Same malware keep coming back

[Dawnova]

There’s a list of malwares that keep coming back on my laptop even after I delete them. It’s been happening for a couple of days now, maybe weeks. Please help. 

[Maurice Naggar]

Hi,     

My name is Maurice. I will be helping and guiding you, going forward on this case.

Let me know what first name you prefer to go by.

 

Please follow my directions as we go along.  Please do not do any changes on your own without first checking with me.

If you will be away for more than 3 consecutive days,  do try to let me know ahead of time, as much as possible.

 

Please only just attach   all report files, etc  that I ask for as we go along.

 

I would appreciate  getting some key details from this machine in order to help you forward.

 NOTE: The tools and the information obtained is safe and not harmful to your privacy or your computer, please allow the programs to run if blocked by your system.

 

Do have patience while the report tool runs.  It may take several minutes.  Just let it run & take its time.  You may want to close your other open windows so that there is a clear field of view.

Download Malwarebytes Support Tool

   

    Once the file is downloaded, open your Downloads folder/location of the downloaded file

    Double-click mb-support-1.8.3.885.exe  to run the report

 

Once it starts, you will see a first screen with 2 buttons.  Click the one on the left marked "I don't have an open support ticket".

 

        You may be prompted by User Account Control (UAC) to allow changes to be made to your computer. Click Yes to consent.

       

    Place a checkmark next to Accept License Agreement and click Next

Now click the left-hand side pane "I do not have an open support ticket"

 

    You will be presented with a page stating, "Get Started!"

    Do NOT use the button “Start repair” !   But look instead at the far-left options list in black.

 

    Click the Advanced tab on the left column

   

    Click the Gather Logs button

   

    A progress bar will appear and the program will proceed with getting logs from your computer.  Please do have patience.  It takes several minutes to gather.

  

    Upon completion, click a file named mbst-grab-results.zip will be saved to your Desktop. Click OK.  Then Exit the tool.

 

    Please attach the ZIP file in your next reply.

 

Please know I help here as a volunteer.  and that I am not on 24 x 7.

Help on this forum is one to one.   Again, please be sure to ONLY attach report files  with your reply (s)  as we go along.  Do not do a copy / paste into main body.

 

Thank you,

Sincerely.

Edited February 6, 2021 by Maurice Naggar

[Dawnova]

Device & Windows specs :
Processor    Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-2450M CPU @ 2.50GHz   2.50 GHz
Installed RAM    6.00 GB
System type    64-bit operating system, x64-based processor

Edition    Windows 10 Home
Version    20H2
OS build    19042.746
Experience    Windows Feature Experience Pack 120.2212.551.0

 

You can call me Dawnova.

 

mbst-grab-results.zip

[Maurice Naggar]

Hello @Dawnova  .  Thanks for the report.  This PC has a very old version of Malwarebytes for Windows,  Malwarebytes version 3.3.1.2183 

I will be helping you to get it to the very latest release.  { by the way, for the duration of this case, be sure you are always logged-in with a Administrator-level login-account so that there is proper access to all the steps, all the cleanups.   This is to say, not to be logged in with a Limited account.}

Before we do other things, a one time run of a special anti-adware,

Be sure you close all web browsers before you click on the "Scan" button on this next procedure.

I  would suggest to download, Save, and then run Malwarebytes ADWCLEANER.

Please close Chrome and all other open web browsers after you have saved the Adwcleaner and before you start Adwcleaner scan.

Adwcleaner  detects factory Preinstalled applications too!

 

Please download  Malwarebytes AdwCleaner  https://downloads.malwarebytes.com/file/adwcleaner
 

Be sure to Save the file first, to your system.  Saving to the Downloads folder should be the default on your system.

Go to the folder where you saved Adwcleaner. Double click Adwcleaner  to start it.

At the prompt for license agreement, review and then click on I agree.

 

You will then see a main screen for Adwcleaner. ( if you do not see it right away, minimized the other open windows, so you can see Adwcleaner).

Then click on Dashboard button.

Click the blue button "Scan Now".

 

allow it a few minutes to finish the Scan.   Let it remove what it finds.

NOTE:  When it comes to the section "

Pre-installed applications

 

You can skip that.

Please find and send the Adwcleaner "C" clean report.

In Adwcleaner, click the "Reports" button.  Look at the list of reports for the latest date & type "Clean".

Double Click that line & it will open in Notepad.   Save the file to your system and then Attach that with your reply.

 

That C clean report will be the one with the most recent Date and time at folder  C:\AdwCleaner\Logs

We will do more things after this.  Thanks for your continuing patience.

[Dawnova]

That's the only account I have on this laptop. I should have all the Administrator's rights. Can you help me fix that?  

AdwCleaner[S00].txt

[Maurice Naggar]

As far as logged in account, you are fine.  As far as the Adwcleaner, did you have it do the CLEAN steps?

I am looking for the C  report,  C00

adwcleanerC00

[Dawnova]

There's no report in the "Clean" section. Did I do something wrong?

[Maurice Naggar]

No, I do not think you did anything ;wrong'.  It is just I expected a C00 report.   Anyhow, lets proceed to a more important factor, which is having the latest version of Malwarebytes for Windows.   We will use the Support tool which you already have to do that.

You do _not_  have to re-download it.   It ( mb-support-1.8.3.885.exe )  is present at C:\Users\Rose\Downloads   * your Downloads folder

Do the steps listed at this support-article  except for the download at step 1.

and have lots and lots of patience after the RESTART of Windows.

https://support.malwarebytes.com/hc/en-us/articles/360039023473-Uninstall-and-reinstall-Malwarebytes-using-the-Malwarebytes-Support-Tool

[Dawnova]

Alright. I have uninstalled and reinstalled Malwarebytes, although, my laptop wasn't prompted to restart. Do you suggest that I restart it before the next steps?

[Dawnova]

Also, should I run a new AdwCleaner scan after restart? My laptop seems to be acting a little weird right now. The fact that there was no "clean" report after the scan is boggling my mind as well.

[Dawnova]

Oh here it is! I went ahead and restarted my laptop and this appeared on the desktop.

mbst-clean-results.txt

[Maurice Naggar]

I am glad that you did do the RESTART.  Thanks for the log-report.  It seems that the process was a scucess.

Whatever is going on now with your machine, you must continue to have much patience.  We will do a number of things, one at a time.

This next part is to just do a new Threat scan with the latest Malwarebytes for Windows.

Start Malwarebytes for Windows.

In Malwarebytes for Windows program, we want to do a special scan.

Click Settings ( gear icon)   at the top right of Malwarebytes window.   We want to see the SETTINGS window.

Then click the Security tab.   

Scroll down and lets be sure the line in SCAN OPTIONs for "Scan for rootkits" is ON        👈

Click it to get it ON  if it does not show a blue-color

.

Next, click the small x on the Settings line   to go to the main Malwarebytes Window.

 

Next click the blue button marked Scan.

When the scan phase is done, be real sure you Review and have all detected lines items check-marked on each line on the left. That too is very critical.

You can actually click  ( tick )   the topmost left  check-box  on the very top line to get ALL lines  ticked   ( all selected).    👈

🔻

 

 

Then click on Quarantine selected.

 

Then, locate the Scan run report;  export out a copy;  & then attach in with your  reply.

See https://support.malwarebytes.com/hc/en-us/articles/360038479194-View-Reports-and-History-in-Malwarebytes-for-Windows-v4

[Dawnova]

Scan Report.txt

[Maurice Naggar]

Thanks.  That was a good run & cleanup.  It found & removed some adwares & a few P U P  (potentially unwanted add-ons ).  That is a good scan.

We should  do a different scan with a different tool.

I would suggest a free scan with the ESET Online Scanner
Go to https://download.eset.com/com/eset/tools/online_scanner/latest/esetonlinescanner.exe

It will start a download of "esetonlinescanner.exe"
Save the file to your system, such as the Downloads folder, or else to the Desktop.

Go to the saved file, and double click it to get it started.

When presented with the initial ESET options, click on "Computer Scan".
Next, when prompted by Windows, allow it to start by clicking Yes
When prompted for scan type, Click on Full scan

Look at & tick  ( select )   the radio selection "Enable ESET to detect and quarantine potentially unwanted applications"   and click on Start scan button.
Have patience.  The entire process may take an hour or more. There is an initial update download.

There is a progress window display.
You should ignore all prompts to get the ESET antivirus software program.   ( e.g.  their standard program).   You do not need to buy or get or install anything else.
When the scan is completed, if something was found, it will show a screen with the number of detected items.  If so, click the button marked “View detected results”.
Click The blue “Save scan log” to save the log.

If something was removed and you know it is a false finding, you may click on the blue ”Restore cleaned files”  ( in blue, at bottom).
Press Continue when all done.  You should click to off the offer for “periodic scanning”.

[Dawnova]

Eset Scan.txt

[Maurice Naggar]

The ESET Online scanner run was worth doing.    Detected files: 9    /    Cleaned files: 9

Most of the items were of the type potentially unwanted application    

It is of note that 7 of those were from very old versions of Java.  If your application programs do not need Java, you should uninstall all versions of Java.

Let us take a few moments to get a diagnostic report.

I would like you to run a tool named SecurityCheck to inquire on the current-security-update  status  of some applications.

• Download SecurityCheck by glax24 from here  https://tools.safezone.cc/glax24/SecurityCheck/SecurityCheck.exe
• and save the tool on the desktop.
• If Windows's  SmartScreen block that with a message-window, then
• Click on the MORE INFO spot and over-ride that and allow it to proceed.
• This tool is safe.   Smartscreen is overly sensitive.
• Right-click  with your mouse on the Securitycheck.exe  and select "Run as administrator"   and reply YES to allow to run & go forward
• Wait for the scan to finish. It will open in a text file named SecurityType.txt. Close the file.  Attach it with your next reply.
• You can find this file in a folder called SecurityCheck, C:\SecurityCheck\SecurityCheck.txt

[Dawnova]

Thanks. I haven’t restarted my laptop since I ran the MB Scan, and then Eset Scan. Should I restart first before the Securitycheck Scan or no? 

[Maurice Naggar]

Yes, sure , you may do a Windows  RESTART.

[Dawnova]

SecurityCheck.txt

[Maurice Naggar]

Thanks for the report.   Here follows some applications  /  programs that need to be updated  so that they have the latest release versions.

WinRAR 4.11 (64-bit) v.4.11.0  Warning!  Download Update

Microsoft Teams v.1.3.00.28779  Warning!  Download Update

Zoom v.5.4.9 (59931.0110)  Warning!  Download Update

I would also recommend you make this following adjustment to Malwarebytes for Windows.

Start Malwarebytes. Click Settings ( gear ) icon. Next, lets make real sure that Malwarebytes does NOT register with Windows Security Center 

Click the Security Tab. Scroll down to 

"Windows Security Center"

Click the selection to the left  for the line "Always register Malwarebytes in the Windows Security Center".

Close Malwarebytes when done.

Let me know if you need other help at this point.

[Dawnova]

I followed your recommendations. Laptop seems to be working well. I do not think that I need any further help. Thank you very much for your time.

[Maurice Naggar]

That is great.  It's good to know of your success.

To remove the FRST  tool & its work files, do this.  Go to your Downloads folder.  Do a RIGHT-click on FRSTENGLISH.exe & select RENAME & then change it to UNINSTALL.exe .
Then run that ( double click on it)  to begin the cleanup process.

 

Delete mbst-grab-results.zip   on the Desktop

Delete mb-support-1.83.885.exe

Delete the file downloaded from ESET     esetonlinescanner.exe

Delete Securitycheck.exe

Adwcleaner you may keep  and use as needed.

Any other download file I had you download, you may delete.

I wish you all the best.  Stay safe.

Sincerely,

Maurice

[Maurice Naggar]

Glad we could help.

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