Malware removed, now internet won't work - HELP!

[WeathermanGS1]

Hi Everyone,

I hope someone can point me in the right direction. My Norton 360 subscription recently expired and I didn't renew it yet (and am kicking myself for not doing so now). Earlier this afternoon, my laptop (Gateway, Windows 7 Premium) started going CRAZY. It was trying to tell me to install my "free antivirus" and all these strange messages started popping up. My internet wouldn't work, and it also blocked norton from working (so I couldn't renew it). I couldn't download anything, I couldn't open anything. In case it's relevent, the internet wouldn't work in safe mode either. Outside of throwing the computer out the window in frustration, I was fairly lost.

I managed to download Malwarebytes on my mom's computer, burn it to a disc, and then install it on my laptop. I was able to install and run MB fine. It took an hour or so to complete a full scan and found 40-some problems. It fixed them, the computer restarted, and voila! Everything was back to normal (or so I thought...).

My browser won't work (it opens but won't connect), norton can't connect to the internet, windows update can't connect to the internet, etc. My network connection shows connected (w/internet access). I try plugging into my router with an ethernet cable and it connects fine (according the network connection indicator), but my programs still won't connect to the internet.

The crazy thing is that Windows Mail and AOL Instant Messanger work fine. I can send/receive emails, chat, etc. with no problems whatsoever. Is there something wrong with the registry or what?

I googled this problem, and found others with a similar problem after using MB. I'm good with computers, but not too techy. Does anybody have any suggestions? Gateway wants me to do a full restore, which I do NOT want to do.

If anybody could help me, or just point me in the right direction, I'd really appreciate it.

Thanks!

-Greg

[noknojon]

Hello WeathermanGS1 ,Welcome to Malwarebytes.org

A full restore as put up by Gateway is the last resort - We try to fix it first -

Sorry we missed your post until now - It seems that you are now infected - We can help you to remove it if you follow the instructions below -

As we don't work on Malware removal or diagnostics in the general forums, please read this and follow the directions listed -

Please print out, read and follow the directions here, skipping any steps you are unable to complete. Then post a NEW topic here.

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Thank You -

[WeathermanGS1]

Hey again!

After browsing and reading forum after forum for what seemed like hours, I finally figured out what the problem was. Malwarebytes did its job (which I wasn't disputing) by removing the trojan or virus or whatever it was. However, the changes the malware made on my computer still remained. When my computer became infected, the malware blocked certain programs from working (like IE) by blocking their ability to connect to the internet.

The pings (via ipconfig) I sent to various websites returned successfully, but I still was not able to use IE. Upon further investigation, I discovered that the malware set up my internet connection using a proxy server on a random port, thus blocking my outbound connection (which would explain why windows mail still worked). By removing that, everything went back to normal.

Problem solved, crisis averted.

[noknojon]

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Thank you for getting back to us - The (free) offer still stands if you think there may be a trace of the infection remaining -

Regards -