I need help with a Search Hijacker?

Question

I've finally been able to clean up enough that Internet Explorer finally works again. I love Firefox here at work but at home I constantly get a crash or freeze or message to restart Firefox because the flash plugin did something illegal. I've tried installing Flash 7 to fix that but it didn't.

So when we renewed Norton my dad had to re-download something and a virus that had been lurking that the previous edition of Norton hadn't been able to access was finally destroyed. Now I can use IE again and it is very stable. The only problem I have is that when I use Yahoo or Google to search it doesn't matter if I manually type in the search result address when I hit go or type enter it goes to a Hijacked web page and I have to close IE and reopen it.

I've tried running XoftSpy and Adware SE but neither solve the problem.

Any suggestions?

Answer 1

You need to download a program called "Hi-Jack this!" It sounds like you may have something screwing with your "hosts" file. Run the program and look for an unusual entry under BHO...which is browser helper objects. That should get you in the right direction to identifying, isolating, and removing the problem.

Answer 2

Spybot - Search & Destroy detects and removes spyware, a relatively new kind of threat not yet covered by common anti-virus applications. Spyware silently tracks your surfing behaviour to create a marketing profile for you that is transmitted without your knowledge to the compilers and sold to advertising companies. If you see new toolbars in your Internet Explorer that you haven't intentionally installed, if your browser crashes inexplicably, or if your home page has been "hijacked" (or changed without your knowledge), your computer is most probably infected with spyware. Even if you don't see the symptoms, your computer may be infected, because more and more spyware is emerging. Spybot-S&D is free, so there's no harm giving it a try to see if something has invaded your computer.
http://www.safer-networking.org/

http://superantispyware.com/
SUPERAntiSpyware is the most thorough scanner on the market. Our Multi-Dimensional Scanning and Process Interrogation Technology will detect spyware that other products miss! SUPERAntiSpyware will remove ALL the Spyware, NOT just the easy ones!
Easily remove over 100,000 pests such as SmitFraud, Vundo, WinFixer, SpyAxe, SpyFalcon, WinAntiVirus, AntiVermins and thousands more!
Make sure after you download any of these, that you update them.

*Be sure to come back to Yahoo Q&A and vote for one of the answers as best answer!

Answer 3

Do you have the original Windows CDROM to restore from? If so, try deleting the Windows Internet Explorer by going to START - Control Panel - Add/Remove Programs - Add/Remove Windows Components. Select Internet Explorer and then tell it to get removed.

Next, Re-run the add/remove option and tell it you want to add Windows Internet Explorer in again. Hopefully, it will ask you for the CDROM and allow you to install it from there. That puts in the ie.exe and the valid dll's from the CD instead of the spyware or hijacked version you currently have.

If that does not work, you can take a look in the registry using regedit and do a search on any of the keywords you may be seeing from that hijacked webpage, to see if they have some small plugin or utility that keeps messing up your search page. You may also want to run task manager to see if any strange programs are running in the background.

Keep in mind, it helps to know what you are doing if you try to kill active processes or edit your Windows registry. You will probably want to read up on it or get someone who knows what they are doing to help out.

Answer 4

the least complicated thank you to restoration it extremely is utilising Malwarebyte's Anti-Malware (get carry of it, replace it, do an entire try, and get rid of each and every little difficulty it well-liked). i'd additionally propose suitable right here classes to make the removing greater suitable obtainable and ascertain you're actually not getting contaminated back quicker or later: Avira AntiVir very own spyware well being practitioner Starter version

Answer 5

I can give a few links that offer free virus and spyware removers...! Do not down load a program until you are satisfied that it is safe to use. Norton, AVG , Avast are free antivirus software. Ad-aware, Ewido are free spyware removers. You can download free softwares at
http://fixit.in/antivirus.html and http://fixit.in/spywareremover.html

Answer 6

I use all of the following anti-spyware programs.
ewido
spybot
adaware,
norton
cwshredder
Why so many? Because most single programs do not catch all the spyware.
Dan.

Answer 7

Look more often into your startup, I have found a multitude of mischievous culprits.....get

Arrange Startup
from....http://www.download.com/3120-20_4-0.html?tg=dl-20&qt=arrange%20startup&tag=srch

it really works, is small and easy and free.

Answer 8

xoftspy is garbage in my opinion, try using Spy-bot Search and destroy