Windows XP taskbar invasion

[Guest]

I have something that has attached itself to my taskbar.
It is the Help Icon ( Dark blue circle with white outline and question mark
in the centre )
It now flashes each second and sends up a "System Alert" baloon saying that
my computer is being threatened by viruses/trojans if I do not buy and use
their software to eradicate it.
If I click on it, different windows popup advertising "Disc-cleaner",
Anti-vermin and other things that they say I should buy.
I have the full Nortons security pack which I ran and it removed a Trojan,
but does not seem to recognise this other alien.
I have also run Windows "care" and Nortond "confidential" non of which seem
to get rid of this irritation.
I even tried a "restore" but it would not restore at all.
Any sugestions please!!..I'm going nuts

 

[Guest]

Have you gone to Norton site an run their online antivirus program or
Trendmicro web program (http://housecall.trendmicro.com/). Have you removed
this trojan from the safe mode? Check and see if this program would be a help
Autoruns.zip. Also try the Hijack this program (search the web).

 

[Brian A.]

Have you checked in Control Panel > Add/Remove Programs to see if you can uninstall
the invader? If you did and you can't:
Run a full system virus scan with fully up-to-date definitions.

**It is very important to run the update for each program before running the app/s
to be sure you have the latest definitions.**
Run the programs in Safe Mode after assuring you have shut down all running tasks
except explorer or systray and all apps are fully up to date.
Remove your Temp Internet files: Right click IE. Under the General tab click Delete
Files, put a check in Delete all Offline..., click OK and close when finished.
Delete all files in c:\windows\temp.

Download/run Cool Web Shredder from:
http://www.intermute.com/products/cwshredder.html

For Info on Cool Web Search variants:
http://www.richardthelionhearted.com/~merijn/cwschronicles.html

Download/install/run Ad-Aware SE to detect/rid of any other parasites/spyware that
may be installed. It can be obtained free from:
http://www.lavasoftusa.com/
After installing Ad-Aware, open it and click on the ref update to get the latest
up-to-date ref file, then run Ad-Aware and delete everything it finds.

Download/install/run Spybot - Search & Destroy:
http://security.kolla.de/index.php?lang=en&page=download
Run it at it's default settings until you learn an know more about it. Spybot S&D
is more of an advanced users tool and changing from the default settings can be
dangerous to the novice user. Items found in the default settings that are RED can
usually be safely removed. If you are unsure of a found item, do not remove it and
ask for help.

If you still have problems, download/run HijackThis from:
http://www.richardthelionhearted.com/~merijn/downloads.html
http://majorgeeks.com/downloads31.html

Copy HJT to it's own folder, this is where the log files will be saved. Run HJT in
Normal Mode.
Do not remove anything with it until you get advice on what to remove, HJThis will
list many apps that are needed along with the bad ones. Removing items listed
hap-hazardly without knowing what they are can/will create a royal mess. Read the
quick start here on how to create a log file that can be copied/pasted into a forum
that can provide assistance on removal of unwanted pests.
http://mjc1.com/mirror/hjt/#quick

Then post the logs to an appropriate forum where they specialize in
spyware/hijacker removal. Please read any sticky notes for proper posting which are
most commonly posted first at the top in each specific forum. Read any information
under each forum category name for information on what that particular one is used
for, look for the proper one that you post logs to.
http://forums.spywareinfo.com/
http://aumha.net/
http://forum.aumha.org/

After running the above and assuring you have a clean machine:
It’s also a good idea to have a HOSTS file to block bad sites, scroll to HOSTS File
Manager here:
http://www.mvps.org/PracticallyNerded/Software.htm

Download/install/run SpywareBlaster which stops the bad boys before they even get a
chance to install:
http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/spywareblaster.html


--

Brian A. Sesko { MS MVP_Shell/User }
Conflicts start where information lacks.
http://basconotw.mvps.org/

Suggested posting do's/don'ts: http://www.dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
How to ask a question: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/555375

 

[Guest]

This is a serious infection in your system something similar to a previous
invader called VirusBurster. When you click on this balloon, it will redirect
you to virusburster site and prompts you to download their antivirus
software. But in your case, it seems a different one, ANti-Vermin or
something but with similar kind of threat. Try googling on Anti-vermin and
you will find one on how to remove this threat. Infact, if you have Norton,
then Norton must have already removed it but not this balloon part which
comes from some hidden/remaining dll of the same threat.
Here is a forum which tells how to remove anti-vermin from your system:
http://www.lavasoftsupport.com/lofiversion/index.php/t5889.html

 

[Rock]

I have something that has attached itself to my taskbar.
It is the Help Icon ( Dark blue circle with white outline and question
mark
in the centre )
It now flashes each second and sends up a "System Alert" baloon saying
that
my computer is being threatened by viruses/trojans if I do not buy and use
their software to eradicate it.
If I click on it, different windows popup advertising "Disc-cleaner",
Anti-vermin and other things that they say I should buy.
I have the full Nortons security pack which I ran and it removed a Trojan,
but does not seem to recognise this other alien.
I have also run Windows "care" and Nortond "confidential" non of which
seem
to get rid of this irritation.
I even tried a "restore" but it would not restore at all.
Any sugestions please!!..I'm going nuts

Malware Removal
http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/page2.html#Removing_Malware

THE PARASITE FIGHT
Finding, Removing & Protecting Yourself From Scumware
http://aumha.org/a/parasite.htm

Richard Harper’s Guide to Cleaning Pests
http://rgharper.mvps.org/cleanit.htm