my computer has been flooded with viruses

i had always thought anti-virus software was just a scam, but now i'm wishing i actually had Norton anti-virus or whatever. basically, every time that i'm online (though also to a lesser extent when i'm not), something keeps creating these strangely-named .exe files that only show up in the task manager (where i methodically go through and delete them as they arise). my computer is still functional, but barely.

also, afterwards, there are a bunch of loose applications and text files (with commands to 'goto' some random website) in the program files folder. i've tried running all the usual xp tools and freeware (adaware, etc.), but none of them seem to work ...

Have you tried Malwarebytes?

Have you tried AVG free?

http://free.avg.com/

in the future use avast!: it blocks malware from entering your computer

also, try some techie forums like this one:

http://forums.devshed.com/antivirus-protection-117/

They will usually ask you to run 'HijackThis' and post the logs to the forums so that they can diagnose and advise...

edit: the people on the MajorGeeks Malware Removal forum seem pretty helpful:

http://forums.majorgeeks.com/forumdisplay.php?f=35

see the stickies at the top of the forum for general advice. You can download HijackThis from their site too.

whoa, very good! i'll try those four things when i get home from work

ask essines

I agree with Yegg, Malwarebytes is a pretty good program. But if you aren't sure what kind of bug this is or may have many don't rely on just one program. Run others against it like AVG, Ad Aware SE, Windows Defender and so on. However, there is a chance that you won't be able to update Windows Defender if the bug fucked with the services.

also, some viruses may stop you from accessing anti-virus web sites, so its useful if you have another internet-connected computer that you can use to download stuff, and then copy it over to the infected computer. But if you're using a USB stick to do that, bear in mind that some viruses can be spread that way too.

  zazen said:

Have you tried AVG free?

 

http://free.avg.com/

bahahahaha

kaspersky

the best success ive had with removing viruses was booting to pe (hbcd has mini xp which works great) and then running command line scanners to remove viruses as well as emptying temp folders etc. Then when you get back into windows run malwarebytes and/or kaspersky removal tool then ccleaner

hirens boot cd 9.8

http://www.9down.com/Hiren-s-BootCD-9-8-Ke...rd-Patch-73110/

panda command line scanner

http://research.pandasecurity.com/blogs/images/pavcl.zip

http://research.pandasecurity.com/archive/...ne-Scanner.aspx

a-squared command line scanner

http://download1.emsisoft.com/a2cmd.zip

avira command line scanner

http://dlpro.antivir.com/down/windows/antivir_avcls_en.zip

then within windows

kaspersky removal tool

http://support.kaspersky.com/viruses/avptool?level=2

malwarebytes

http://download.cnet.com/Malwarebytes-Anti...&tag=button

ccleaner

http://www.ccleaner.com/download

i just had a pretty nasty browser hijack that would give me bogus google search results.

avg, malwarebytes, ad-aware, hijackthis, all did absolutely nothing. i read about a similar problem on bleepingcomputer, and they suggested ComboFix, which i guess is pretty powerful and can mess up your system if something goes wrong. but i was desperate and ran it anyway and it fixed everything quite nicely and easily.

another one ive been curious about to see how effective it is, is hitman pro

http://www.surfright.nl/en/hitmanpro

I gotta ask here PBN, do you use your computer for anything beyond web browsing/media consumption/doc production?

If not, have you considered using Ubuntu? Try a liveCD, it will enable you to try the linux OS out without having to install anything or worry about erasing anything on your computer.

Good luck!

I'd probably just format and reinstall.

The first thing I always do is use autoruns: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinte...s/bb545027.aspx

look for the sketchy shit that shouldn't be starting up when you boot into windows and disable it. also check out process explorer while you are at the site, it'll help you nail down why these processes are started and what exactly they are, like an extra helpful task manager.

  Yegg said:

Malwarebytes

Also Stinger AntiVirus. Might as well try them all

  Rabid said:

  Yegg said:

Malwarebytes

ad-aware

malwarebytes

superantispyware

avira

a combination of these free programs really helped me when my computer was fucked up

  Rabid said:

  Yegg said:

Majailoveyou

:omg:

sounds like i'll be trying malwarebytes first, hmm.

  chenGOD said:

I gotta ask here PBN, do you use your computer for anything beyond web browsing/media consumption/doc production?

If not, have you considered using Ubuntu? Try a liveCD, it will enable you to try the linux OS out without having to install anything or worry about erasing anything on your computer.

 

Good luck!

my friend dave tells me about the glories of ubuntu like thrice daily! i may give it a shot, since my home computer is truly used just for media/docs/browsing.

  nene multiple assgasms said:

I'd probably just format and reinstall.

and remember to do disk image once you've set up everything necessary. fast and reliable.

i never used anti virus. but that is mostly because there are so many...and no one does the job well. and they are nagging.

yeah the live CD would be the way to go to give it a try:

http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/daily-live/current/