Spyware - about:blank

[Jason Green]

Everytime I run AntiSpyware it finds this problem and
deletes it. The first time I go to IE after that, it
opens on the microsoft start page which is fine. When I
close it down, a window pops up and says that something
is trying to change my homepage to about:blank. I tell it
to block it.
The next time I open IE, the homepage has still been
changed and I have a bunch of links in my favorites to
porn and other things. PLeasze help, it's driving me
insane! The only solution I have so far is to never close
IE. Thanks in advance! -Jason

 

[plun]

Everytime I run AntiSpyware it finds this problem and
deletes it. The first time I go to IE after that, it
opens on the microsoft start page which is fine. When I
close it down, a window pops up and says that something
is trying to change my homepage to about:blank. I tell it
to block it.
The next time I open IE, the homepage has still been
changed and I have a bunch of links in my favorites to
porn and other things. PLeasze help, it's driving me
insane! The only solution I have so far is to never close
IE. Thanks in advance! -Jason

Hi Jason

- Send a suspected spyware report to MS about this, menu tools.

- Go directly to a Forum which help you with this.

Everything is messed up within this NG and you need guidance.

Choose one of these, all are weelknown

http://www.merijn.org/forums.html

 

[Guest]

You need to isolate which program is reinstalling this
hijacker.

ALWAYS boot into Safe Mode when removing viruses/spyware.
This keeps them from actually loading, making it possible
to delete them.

Somebody may have already figured this out. You can always
check Google Groups for the hijacker page. Otherwise, try
to search your PC on that page BEFORE your remove it. It
may be in a folder containing the installer.

Try checking for a prefetch that might reinitiate a hijacker.

Check MSCONFIG to see if a malicious program is starting up
with your PC.

Make sure that after you remove the file, you get all the
Window updates installed (especially SP2). I had a
hijacker that kept comming back on a PC until I finally did
the update.

Also, TURN OFF SYSTEM RESTORE! Many viruses and
applications will associate themselves with the recovery
files. If they are removed, they will "inspire" your PC to
boot to last known good configuration, which will bring it
right back. Remember, deleting files is closer to
de-referencing them than it is to actually destroying them.

Try using HijackThis! to isolate any other occurences of
that hijacker that could currently be on your PC. Be
carefull using this application as it could hose your
system. Make sure you know what you are looking for.

 

[plun]

Try using HijackThis! to isolate any other occurences of
that hijacker that could currently be on your PC. Be
carefull using this application as it could hose your
system. Make sure you know what you are looking for.

Why waste time on this when we have real board forums
with real guidance..........

http://www.merijn.org/forums.html

 

[Andre Da Costa]

To turn off system restore, right click My Computer icon > Properties >
System Restore (tab) > Disable system restore then restart the system in
safe mode.

 

[Guest]

nice plug - start answering questions.

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


Why waste time on this when we have real board forums
with real guidance..........

http://www.merijn.org/forums.html

 

[Guest]

so do you work for MS then?

You are answering too many questions without really
answering them completely to just be a hobbyist.

 

[plun]

nice plug - start answering questions.

Well, I do but with about:blank its better to go directly
to a forum with no broken links, HijackThis guidance,
no top posting, no messed messages.

Go there yourself and study !

 

[Andre Da Costa]

I just answer for fun, I like Windows AntiSpyware. These are fundamental
technologies that I have pondered over the years becoming an integral part
of the Windows operating system (Antivirus and AntiSpyware) coming from a
Company I admire so much that it has gotten to me to participate in the
newsgroup and help out in anyway I can.

I do not work for Microsoft nor do I have any interest in working for them.
I do it to share knowledge and gain knowledge. If I'm not answering your
question properly you can always drop me an e-mail and tell me what I need
to work on to improve my answering skills. It is also opportunity help make
this a great product, so thats basically some of the reasons why I
participate.

 

[Jason Green]

I tried running the AntiSpyware program in safe mode. I
also checked what programs start on startup and stopped
all of the ones I didn't know. I'm not sure how to check
MSCONFIG. I keep getting a little pop-up balloon in the
toolbar, kinda like a Windows pop-up, that says you may
not be protested from spyware. (If you click on it, it
brings up a "microsoft" help screen. When you click on
Spyware Removal Tools, it takes you to a list of Spyware
Removing programs that aren't free. I'm guessing it's
just an ad.
I found two programs that look like they might be bad
but, add/remove programs won't let me delete them. One is
called Search Extender and the other is called Shopping
Wizard. Please somebody help me, this is driving me
insane. I've used HijackThis and AntiSpyware and I can't
kill this thing.
I'm not that great with computers so, if someone could
please guide me step-by-step through how to fix this I
would very much appreciate it. Thank you! -Jason

Feel free to e-mail me with your advice if you'd like.
Thanks! (e-mail address removed)

 

[Mike Winberg]

Jason - Happy ending.

I had the same problem & could not fix it on my own. Had
to call Microsoft help number & pay. Original call could
not solve problem - it required escallation. A higher
level MS support guy called me today. After running a
couple third party tools, the problem is fixed.

Beside the insidious about:blank, my corruption extended
to an inability to run Control Panel, My Computer and
Norton Live Update. These now work.

Spend the money, make the call. (If you ever find the
about:blank guys, punch them in the nose for me....)