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Can anyone please help with a virus I have on my laptop? (Windows Home Vista)

It started yesterday. I was doing a Google search and got redirected to update firefox and adobe flash player, I clicked to continue nothing happened. I went on with google search and I keep being redirected to other sites and never the one I want. One  was Gomeo... another was to do with cursors... also get lots of internet explorer pages with ads form nowhere..


So far I have tried to deal with it by:
  • Spybot (found threats and deleted but they return instantly)
  • Ccleaner
  • Avast
  • Tried to un-install explorer to stop ads. Cannot find explorer to un=install.
Does anyone know what the problem is and how I can deal with it?

Is it serious? Are my credit card details etc vulnerable?

Many thanks in advance.

Replies sorted oldest to newest

G&P!


I did have this problem and, unfortunately, my computer died before I could try this advice from my support team.


I don't know what protection you've got, or this will help at all, but I'll paste it here, just in case.


Dear Sir/Madam,

Thank you for contacting Webroot Support.

We kindly ask you to follow the steps below to resolve this problem.

Please make sure you are using the latest definitions:

In the Home screen of Spy Sweeper, click on ‘check for updates’ to be sure that you have the most uptodate version of the software and all definition files.

Please also sweep the system in safe mode.

If you are not familiar with the safe mode function please follow the instructions below:

â€Ē Restart your computer and hit the [F8] key until a menu appears
â€Ē Select 'safe mode' using the arrow keys on your keybord
â€Ē Hit the [enter] key
---------------------------
NOTE: booting in safe mode may vary from computer to computer. More information can be found in the following articles:

1) http://webroot.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/webroot.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=1119


and

2) http://webroot.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/webroot.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=57

-----------------

Once you are in safe mode, please perform three consecutive system sweeps and delete all the items found in Quarantine. This should remove the spy/ad-ware from your computer.

If the spyware still seems to be present, you are possibly infected with a new variant of a particular malware.

You will need to report this spyware in order for our specialist team to assist you further.
Blizz'ard
Blizzie had a similar problem a few days ago. Various people came up with suggestions, but they didn't seem to work. (Edited to say that I was writing this whilst Blizzie was posting the above, so I did not see that)

My advice to anyone who has a virus and does not know how to get rid of it or is uncertain is simple.

Get a computer expert to get rid of it for you. You'll have to pay for it unless you have a friend to do it, but it is probably cheaper rather than try yourself and make things worse. I could give you a link to somewhere which gives ways of getting rid of the virus, but unless you know what you are doing, that is risky.

And I doubt if you need to start uninstalling Explorer, that wouldn't get rid of the virus anyway.

I would guess your credit card details are safe at present as this seem to be advetising malware rather than phishing, but I would avoid online shopping and banking until the virus is dealt with.
El Loro
Hope you get it sorted G&P sounds like Blizzies one didn't end too well so hopefully you can get yours fixed quickly.  I don't know anything about it but I would recomend as someone else said, getting it to someone who knows about these things.

I have Microsoft Security Essentials supposedly running on my netbook but in the past 2 months there's been 3 severe threats found (all with Jave in the name) and I have no idea where they've come from   Does my head in that these things find a way onto the computer.
Ells
Blizzie   thank you for posting pasting that. Thanks El Loro and Ella

I had to switch the computer off for a while cos it was driving me nuts. I have been pitting my none to great computing wits against it all day.

El loro, thanks for the reassurance about card details. I will cease shopping from here.

I am too tired and fed up to try anything else for now, and by the sounds of it, I had think on getting professional help to clear it.

I can limp along for a while cos I have all my fave sites bookmarked.

Ugh!! why do they do this?

Many thanks again to you all.
Green&Pink
Whenever anything like that has happened to me in the past I always turn off in the hope that things will be 'all better'  when I turn on again. I'm not very techie minded at all ...............unfortunately a little rest never cured the problem. These viruses are nasty little feckers.

Think I'd bite the bullet and get someone in - it may be cheaper in the long term!
Soozy Woo

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