1 reply to this topic

[kearney]

Hi, Has anyone else used smitrem.exe, I used it the other day as it claimed to get rid of a few different things that some programes can miss. After running it everyone time I log into windows2000 the Alt+Ctrl+Del window appears. Any help would be appreciated. kearney

[Doug]

Hi Kearney,

Smitrem.exe, developed by noahdfear is not a general purpose anti-trojan tool.
Instead, it is specifically designed to remove

Trojan-Spy.HTML.Smitfraud.c malware infection and it’s
variants, AntivirusGold, PSGuard Spyware Remover, SpySheriff, Spy Trooper, SpyAxe,
Security Toolbar, WinHound and SpywareStrike

Because there are "associated" problems that occur symultaneous with Smitfraud infections, it is not recommended that an untrained user apply smitrem.exe to their computer without expert advice. The most likely place that you will find a trained expert capable of handling smitrem.exe without damaging your machine, would be in one of the HJT Forums, like the one here at TomCoyote.

While there are "canned fixes" for smitfraud variants like SpySheriff and SpyAxe, etc. posted in some Virus/Spyware and Other Computer Problem Forums around the Net, the owner/user should only apply the "canned fix" if they have confirmed that they actually have the infection. Then they should carefully read, study, and follow the explicit instructions as posted!

Most helpers recommend good online scans and the use of various free and for fee tools.
In the case of Spyware, using both Ad-Aware and Spybot is a good thing, rather than just using one of them.
That intuitive recommendation does not hold for "smitrem.exe". (more is not always better)
Spyware Warrior's website posts excellent guidelines for what "combinations" of antimalware tools a user can safe have on board for use.

Please do not use "smitrem.exe" unless you are correctly following legitimate posted guidelines from a reputable helper forum, or under the direct supervision of a trained HJT Advisor!

One action that "smitrem.exe" takes is to examine for infection of "wininet.dll". If in WinXP or Win2000, an infected wininet.dll is found, smitrem.exe will replace it. (CAUTION: Smitrem.exe should not be used with Win95 Win98, or Win ME..... unless is some rare cases a trained HJT Advisor has followed the necessary precautions that I am not able to specify here)

Panda Online Scan has recently been detecting corrupted wininet.dll, and simply "deleting" it, and leaving the user with an operating system with missing files. They will probably get that fixed, if they haven't already, but it is possible that you have encountered that problem if you have used Panda Online Scan.

Now that you already have a problem with your Operating System, you can safely do a couple of things.
1. Run System File Checker
goto - Start - Run - (type) sfc /scannow
The system file checker will open and close a DOS command window very quickly, and then a Progress Screen will open in Windows showing you a progress bar as SFC examines for missing or corrupt files.
If SFC finds any missing or corrupt files, it will call for the Win 2000 installation CD so that it can copy and replace the missing or corrupt file. System File Checker is safe to run and will not further damage your operating system.

2. you can download a clean copy of "wininet.dll", here:
http://www.dll-files...s.shtml?wininet
It will be downloaded in a ZIP format. Follow the directions from that site to unzip the file.
You can safely copy and paste "wininet.dll" into your C:\Windows\System folder

IN the event that your problem symptoms continue, please post back with your questions.
It would also be helpful if you would post with a message that this recommended plan works for you.

Again...
Please do not use "smitrem.exe" unless you are correctly following legitimate posted guidelines from a reputable helper forum, or under the direct supervision of a trained HJT Advisor!

Best Regards