive protection against viruses, hackers, identity thieves, spyware, spam and other online threats that can jeopardize your privacy, your data, and your PC's performance.

you can get a more detailed introduction about CA Internet Security software.

http://network.sitesled.com/ca-internet-security-suite.html

Good Luck && Best Wishes!

Answer 4

If needing spyware help? check out this site. They have a large list of spyware definitions and remove guides. Their remover seems to work well.

Answer 5

Winfixer is usually caused by a Vundo (Virtumonde) infection on your computer. It is a very difficult infection to remove without the use of specialized removal tools.

The"standard" tool to remove this pest is by using a free tool called VundoFix.

The tool is available here:
http://www.atribune.org/content/view/24/2/
and further Winfixer / Vundo information is found here:
http://www.help2go.com/Tutorials/Spyware_Information/Winfixer_Removal.html

Good luck.

Answer 6

Poll: No, Ride a horse and save a cowboy! :-)

Answer 7

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