My Computer Is Like A Rotten Apple W Bugs All Over

Hello All - This is my first post here. SORRY this got long
I'm simply going to list:

System: WinXP professional sp2 IE6sp2

Protection Software: All up to date
Trend Micro: PC-cillan Internet Security 2005
Webroot: Spy Sweeper
Spybot Search and Destroy
Ad aware SE
Microsoft free spyware removal (forgot name)

Processes so far:
Ran all programs at least 2x in regular mode
ran all programs at least 2 or 3x in safe mode

Although the 5!!! programs found and eliminated several nuisances, there are still many RECURRING ones - UGH, SOOOOO Frustrated.

RECURRING PROBLEMS:
ADW WSEARCH.109 nothing found in searches
search200.com not much in searches
lop.com found a few manual removals
vx2 found a few manual removals
look2me
PREFATCH PROBLEMS (What are prefatch files?)
love style Barb.exe-20c3278D.pf
lovest~1.exe-21878D33.pf
these 2 keep coming back after deleting them

http://0/
yimg
The page cannot be displayed. Search the web. http://rd.companion.yahoo.com/companion/17…/www.yahoo.com/ WHAT IS THIS all about?


I can connect to the internet through the dsl and update programs, BUT as soon as I even think about opening IE - all is lost and there is no hope in sight!!!!

Now, I am an above average computer person - know more than the average, but not enough to be professional - editing registries and the like. THIS @#$#@ malware has me going INSANE. I have been looking for a job for the last 3 months - 99% done online-I've had to go to someone else's computer to do my work

I have the same problems as most posts that I have read (here and elsewhere)
- IE hijack
- home page and default home page you change it through internet options, close it, then reopen the internet options - and BLAM there it is again.
- the @#$#@ annoying toolbar that just happens to all of a sudden appear on the desktop
> right click on the toolbar and click properties and you get: Search Now! http://search200.com/passthrough/newpass2.html
- the new folders in the favorites menu: Casino, Poker, Gambling etc
- the new shortcuts on the desktop with no idea where to find the original
- search page hijacked

Don't even get me on Spysweeper - it keeps alerting me that the IE default pages, web browser, search page etc have been changed: Restore or Keep new - WELL IF I KNEW WHICH WAS WHICH THEN I'D BE ABLE TO ANSWER. It doesn't tell you what the changes are - besides, you don't have a clue what the page was before so how could you determine if that is what you want to restore to??? But some of the other programs help you out much better!

Here is something I noticed:
I printed out the contents of the C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM folder and I noticed that the majority of the files are all caps, yet there are a few that are all lowercase…so what does that mean. To me it could indicate that something might not belong or was altered - but I don't know.

OK THAT'S IT FOR NOW - IS THAT ENOUGH???

Well, If you cared enough to read this all the way through, hopefully you have some input….PLEASE PLEASE

Please post here and feel free to also email me (with help that is)

Ruthann Smith

Download hijackthis from here >>>> http://www.majorgeeks.com/download3155.html

Make sure that you save it to its own folder then close all browser windows and clcik on scan safe the log it produces and then you can start a thread here >>>> http://forums.tomcoyote.org/index.php?showforum=27

I sympathise I had similar problem to yourself with cws search and desktop being hijacked as a practical joke. Can I ask you this. Was the settings you had before less troublesome or troublesome free to what you have now. If so I would quarantine those files and restore the older settings. The new browser settings its asking if you want to keep are the settings you have now which are causing you grief. It is possible to stop programs that you are sure are bad programs from starting up when you turn the PC on. Won't get rid of the program but may give you peace of mind knowing its not working in the background and allow you to do things that you can't do if its running. The other day I did this with Ps guard that kept starting up and wouldn't allow me to shut it down. So I used a program startup manager and there is one on hijackthis, to stop it loading at next startup, rebooted my Pc and was able to waste it with spybot. No more problem and all i need to do is get it off the registry now. Psguard Installs itself time after time no matter how many times I try and delete it and I did delete it several times. Unless it is stopped from running at startup. NOw there's a tip for you that I had to work out for myself as its so busy on here. Try stopping lovest~1.exe and love style Barb.exe from loading at startup and see if that stops it from reinstalling itself as I think it will. Good luck and hope you get it sorted.