Search Engines Don't Work

[Dave]

I cannot access any of my search engines. Whenever I try
to put in a search in google or yahoo it says that the
page cannot be found. Now I cannot even get to Google.com

 

[LuckyStrike]

Dave,

Probably infected with the QHosts Trojan.

See the following, and get the MS Cumulative Patch for Internet Explorer
(828750) at Windows Update.

Troj/Qhosts-1 (Delude, Qhost)
http://www.sophos.com/virusinfo/analyses/trojqhosts1.html

TROJ_QHOSTS.A
http://www.trendmicro.com/vinfo/virusencyclo/default5.asp?VName=TROJ_QHOSTS.A

Trojan.Qhosts
http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/trojan.qhosts.html

Trojan.Qhosts Removal Tool
http://www.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/trojan.qhosts.removal.tool.html

Cumulative Patch for Internet Explorer (828750)
http://www.microsoft.com/security/security_bulletins/ms03-040.asp

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/treeview/default.asp?url=/technet/security/bulletin/MS03-040.asp

Windows Update
http://v4.windowsupdate.microsoft.com/en/default.asp

 

[Jim Byrd]

Hi Dave - You've apparently gotten infected with the QHosts trojan. Read
here for information:

http://www.sarc.com/avcenter/venc/data/trojan.qhosts.html
http://us.mcafee.com/virusInfo/default.asp?id=description&virus_k=100719
http://www3.ca.com/virusinfo/virus.aspx?ID=37191


Try the following:

1. Be sure that you install hotfix 828750 which fixes the exploit that this
virus uses:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/downloads/critical/828750/default.asp

2. Update and run a complete Anti-Virus software check of your system. Most
of the major AV companies have updated their latest signatures to detect
this virus (for Network Associates (McAfee), be sure to get the EXTRADAT.exe
update from the above page as well as your regular update).

3a. If running your AV doesn't clean it up, go to this page, read the
directions CAREFULLY (particularly about the Restore option) and download
and run the removal tool:

http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/trojan.qhosts.removal.tool.html

3b. An alternative that by report works much better than the Symantec tool
is the Brown University Removal Tool, here:

http://software.brown.edu/dist/w-cleanqhosts.html THIS WOULD BE MY PRIMARY
RECOMMENDATION

If that still doesn't clean it up (and a number of people are reporting that
it did not with the Symantec tool), then follow the Manual Removal
instructions at the link in 3a. The following is courtesy of Mike Burgess:

"Does a HOSTS file still exist in Windows\Help?
Trojan Qhosts hijacks the HOSTS file, however unlike normal redirectors,
this one hides the HOSTS file in the "Windows\Help" folder. It then
creates entries that redirects all major search engines to a website.
Note: this website has now been removed, thus the DNS errors.
[more info]
http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm (bottom of page)
Run the beta version of HijackThis
(http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/files/beta/hijackthis.zip)
_______________________________________
Mike Burgess http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/
Blocking Spyware, Adware, Parasites, Hijackers, Trojans, with a HOSTS file
http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm [updated 9-30-03]
Please post replies to this Newsgroup, email address is invalid"


Just to follow up on this - there may be multiple different HOSTS files on
your machine with the trojan's settings some of which cannot not be removed
by the Removal Tools, and you'll need to do a search to find and just delete
them all, or clean them per the manual directions at the Symantec site.

4. You probably will then need to restore your HOSTS file if you plan to use
it for DNS speedup and/or ad blocking. Download the Hosts File Reader:

http://members.shaw.ca/techcd/VB_Projects/HostsFileReader.exe

To create a new Default version of HOSTS, run the program, click the "Read
Hosts File" button, click the button labeled "Reset Defaults" and click
"Save Changes." Note that this is NOT a recreation of your original HOSTS
file, but a brand new "initialized" one. Now go to normal HOSTS file
location (Windows XP\2000 Location: - C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC or
Windows 98\ME Location: - C:\WINDOWS) and rename the "hosts" file that it
created to "HOSTS" (no quotes, all caps, no extension). If you've been using
your HOSTS file for ad blocking (see
http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm Blocking Unwanted Ads with a Hosts
File), then you'll need to reset the new default you've created up for that
purpose. (Recommended, BTW - it also blocks a lot of "malware" as well as
offensive advertising.)


--
Please respond in the same thread.
Regards, Jim Byrd, MS-MVP



In

 

[amanda]

I have the same problem and I checked to see if I had the
QHosts trojan virus, but I do not, so is there anything
else that it could be?

 

[James]

-----Original Message-----
I cannot access any of my search engines. Whenever I try
to put in a search in google or yahoo it says that the
page cannot be found. Now I cannot even get to Google.com
.

Hi Dave.



Answer to your qestion.


You have to delete host files from your computer.

Here are the steps:
1) From the Start menu on your computer, click Search. (In
some versions of Windows®, you must click Find.)

2) Select All files and folders. (Some versions of Windows
list this option as Files or Folders.)

3) Type "hosts" (without quotation marks) in the file name
box and click Search. (Some versions of Windows list this
as Find Now.)

4) Once you locate the "hosts" file within your Windows or
WINNT directory, right click the file and click Delete.



Note :- Please note you have to delete all the host files
inculding lmhost . If you are unable to delete lmhost you
have to close all Internet Explorer browser and then try
to delete it.

Please be rest assured that your issue will get fixed.


Email as soon as your issue is resolved.

I will wait for your reply.

Email address:- (e-mail address removed)


Thank you

James

 

[Kasey]

-----Original Message-----
I have the same problem and I checked to see if I had the
QHosts trojan virus, but I do not, so is there anything
else that it could be?
.

Hi Amanda

This could be due to corrupt hosts files on your computer

Try these steps.

1) From the Start menu on your computer, click Search. (In
some versions of Windows®, you must click Find.)

2) Select All files and folders. (Some versions of Windows
list this option as Files or Folders.)

3) Type "hosts" (without quotation marks) in the file name
box and click Search. (Some versions of Windows list this
as Find Now.)

4) Once you locate the "hosts" file within your Windows or
WINNT directory, right click the file and click Delete.

Please make sure that you delete all the files that you
find that have the name hosts in them.

Thanks

Kasey
(e-mail address removed)

 

[Amanda]

Alright, thanks very much =)

-----Original Message-----

Hi Amanda

This could be due to corrupt hosts files on your computer

Try these steps.

1) From the Start menu on your computer, click Search. (In
some versions of Windows®, you must click Find.)

2) Select All files and folders. (Some versions of Windows
list this option as Files or Folders.)

3) Type "hosts" (without quotation marks) in the file name
box and click Search. (Some versions of Windows list this
as Find Now.)

4) Once you locate the "hosts" file within your Windows or
WINNT directory, right click the file and click Delete.

Please make sure that you delete all the files that you
find that have the name hosts in them.

Thanks

Kasey
(e-mail address removed)
.