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05/13/2011 12:10:34 PM · #1 |
>:O ALL OF MY PICTURES ARE GONE!!!!
They weren't that great anyway, but still. :(
Don't watch the video of the little girl singing the national anthem. Also, (straight from the computer repair guy), don't open any photos of Osama dead or being killed.
:( RIP my crappy photos. |
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05/13/2011 01:19:20 PM · #2 |
So sorry! I feel for you. I just had the fake \"XP Security Central Virus Removal\" virus/malware messages and couldn\'t do ANYTHING without these fake security messages popping up telling me I haf 27 virusses.trojan horses etc. I was able to restore the computer using the periodic system backups that windows provides and was able to get rid of the malware by restoring my computer to a point of the the system settings of 2 days prior to getting the virus/malware. Before restoring, the \"virus\" wouldn\'t let me run Malwarebytes or even download a new version of Malwarebytes. After trying for a few hours to find out about this \"virus\" and how to get rid of it, I found out about this Windows feature. I\'m so glad Windows has this method of restoring the system without wiping out everything. Pictures, programs and documents are not wiped out either - thank goodness!
I was able to boot up my computer so these are the steps I took:
Clicked Start> All Programs> Accessories> System Tools> System Restore
On the \"Welcome to System Restore\" page, I selected the \"Restore my computer to an earlier time\" option, and then clicked Next. On the \"Select a Restore Point\" page, I clicked the most recent system restore point in the list that was prior to my problems.
I was so happy I could restore to May 5 instead of having to take my computer in for repair or trying to delete the malware myself and end up wiping out everything.
I don\'t know if your problem was fixable by this method but it\'s a good feature to keep in mind if something similar to my malware problems happens
Message edited by author 2011-05-13 13:22:00. |
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05/13/2011 01:30:52 PM · #3 |
| Ouch! Is there no chance of recovery? I remember this silly virus once that embedded itself inside pictures.. While I was recovering my folders after a deletion I happened to look at the file names/properties and realized all my pictures contained that virus.. Scary stuff |
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05/13/2011 01:37:49 PM · #4 |
Not that it helps much after the fact, but here is a copy and paste of what I do for to keep my system secure. No solution protects you 100%, and others will have their own suggestions, but for whatever it's worth, I hope this helps.
Originally posted by Yo_Spiff:
I use the free version of AVG antivirus and I periodically run AdAware and Spybot S&D
If any of these scanners suggests you have a rootkit, your best bet might be to nuke (reformat) the drive and reinstall windows. Rootkits put there hooks deep into the core of the operating system and are difficult to remove.
A couple of suggestions to be better protected in the future:
-If you are still using internet explorer (especially v6 or earlier), stop using it. IE supports a technology called ActiveX, which is a good idea that can be used for bad things. IE7 will ask permission to run activex controls and other browsers, like Firefox, do not even support it.
-My own recommendation is using Firefox with the NoScript extension. NoScript will block javascript from a site unless you specifically allow it. A lot of malware gets in via the browser allowing scripts to run unrestricted.
-A custom hosts file will block many known malware and adware sites and your browser will load things more quickly without having to seek out doubleclick from every other page. (Note, some online shopping sites may not work due to links to these e-commerce trackers, but the hosts file is easily edited to allow them if need be.)
Added: When working on a heavily infested PC, I will run repeated cycles of AVG, Spybot and Adaware. Each cycle seems to uncover some more crap that was previously covered up, and no software finds everything. You can run different adware scanners at different times, but it it not recommended to have more than one antivirus installed at any give time. The AV programs will treat each other as viruses. |
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05/13/2011 03:22:15 PM · #5 |
CJinCA.. That is EXACTLY what happened to me! :( The computer repair guy had to fix it though, because I don't know how to do stuff like that.. I'd so destroy everything. He said it was stubborn. :(
From now on, I'm going to upload all of my photos to the net or put them on discs.. If they are worth saving. :( Good thing I'm not a great photog or I'd be crying right now. |
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05/13/2011 03:48:11 PM · #6 |
Here's something to have on standby if your windows pc ever stops booting or becomes badly infected;
//www.sysresccd.org/Main_Page
It's an operating system on a CD that lets you boot up the PC and access the hard drive so you can copy off your files. It doesn't start up windows, so no viruses get a chance to run, in fact it bypasses the whole windows boot process.
And it's free. |
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06/08/2011 10:17:14 AM · #7 |
| wow...I have no system restore dates... |
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06/08/2011 12:45:28 PM · #8 |
Advice from my tech support friend:
The virus which I have been tracking for over a couple of weeks now, does not delete pictures, or desktop icons. What it does do is it tells windows xp the profile is corrupt and causes windows to create a new profile, that profile is the virus profile and all the desktop icons are gone and many items in the start menu. Everything is done to make things miserable for user. The files are still in the computer, what the individual should do is use unhide.exe (google it)... that will show hidden files and folder.... once those are visible.. move those items over to another drive and reformat and reinstall the operating system to be on the safe side.
I have had a ton of these calls the last couple of weeks. Its very dangerous... there is a payload to this malware that many antivirus companies do not see. I had a sample I found on one home computer and sent to Symantec Friday. They sent me a email back and said it was one of the most dangerous polymorphic viruses they have seen. This works in the background infecting every exe file or jpg or gif file in the entire system.
There is no cure to remove the virus, Symantec is working on it.
Suggestion: pay 24.95 get the full version of Malwarebytes and also keep legitimate paid version of an antivirus that is updated. Update the following program: Adobe flash and Adobe Acrobat, and turn off Java items in the browser: Do not use Java as this is one of the leading infection points for windows machines. Update, Update, Update. |
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06/08/2011 02:05:41 PM · #9 |
Hmmm, I had a fine computer last week...started Sandbox for Avast and did a Windows update.
Now I have no video and the monitor keeps shutting off immediately at the Windows boot screen, so can't see anything even to change it. Can I use my MAC laptop as a monitor to try and fix this? Is this possible part of the nasty virus you all are having?
Was going to download the file you suggested, but currently on a (Virus Free) Mac and don't know if the file will download correctly to use on the other PC or if I'll even be able to see whatever I need to, lol.
(I really, really do hate Windows!!!!) |
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