Help with persistant malware

[NeedHelpVista]

I got about 20% through and found nothing. But since I had to disable mcafee's active scan, I dont want to leave it on overnight. So i've stopped it for now. Tomorrow I will run it and post the logs.

If there are any other tools you would like me to run to check for stuff, please feel free to list them. I will have all day tomorow to run stuff, though obviously if some of them take 5 hours to run that will limit things.

I am also interested in making sure I have the most up to date java, flash, adobe reader, etc since it seems at least one part of the infection did something through that.

Eventually I will want to clean up the huge ton of anti malware stuff we've added, plus all the logs and stuff, but I'm sure we'll get to that.

To sum:

As of now, system is faster, nothing is launching iexplore (background or otherwise), no random noise/audio, no google redirects, and clean scans...so far.

Since this was so hard to find, so many tools missing it, I am definately a little more paranoid about saying it is done and want to do everything possible to check the system and close any and all holes in the armor.

Thanks, and see you tomorrow.

[NeedHelpVista]

This is all that the Panda Scan thing generated.

;***********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

ANALYSIS: 2011-11-18 10:49:55

PROTECTIONS: 1

MALWARE: 5

SUSPECTS: 0

;***********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

PROTECTIONS

Description Version Active Updated

;===================================================================================================================================================================================

McAfee Anti-Virus and Anti-Spyware No Yes

;===================================================================================================================================================================================

MALWARE

Id Description Type Active Severity Disinfectable Disinfected Location

;===================================================================================================================================================================================

00139061 Cookie/Doubleclick TrackingCookie No 0 Yes No c:\users\vorlock\appdata\roaming\microsoft\windows\cookies\p7ibftzp.txt

00145731 Cookie/Tribalfusion TrackingCookie No 0 Yes No c:\users\vorlock\appdata\roaming\microsoft\windows\cookies\ftqsv7gr.txt

00168061 Cookie/Apmebf TrackingCookie No 0 Yes No c:\users\vorlock\appdata\roaming\microsoft\windows\cookies\s8badwm5.txt

00168061 Cookie/Apmebf TrackingCookie No 0 Yes No c:\users\vorlock\appdata\roaming\microsoft\windows\cookies\0cx7umek.txt

00168090 Cookie/Serving-sys TrackingCookie No 0 Yes No c:\users\vorlock\appdata\roaming\microsoft\windows\cookies\iiy115ed.txt

00169190 Cookie/Advertising TrackingCookie No 0 Yes No c:\users\vorlock\appdata\roaming\microsoft\windows\cookies\j5hzbvi8.txt

;===================================================================================================================================================================================

SUSPECTS

Sent Location

;===================================================================================================================================================================================

;===================================================================================================================================================================================

VULNERABILITIES

Id Severity Description

;===================================================================================================================================================================================

;===================================================================================================================================================================================

[NeedHelpVista]

Ran my McAfee scan, full scan. It found the same cookies i believe and deleted them. It also questioned Tool-NirCmd in ComboFix but I told it to trust it for now.

The specific cookies McAfee flagged were:

Cookie-SpecClick

Cookie-Doubleclick

Cookie-Eyeblaster

Cookie-207

Cookie-Tribalfusion

Panda wouldnt delete its stuff without buying it, which I did not wish to do. McAfee doesnt have a report output option, so I hand typed the above.

[NeedHelpVista]

Ran MBAM. Here is the log:

Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware 1.51.2.1300

www.malwarebytes.org

Database version: 8189

Windows 6.0.6002 Service Pack 2

Internet Explorer 9.0.8112.16421

11/18/2011 1:33:29 PM

mbam-log-2011-11-18 (13-33-29).txt

Scan type: Full scan (C:\|D:\|F:\|)

Objects scanned: 417268

Time elapsed: 1 hour(s), 5 minute(s), 0 second(s)

Memory Processes Infected: 0

Memory Modules Infected: 0

Registry Keys Infected: 0

Registry Values Infected: 0

Registry Data Items Infected: 0

Folders Infected: 0

Files Infected: 0

Memory Processes Infected:

(No malicious items detected)

Memory Modules Infected:

(No malicious items detected)

Registry Keys Infected:

(No malicious items detected)

Registry Values Infected:

(No malicious items detected)

Registry Data Items Infected:

(No malicious items detected)

Folders Infected:

(No malicious items detected)

Files Infected:

(No malicious items detected)

[D-FRED-BROWN]

Your logs appear to be clean!

I am also interested in making sure I have the most up to date java, flash, adobe reader, etc since it seems at least one part of the infection did something through that.

Since your logs indicate that you are clean, we'll go ahead and do those steps now.

Eventually I will want to clean up the huge ton of anti malware stuff we've added, plus all the logs and stuff, but I'm sure we'll get to that.

Absolutely, we'll get to that in the last step

Please take the time to install the following updates, as using outdated applications leaves you extremely vulnerable to getting infected again:

Please consider updating to Windows Vista Service Pack 2 (SP2).

Windows Vista Service Pack 2 (SP2) contains all the updates released since SP1 plus support for new types of hardware and emerging hardware standards.

It is now available via Windows Update or as a standalone installation here.

--------

Your Flash Player is out of date!

To make sure you have the latest version of Adobe Flash Player installed:

1. To uninstall an older version, download this file to your Desktop: uninstall_flash_player.exe

2. Quit ALL running applications, including all Internet Explorer or other browser windows, and messenger applications (like AOL Instant Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, MSN Messenger).

3. Double-click on the file you've downloaded to uninstall Flash.

4. If uninstalled successfully, go to this site: Install Adobe Flash Player, and choose Agree and install now. This will install the newest version of Flash for your browser (note: Flash plugins for IE and Firefox must be installed separately).

Note: I recommend you uncheck an optional install (Free McAfee Security Scan or Free Google Toolbar).

--------

Please let me know how the updates went, as failed updates may indicate additional malware.

[NeedHelpVista]

Hmm my system says it is already service pack 2. And when I go to windows update, no service pack is available. Did you mean something else?

I will do the adobe thing now.

[NeedHelpVista]

Hmm the uninstall flash player link doesnt go anywhere (404). Should I uninstall from control panel? Or just install the new one?

[D-FRED-BROWN]

Hmm my system says it is already service pack 2. And when I go to windows update, no service pack is available. Did you mean something else?

Thats okay, must have been a bug with Security Check (its happened before)... don't worry about it

Should I uninstall from control panel?

Yes, try uninstalling from the Control Pannel -> Add or Remove Programs, and then install the latest version.

Hope that helps

[NeedHelpVista]

Old flash uninstalled. New flash installed. No errors. Everything still looks good, no suspicious behavior.

Whats next?

[D-FRED-BROWN]

Glad to hear the updates went well!

Please take the time to read through the following security suggestions, but first, please uninstall ComboFix :

The following will implement some cleanup procedures as well as reset System Restore points:

Click Start > Run and copy/paste the following bolded text into the Run box and click OK:

ComboFix /Uninstall

-------------

Please consider using these ideas to help secure your computer. While there is no way to guarantee safety when you use a computer, these steps will make it much less likely that you will need to endure another infection. While we really like to help people, we would rather help you protect yourself so that you won't need that help in the future.

Please either enable Automatic Updates under Start -> Control Panel -> Automatic Updates or get into the habit of checking Windows Update regularly. They usually have security updates every month. You can set Windows to notify you of Updates so that you can choose, but only do this if you believe you are able to understand which ones are needed. This is a crucial security measure.

It is really dangerous to go online without an antivirus. Without one, you are extremely likely to get infected and the consequences could be even worse next time. All of the following are excellent free antiviruses. Be sure to only install one.

avast!.

AntiVir

AVG

Please consider installing and running some of the following programs; they are either free or have free versions of commercial programs:

Spybot-Search & Destroy

A tutorial on using Spybot to remove spyware from your computer may be found here. Please also remember to enable Spybot's "Immunize" and "TeaTimer" features if you don't have the resident part of another anti-spyware program running.

SpywareBlaster

A tutorial on using SpywareBlaster to prevent malware from ever installing on your computer may be found here.

SpywareGuard

A tutorial on using SpywareGuard for real-time protection against spyware and hijackers may be found here.

Please, consider maintaining a firewall with HIPS (Host Intrusion Prevention Systems). Firewalls are extremely important and are the first part of your computer's defense. HIPS stops malware by monitoring its behavior and it's very important, too.

A firewall is a software program or piece of hardware that helps screen out hackers, viruses, and worms that try to reach your computer over the Internet.

If you are using the Windows Firewall please note that it doesn't monitor or block outbound traffic and is therefore less effective than other free alternatives.

These firewalls are good and do have free versions available

• Outpost Firewall Free
  
• Online Armor Firewall

A tutorial on understanding and using firewalls may be found here.

If you use Internet Explorer, it is a good idea to use IE-Spyad for ZonedOut which provides protections against malicious websites. (Requires 2 downloads)

Please keep these programs up-to-date and run them whenever you suspect a problem to prevent malware problems. A number of programs have resident protection and it is a good idea to run the resident protection of one of each type of program to maintain protection. However, it is important to run only one resident program of each type since they can conflict and become less effective. That means only one antivirus, firewall and scanning anti-spyware program at a time. Passive protectors, like SpywareBlaster and IE-Spyad can be run with any of them.

Note that there are a lot of rogue programs out there that want to scare you into giving them your money and some malware actually claims to be security programs. If you get a popup for a security program that you did not install yourself, do NOT click on it and ask for help immediately. It is very important to run an antivirus and firewall, but you can't always rely on reviews and ads for information. Ask in a security forum that you trust if you are not sure. If you are unsure and looking for anti-spyware programs, you can find out if it is a rogue here:

http://www.spywarewarrior.com/rogue_anti-spyware.htm

A similar category of programs is now called "scareware." Scareware programs are active infections that will pop-up on your computer and tell you that you are infected. If you look closely, it will usually have a name that looks like it might be legitimate, but it is NOT one of the programs you installed. It tells you to click and install it right away. If you click on any part of it, including the 'X' to close it, you may actually help it infect your computer further. Keeping protection updated and running resident protection can help prevent these infections. If it happens anyway, get offline as quickly as you can. Pull the internet connection cable or shut down the computer if you have to. Contact someone to help by using another computer if possible. These programs are also sometimes called 'rogues', but they are different than the older version of rogues mentioned above.

Please consider using an alternate browser. Mozilla's Firefox browser is a very good alternative. In addition to being generally more secure than Internet Explorer, it has a very good built-in popup blocker and add-ons, like NoScripts, can make it even more secure. Opera is another good option.

If you are interested, Firefox may be downloaded from here

Opera is available here: http://www.opera.com/download/

For much more useful information, please also read Tony Klein's excellent article: How did I get infected in the first place

Hopefully these steps will help to keep you error free. If you run into more difficulty, we will certainly do what we can to help.

[NeedHelpVista]

Hi,

Thanks for all the help and advice.

One thing, and I feel stupid asking this:

When I do start_>run ComboFix /Uninstall it says it cant find ComboFix. Now I have it on a folder on my desktop. (I actually have several copies of it, some different versions.) Is there a different way to uninstall?

I also notice that there is a folder on my C drive root called ComboFix, but it has a file called CF7857.3xe in it, not the same stuff as is on my desktop. There is also Kaspersky Rescue Disk 10.0 stuff on my F drive (my 2nd internal hard drive). Is it ok to remove these things?

Thanks again.

[D-FRED-BROWN]

Thanks for all the help and advice.

No problem!

Feel free to delete all the stuff related to Kaspersky Rescue Disk.

As for ComboFix, can you locate ComboFix.exe anywhere? If you can (it must be "ComboFix.exe"), then rename it to Uninstall.exe and double-click that. Let me know how it goes.

[NeedHelpVista]

Deleted the Kaspersky stuff. Found one of the ComboFix.exe's, renamed it, ran it, and it uninstalled.

[D-FRED-BROWN]

Glad to hear things worked out

Are there any other issues that remain?

[NeedHelpVista]

No issues that I am aware of. We updated flash and got rid of old versions. I think my java is up to date. Is it time to delete the 500megs worth of anti malware stuff I have collected during this fight? All the logs, the extra tools, and the multiple copies of tdsskiller, rkill, etc.

BTW, in case it helps someone else: When I made the rescue disk, I downloaded it to another computer and burned it there. I figured doing it from a clean computer would be best. Dont know if it would have made a difference since I didnt try it from this already infected computer.

[D-FRED-BROWN]

Is it time to delete the 500megs worth of anti malware stuff I have collected during this fight? All the logs, the extra tools, and the multiple copies of tdsskiller, rkill, etc.

Sure, go ahead. You may want to keep Malwarebytes for the future in case you become infected again, however, its entirely up to you

[D-FRED-BROWN]

Are there any remaining issues?

[NeedHelpVista]

So far everything has been good.

Thank you very much for all your time and help.

[LDTate]

Glad we could help.

If you need this topic reopened, please send a Private Message to any one of the moderating team members. Please include a link to this thread with your request. This applies only to the originator of this thread.

Other members who need assistance please start your own topic in a new thread. Thanks!