Malware removed, but problems linger.

Hi, I'm running a new Dell Vostro laptop with WindowsXP. Last night I seemed to pick up some malware- I downloaded a host of anti-virus (using Norton 360's trial right now, might switch to AVG when it expires) and anti-spyware (AdAware/SpyBot) to try and contain the problem.

None of it's worked, however. All the scans I've done have failed to detect any of the problems. I know that they exist- some of the symptoms have included a newly slow-running system, virtual memory too low errors, the refusal of Firefox to run at all, a stacker error for a program called "project2" that I never installed, and a failure to shut down properly when ordered- instead it just closed all programs and explorer, but left the desktop background and cursor active.

I'm a dabbler in this stuff, and I tracked down a file called winupdate.exe that was running at startup, and I managed to delete its registry key and the file itself. I've subsequently also tracked down a file called csrss.exe that was hiding in windows\media, and eliminated that, as well. However, since nothing was ever detected, I'm worried that there may still be malware on the computer that I've missed. Is there a better way to catch these things?

Also, I've just started to receive an error message upon startup that reads "windows can not find c:\windows\media\csrss.exe. Make sure you typed the file name correctly..." I'm not sure where to go to make it stop looking for the file at startup.

Finally, and this is an embarrassing question to have to ask, but I should find out- say hypothetically, I opened an email that had credit card information in it, unencrypted, while these programs were active. How much risk am I really in of that causing serious, real-life problems? Should I notify my bank?

Thanks for any and all help. This is a nightmare, and I could use some advice.

--d

try to boot in SafeMood if you still have a problem then it's hardware problem if not then try to use Roll Back in time with system restore!!! and don't trust that crap Norton it screwed my life many times!! just uninstalling it by itself is a nightmare!!

please download hijackthis and run the same. it will scan the system registry and show you details on the applications that run on system startup. locate and remove the entry for csrss.exe . you can also remove all unwanted applications and BHO ( browser helper objects ) using hijackthis. BHOs are IE applications ( malware ) that throw popups , redirect websites etc.

Hi,

I recommend you to buy a good registry cleaner & install it then run a scan. Registry Cleaners usually deletes bad & corrupted registry files but also often forget some files in your computer. If that doesn't work, reformat your computer before it's too late. Malware can get a hold of a lot of important information about you.

It is known that older Norton Antivirus programs sometimes erase important files in your computer causing it to malfunction (I don't know about the new versions). I recommend you getting another Antivirus application like McAfee or Avast, Kaspersky, they do the job & I never had a virus with neither of them (Lord knows how much I use the internet).

Good Luck!

Jonathan Chery

Hello itsugly

I agree with fadirocks that you should first try a System Restore (“Roll Back”) to undo the damage you did by deleting files and registry entries that you shouldn’t have.

Then install CCleaner and use the Issues feature to check for and resolve any system problems (registry etc.).

Finally, install Kasperksy Internet Suite 7.0 (30 day free trial) and do a full scan for malware.
Don’t bother trying any other product – my local computer dealer is constantly has to clean malware from PC’s supposedly protected by other products (including McAfee, Norton, NOD32), and Kaspersky cleans them every time. On the other hand, he never gets this kind of problem with PC’s that have Kaspersky installed & running.

For more details on how to run a full computer virus Scan efficiently, please see my post “How to Run a Full Computer Backup or Virus Scan Efficiently”.

Hope this helps.

quickest solution is safe mode and then run an AV scan since most malware could have infected other system processes and in safe mode only bare min. are loaded. also i don't think norton works in safemode but avg should if i remember correctly. been a while since i used windows AV

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