Desktop Wallpaper + Ie Issue

Hi everyone, I have had a nasty attack of a host of spywares and trojans on my pc lately. Although I was able to get rid of it mostly it has taken its toll on the pc. My change wallpaper utility is locked and I cannot change it even after making the changes in the regedit following instructions available on the internet. In addition to that the internet explorer is unable to load any web page. I was using IE7 initially but afterI cleaned the system of the spywares I uninstalled IE7 and reverted to IE6 . At present whenever I open IE6 and type in any URL it throws an error "the file, directory name or volume label syntax is incorrect". Firefox is working fine though. Please help! Thanks! Ranit

Hi, Sorry to hear of the problems with your computer.
You say that you managed to get rid of it mostly (the infections) If you think there are some elements of malware left behind then it would be best to eliminate them before trying to make any system changes here.

You could follow up on the removal steps/or with the experts who were advising you previously, as it's generally best to stick with your existing malware removal expert adviser until your machine is declared "clean". But if you don't have a malware removal expert assisting you then you could post a hjt log in the malware removal forum here:

http://forums.tomcoyote.org/HijackThis_Log…emoval_f27.html

If you are still having issues with your machine once it has been declared clean please post back here in this thread and we will do our best to help.
Regards
paws

Hi Paws,

I have opened a new topic regarding my problem in the thread you mentioned.
Here is the link http://forums.tomcoyote.org/Malware_Issue_…cts_t79857.html

You can see the hjt.log there as well.

Thanks for your help!
Ranit

Hi Ranit, Well done, you did exactly right by posting a hjt log in the malware removal forum. I took a quick look at your log and it appears you may still have undesirable elements present on your machine. A trained malware removal expert from the other forum will respond to your post as soon as they can, but sometimes there can be a slight delay as often the number of folks requesting detailed advice and instructions exceed the number of expert volunteers available. A very important point that will help you get a response to your hjt log as soon as possible is not to make a "follow up post" in the malware removal forum, as this would be flagged as a "reply" leading to a malware expert thinking you were already being assisted by one of his/her colleagues. Once your machine has been declared clean if you are still having issues with your machine please post back here in this thread and we will do our best to help. It would not be wise for us to offer advice here in this forum until your machine has been declared clean, as we could risk making the malware removal expert's job even more difficult than it is. Regards paws

Thanks paws for the valuable piece of advice - not to make a follow up post! I think I was going to make that mistake quite obviously given the state of my mind! Actually I have a lot of things waiting for my computer to get clean.. Thanks again! I will get back to you once I get a response from the malware experts . -Ranit

Hi Paws, I haven't gotten a response from the other thread as yet.. any help Thanks! Ranit

Hi Ranit,
Yes the folks on the malware forum are really busy, lots of folks with problems so sometimes you just have to wait, There is a procedure to follow if you have not had a response within 5 days and here's the link:
http://forums.tomcoyote.org/If_No_Response…ays_t78698.html
We are all volunteers here on the forums with "real jobs" and work pressures to satisfy as well, so if you can, please be patient. (Although I know it's tough)
Regards
paws

Hi Paws, I did like you advised. And by the way also wanted to share an important development which happened a moment ago.. Among other problems my pc was conking off and on also and every time it showed the blue screen there was this message "Page_fault in non page area" and then "beginning dumping of physical memory" and then it restarted automatically.. Now the same thing thing happened a moment ago and then when it restarted it seems I am able to change my wallpaper. The wallpaper issue is no more. But there are some other issues now. 1) The online music jukeboxes is not working in my browser any more. It says loading and loading forever. I am using Firefox now and it was working fine even two days ago. And mind you javascript is enabled on my Firefox. Some music sites threw the error "methods not found" 2) I got some exception when Windows was trying to report the error after my system recovered from a serious error (the dumping of physical memory I described above) Screenshot attached. Any idea what state is my pc in now? Thanks for your help! Ranit

Hi Ranit, I just hopped over to the malware removal forum to have another look at your hjt log again, and I see that Ken has replied to you, and that is good news but his comments do reinforce, both your own thoughts and mine on the state of your machine! You will be in very sound hands with Ken, but for him to help you, it is important to follow his directions exactly. When Ken advises that your machine is clean, please post back here, in this thread, if you are still having issues with it, and we will do our best to help. Regards paws

Hi Paws, After a long battle it seems my PC is clean now. Ken confirmed the state of the machine. There are some nagging issues which are perhaps Windows related. 1) Screenshot of how my IE 6 is functioning is attached herewith 2) The screen goes black along the border (border only, remaining part of the screen still visible) with a beep sound similar to what Antivir makes when it detects an infection. To give you some background of IE on my pc, I had IE 7 before the malware attack took place and because IE was showing all the symptooms of attack more than any browser I uninstalled IE 7, IE 6 is still present in my machine by default as with any other Win XP machine. 3) The desktop wallpaper issue for which I opened this thread is surprisingly gone. I am thinking if I should download IE6 again. Will it be the right thing to do? Thanks! Ron

Hi Ron,
Well done on getting your machine cleaned up, You sure had some "undesirable elements" there! I see from one of your screen shots that you are using P2P filesharing, this is a notorious route for helping files carrying "undesirable code" to be shared, so if you continue with P2P make sure you are fully aware of the risks you may be running and ensure all your protections and working methods give you as much security as possible.

I thought from your earlier posts that you were using Firefox but as you now seem to be using IE6 it would be sensible to do an uninstall and then a fresh install of IE6 (don't be tempted to go for IE7 until you have got IE6 sorted out or you'll make matters worse.)
You can find the info on the steps you need to take here:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/318378
Regards
paws

Well yea I prefer using Firefox but some sites offer limited functionality in non-IE browsers, unfortunately. So I have to have IE as a back up option. Well apparently the PC is clean from the HJT logs but I wonder if something deeper has gone wrong. Regarding the P2P software I know its a germination ground for all kinds of issues but this is my friends PC and its installed & used by him so I cannot uninstall it. Talking about the IE issue, please guide me how can I uninstall the defective version of IE I have got. I don't see any IE option in ADD/REMOVE programs And by the way, I see this software Netzero Search Enhancements, Is it a malware? Thanks! Ranit

Hey I just discovered there's some serious problem in my IE registry

Hi Ron, I understand what you mean about firefox and IE6 If you can't live with the problems you are having with IE6 and you have already tried a repair by running the System File Checker (Start>Run>sfc /scannow) note the space, and it hasn't improved things, then its maybe time for you to do all the work specified in the link I posted previously. It will take you some time to complete it all, there is scope for error, but usually it does sort out the problem. Good luck Paws

Hi Paws, I couldn't run Start>Run>sfc /scannow as it is asking for the Windows CD which my friend doesnt have ( this pc is his actually) Is there any other way to resolve the issues? And did ya see my IE registry? Can I change the valued there are set things right, by any chance? Thanks! Ron