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Nothing works to Enable Malicious Website Protection


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I've read every single thread on this topic, and there are a ton of them so I'm confident it's a big problem.

 

I've also tried every suggestion, including:

 

  • Update database and restart
  • Update database and reboot
  • Wipe the whole environment and reinstall
  • Manually delete and update the database
  • Setting from "Fix Now"
  • Setting from "Icon Tray"
  • Setting from "Settings"
  • ... and several others

These suggestions simply don't work.

 

I have five family computers, all of them running MBAM-Premium ... and I just added one additional computer and get this error, and can't for the life of me figure out how to solve it.  The only difference is that this is the only Windows-8 computer, but I have trouble believing that's the problem given OS hasn't been listed in any of the forum posts as a contributing factor.

 

Does anyone have any suggestions to solve this annoying problem ... that hasn't been documented in the posts already?

 

I love this application, but this will be my last purchased version if I can't crack the code on this issue pretty darn quickly.

 

Oh ... BTW ... the solution that's "Pinned" to the top of this forum ... doesn't work.

 

Rusty

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Hello and Welcome to Malwarebytes :)

Let's try this first....

Thank You,

Firefox

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SOLVED ... but through a very odd method ... nothing on these forums.

 

Thanks Firefox ... but ...

 

Tried all that stuff ... and much more.  The core problem is some kind of "infection" that deactivates BFE (Basic Filtering Engine) at the kernel level, and doesn't let it reactivate.  That service is necessary in order for Window Firewall, Malwarebytes, and any other IP-based website protection to work.  Julie from Malwarebytes tech support was terrific, and was working through this with me for a couple of days.  We tried a ton of stuff ... much of it deeper than anything on this forum, all without success.

 

Then I decided ... "Hey, I'm running Windows 8 on this PC (used by my wife ... I "hate" Win-8) and I had been meaning to upgrade to 8.1.  Let's see if solving this problem comes along for the ride."

 

Well ... it worked.  Post upgrade, BFE services enabled and started just fine, and MWB, Windows Firewall, and everything else works just fine.

 

Problem solved by upgrading Windows ... at least in the 8-to-8.1 environment.

 

Hope this helps at least one other person out there.

 

Bottom line ... if you have this symptom (Malicious Website Protection won't enable):

  • Go to the "Run" window and type "cmd"
  • When you get the DOS prompt type "services.msc"
  • Look in the alphabetical table for a service called "Base Filtering Engine"
  • If you see "<Failed to Read Description. Error Code: 2>"
  • If you try to start the service and get "Error 126: The specified module could not be found"

Then:

  • You're screwed
  • It's likely nothing on this forum will help you
  • You're going to try a whole bunch of scans, cleanups, resets, reloads, and logging
  • None of it will help ... especially not the "MBAM Clean / Reload / Update Database" answer that everyone will give you ... or anything else that's one of the standard suggestions for this problem

My advice ... Upgrade or reload Windows.  It worked for me when nothing else did.

 

Hope this saves someone else some time.

 

Rusty

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Hi:

 

Until Firefox returns...

 

Yes, you are correct.

Some malware will disable the Windows BFE service. 

And, as you also point out, it's important that one keep one's Windows OS up to date.

 

For others who may find this thread, however, a few points:

  1. On uninfected machines, a clean reinstall of MBAM is often the fastest way to resolve minor issues and get the user back up and running quickly. That is why it is the recommended first step.
  2. The Diagnostic Logs requested by Firefox in his original reply would have shown the disabled BFE service.  That would have alerted us to the possibility of malware infection.
  3. That, in turn, would have prompted a suggestion to head over to the malware removal area of the forum for free, expert help removing the malware and repairing the BFE and other Windows services.
  4. Under MOST circumstances, that does NOT entail reinstalling Windows, or other drastic measures.
  5. Finally, problems that sound "the same" most often are not. Each computer is unique. So, solutions to problems -- with MBAM or any other program or feature -- most often need to individualized/customized for each system. A "fix" for one computer could "break" another.  This is especially true when malware is involved. Needless to say, for users already running the current version of Windows on their systems who become infected, "updating from 8 to 8.1" would not be a viable solution.

Having said that, we're certainly glad you were able to sort out and resolve the issue for your system.

Thanks very much for taking the time to report the favorable outcome.

 

Cheers,

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I'd like to comment mainly for the benefit of Rusty and possible others who may run across this thread.

Yes, several types of malware will "knock out" the BFE service.  That has been a well known item for many years.  As to having to upgrade the Windows o.s., that was a fortunate by-product for your situation.

But a o.s. upgrade is not the only solution.   { and obviously a o.s. wipe and reload from scratch is one way other way to solve the problem.}  There are ways to re-instate the BFE and any other needed Windows service.

Most folks will need one-on-one expert guidance to do that.

 

Finally, congratulations on having your case resolved.  Awesome news.  And it goes without saying, Julia is awesome.    ^_^

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