Coach

[coachtls]

Hello DaniWeb,

I have a desktop XP unit with McAfee Security software coming up for renewal at the end of the month. I started getting alerts that I was not fully protected a few weeks back...but when I hit click on "fix" I received another error message that I have "too many problems to fix'. I figured with a Linksys wireless secured router I would be OK until I picked up the 2008 version of McAfee this month.

I'm writing on a laptop that has no problem getting on the internet so I do know the problem is only with my desktop and not with my cable provider.

I also have a memory stick that I can store data on ...so my "I.T. Guru" suggested that I check this site as he had a very bad virus that took about 10 days to eliminate...but with the help of "CRUNCHIE" he has solved his son's PC crisis.

The big problem I have encountered started last night when I hit an unwnanted link that all of a sudden had a screen with an "Active X" download. I immediately hit the close tab. It would not close and the program appeared to be loading on it's own. I then went to
"Cont/Alt/Delete" and finally got back to a real screen.

Ever since I have not been able to acess the internet from either I.E. or Mozilla Firefox...
Any help would be appreciated...

Thank you,
CoachTLS

[gerbil]

Hello, coach....[are only americans nicknamed coach?] - for a start, if you clicked a link [fine] and an activeX control immediately started downloading [not fine] you have your IE security settings WAY too low. Try medium as a minimum, that way you will be prompted for signed [owned] controls, and unsigned ones just won't be downloaded. Firefox or Opera won't accept them at all because they do not use them.
"too many problems to fix"? ... this from your security software?
Routers have firewalls; what you invite, they allow past. That's it.
Put these downloads on your thumbdrive, run them, suck out the files [logs] we need and post them. You can put the downloads all at once onto the thumbdrive, then install as required or copy in to the bad sys.
==Get CCleaner from http://www.ccleaner.com/ - and install it in a new folder. You should keep this one for general use. I set the installation checkboxes only to open from the recycle bin. It's neater that way.
Now run CCleaner from the recycle bin rclick menu using its default settings [if you set up CCleaner as i suggested, rclicking the bin icon should give you the Open CCleaner option...]. Select the Cleaner icon, press Run Cleaner.
[For future quick temp file cleaning select the options you wish to use via the Windows and Applications tabs ..]
==Download this file to your desktop: http://download.bleepingcomputer.com/sUBs/ComboFix.exe
- to run it dclick combofix.exe and follow the prompts to start it. When finished, it will produce a log, C:\Combofix.txt - post that log in your next reply.
A word of caution - do not touch your mouse/keyboard until the scan has completed. The scan will temporarily disable your desktop, and if interrupted may leave your desktop disabled. If this occurs reboot to restore the desktop.
==download hijackthis: http://www.majorgeeks.com/download5554.html
-copy it to a new folder alongside your program files and then... rename hijackthis .exe to imabunny.exe
-in that folder start HijackThis by dclicking the .exe; now close ALL other applications and any open windows including the explorer window containing HijackThis.
-click the Scan and Save a Logfile button. Post the log here.
Okay, two logs to produce. Good luck.