Virus?

[Kenny]

My daughter was using my main PC yesterday, as far as I know just surfing
and mailing.
A message box came up telling her the PC must be rebooted.
When she did there were no desktop icons, many of the programs appear to
have disappeared from Programs list and trying to do anything results in a
"This operation has been cancelled due to restrictions.........." etc.
message.
This is the same in both normal and safe mode.
PC is set to boot straight to XP without logging on, there is only myself as
User, trying to switch user I am the only one there, no Administrator.
Using XP Pro recently updated, AVG Free updated daily and Zone Alarm Free.
Router is hard wired to main PC, wirelessly to this laptop, using WPA
encryption but the firewall is set at Low.
Looks like a virus but shouldn't AVG have caught it?
Main PC powered off at present, is it risky powering it on, ie: can
whatever's causing it travel across to this laptop?
Can I do a local or online virus scan of main PC from here, the C: drive on
main PC is shared.
Asuming it is a virus can it affect other physical drives and partitions on
main PC?
Will booting from XP CD and doing a "Repair XP" help?
If I get a boot CD like Bart's PE or The Ultimate Boot Disk is there
anything I can do there?
If it comes to it I won't lose too much of importance on the C: drive, I am
more concerned with the other drives and partitions and trying to avoid the
work involved in reformatting etc.
Any advice or suggestions welcome.

 

[Detlev Dreyer]

My daughter was using my main PC yesterday, as far as I know just
surfing and mailing.
A message box came up telling her the PC must be rebooted.
When she did there were no desktop icons, many of the programs appear
to have disappeared from Programs list and trying to do anything
results in a "This operation has been cancelled due to
restrictions.........." etc. message.

Apparently, she was surfing with administrator privileges. That's no-no!

PC is set to boot straight to XP without logging on, there is only
myself as User, trying to switch user I am the only one there, no
Administrator.

Not true. There are always two administrative accounts by default: The
standard "Administrator" and the user account created at Windows setup.
If there is no further *restricted* user account, your administrative
privileges apply to any malware as well.

"Cleaning a Compromised System"
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/community/columns/secmgmt/sm0504.mspx

 

[Guest]

kenny, i would recommend getting rid of AVG Free edition because it ain't no
good. i had got a virus in my computer last year and screwed up my whole
hard drive. and i had AVG Free on the computer. it recognized the virus but
did nothing to correct it. don't download any free anti-virus software onto
your computer because a virus can install onto your computer with the
anti-virus software without you even knowing it. i would say go out to your
local wal-mart or best buy and get a copy of McAfee Security Center 2007. It
has anti-virus, firewall protection out and in coming, and anti-spyware. i
got it on my computer now and runs great. i got it for $24.00.

 

[Detlev Dreyer]

kenny, i would recommend getting rid of AVG Free edition because it
ain't no good.

Why don't you reply to the original poster. That's not me!

i had got a virus in my computer last year and screwed
up my whole hard drive. and i had AVG Free on the computer. it
recognized the virus but did nothing to correct it.

Wrong approach. There is no anti-virus being capable to know what
additional malware has been downloaded by the virus creating what
backdoors. Trying to remove the original virus and believing that
the compromised system has been cleaned is simply stupid.

 

[Guest]

I have got that advice several times and installed a "REAL" AV only to find
out that there is no virus. And no malware. Usually it is Windows it self
that mess up with its own install.

Here is a lot of sellers here with sellers talk to defend Windows instead of
solving problem. The problem is you as user or your useless programs, never
Windows.
Its perfect and can never fail.
As I used MS since MS-DOS ver 2.0 I know that its usually is Windows it self
that is the problem.

I dont know what is wrong in this case, it may be a virus, but I am
connected 24 hrs 365 days/year and AVG works. My experience tells me that no
virus will pass AVG free if its updated with latest def. and virus is older
than a week.

19 of January this year the found a new virus and I had Nortons. I got
warning that I had no protection. Update arrived 21 of January. It can
happen, but its very rare that a virus can pass a AV program as they use the
same definitions.
Without definition for a virus there is no AV program that helps.

The AV program do not erase the virus file? Virus is not a file, its inside.
If file can be cleaned its left on HD because its harmless.

It happens that a virus can enter to HD but nothing happens as long as it is
not executed. A heavy download and windows deny resourses to AV program so an
infected file is downloaded but nothing happens before you try to execute or
just open or move that file, at that moment the AV program protects the
system from infections.

Sellers always tells you that it is you as a user that is the problem or the
programs you use. Next step, your version is not legal or OEM.
No matter if legal, OEM or "REAL", it should work, but it dont.
If not, its virus or malware or some other monster never ever seen.
But Windows can never be the problem. But I get fixes for bugs every week,
how come if its so perfect?

Too much sellers talk here and lack of knownledge and support.