You've apparently contracted the latest worm, W32.Sasser.Worm,
specifically designed to attack people who do not update their
computers promptly and who do not practice "safe hex." In other
words, like Blaster, this worm was developed and distributed _after_ a
patch for the vulnerability was announced and made publicly available.
Further, and also like Blaster, this worm could not affect any
computer whose user had taken the basic precaution of using a properly
configured firewall.
To stay on-line long enough to get the necessary updates, patches,
and removal tools, click Start > Run, and enter "shutdown -a" when the
next Shutdown countdown begins. This will abort the shut down. Also,
make sure you've enabled a firewall before starting, to preclude any
more intrusions while getting the updates/patches/tools.
What You should Know about the Sasser Worm and its Variants
http://www.microsoft.com/security/incident/sasser.asp
Microsoft Security Bulletin MS04-011
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/MS04-011.mspx
W32.Sasser.Worm
http://www.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/w32.sasser.worm.html
A tool is available to remove the Sasser worm variants
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;841720
W32.Sasser.Worm Removal Tool
http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/w32.sasser.removal.tool.html
McAfee AVert Stinger Virus Removal Tool
http://vil.nai.com/vil/stinger/
As for the modem issues, have you downloaded and installed the
most recent WinXP-specific drivers from the modem's manufacturer's
web-site?
--
Bruce Chambers
Help us help you:
You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
having both at once. - RAH
