What processes should be running?

[Guest]

I have a system that has a bunch of disk activity when nothing is running. I
have run a Virus scan that doesn't find any infections. Is there a list of
"Normal" processes so I can tell if there is something running that is not
supposed to be? The list of processes is fairly cryptic.

 

[Jone Doe]

That's like asking "How long is a piece of string". It varies as to what
you have installed on your computer. If a virus scan shows you clear, and
you keep out adware/malware you really shouldn't be too concerned about what
is left running. Of course a lot of programs seem to install thinking they
need to start with the computer. You might look at downloaded programs to
see if there is an option to not have them run continuously.

 

[Rock]

I have a system that has a bunch of disk activity when nothing is running. I
have run a Virus scan that doesn't find any infections. Is there a list of
"Normal" processes so I can tell if there is something running that is not
supposed to be? The list of processes is fairly cryptic.

Here are links to two sites that have info on what the various common
startup programs and services might are.

http://www.answersthatwork.com/Tasklist_pages/tasklist.htm
http://www.blackviper.com/

You said you have run a Virus scan. Is the program a recent one with up
to date definitions? Also no one AV program catches them all. You need
to run a variety of the online scans. Also there is other malware
besides viruses which AV programs don't catch -- spyware, adware,
hijackackers, dialers, trojans etc. Here are some tools to use:

Run these programs to check for spyware/malware. After installing
update them, then boot into safe mode and run them. You should update
and run them weekly.

Cwshredder
http://www.intermute.com/spysubtract/cwshredder_download.html

Ad-aware SE
http://www.lavasoftusa.com

Spybot Search and Destroy
http://www.safer-networking.org

Bazooka Adware and Spyware Scanner
http://download.com.com/3000-2144-10247783.html

Pest Patrol Free Pest Scanner
http://www.pestscan.com/ScanOrTrial.asp

If you’re still having problems after running these then run HijackThis
and post the log to one of the specialty forums, _NOT_ this one.

HijackThis
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=3155

Forums to Interpret HijackThis Logs:

http://www.spywareinfo.com/forums/
http://forum.aumha.org/viewforum.php?f=30
http://forums.tomcoyote.org/
http://www.wilderssecurity.com/

After your system is clean use these programs to help keep it clean:

Spywareblaster
www.javacoolsoftware.com/sbdownload.html

Spywareguard
http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/sgdownload.html

IE-SPYAD
http://www.staff.uiuc.edu/~ehowes/resource.htm

For viruses, start with Trend Micro’s Sysclean. Download it and the
signature file. Turn off system restore, boot into safe mode and run
sysclean. Boot back into normal mode and run a full AV scan with your
normal AV program. Then turn system restore back on.

Trend Micro Sysclean
http://www.trendmicro.com/download/dcs.asp

Trend Micro Signature File
http://www.trendmicro.com/download/pattern.asp

You should also regularly run at least two of these online scans in
addition to your regular up to date AV program:

Online and Downloadable Virus Scanning:

Panda ActiveScan
http://www.pandasoftware.com/activescan/com/activescan_principal.htm

Bit Defender Online Virus Scan:
http://www.bitdefender.com/scan/license.php

Symantec Online Virus and Security Scan:
http://security.symantec.com/ssc/home.asp

TrendMicro:
http://housecall.trendmicro.com/housecall/start_corp.asp

McAfee Online Virus Scan:
http://www.mcafee.com/myapps/mfs/default.asp

RAV AntiVirus - Scan Online
http://www.ravantivirus.com/scan/

F-Secure:
http://support.f-secure.com/enu/home/ols.shtml

McAfee AVert Stinger Virus Removal Tool
http://vil.nai.com/vil/stinger/

[Note: Stinger looks only for a limited number of specific viruses.
It’s not intended for full strength virus scanning and removal, but it
can help eliminate enough threats to allow you to install and scan with
a full featured AV program.]

Make sure you have a firewall active at all times. If nothing else use
the one built into XP, but there are a variety of free third party ones
that do a better job from Sygate, Zone Alarm or Kerio.

Sygate Personal Firewall
http://smb.sygate.com/products/spf_standard.htm

Zone Alarm
http://www.zonelabs.com/store/content/company/products/znalm/freeDownload.jsp?lid=staticcomp_za

Kerio Personal Firewall
http://www.kerio.com/kpf_download.html

Lastly check your system for vulnerabilities. Make sure you have all
the latest security patches from Windows Update too.

Websites which will check for vulnerabilities:

Browser Security Tests:
http://www.jasons-toolbox.com/BrowserSecurity/

Symantec Security Check
http://security.symantec.com/sscv6/default.asp?langid=ie&venid=sym

http://bcheck.scanit.be/bcheck/
https://testzone.secunia.com/browser_checker/
www.pcpitstop.com