Malware·2,749 discussions

Invisible Malware

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I have a problem with the pc for almost a year.
Some of my colleagues told me to describe it in your forum.
In the beginning the pc used to crash a lot of times so as a result I could only open it in safe mode. However I formatted it from 2 to 3 times without a good result.
Then, two different technicians told me almost the same:
1)the hardware seems to be ok
2)I have two malwares, deeply embodied that they couldn’t remove
3)According to one of them, I should reformat and then install the original Panda antivirus in case it finds something in the pc.
In this time my pc stopped to crash, however sometimes during startup it stucks but not completely. The cersor is moving but the programs are not responding.
The main problems are 1.that the icon of disconnection in the task bar is invisible permanently. 2.In general there is a feeling when I try to access some programs that the malware is “watching” and sometimes when I try to access some programs or change the settings the computer stucks or disconnects from the network.

I have run probably all the possible Ad-aware programs available in safe mode and they only find cookies and low threats.
If you want I could post you also the hijack report.

Topic

If you did

In reply to Invisible Malware

Reformat and not reinstalled the O/S it would remove any malware or virus. What O/S are you using and are you using a restore CD?
If you did refomat and some thing comes back look at the media you are using, is the O/S CD a true copy with the holagram on it? Or is a CD that some one made with a hand writen oem number on it?
After you load your O/S what else do you load and is it a copy. Some thing might be loading with the CD’s, do you use any floppys? They could hold all kinds of things.
Do use a firewall, zonealarm is free and vary good. Install all antivirus, firewall and updates before you connect to the internet.
If you know the maker of your hard drive you can down load a diagnostic to make sure it is ok. Microsoft has a great memory tester for free too.
If all this fails start with the basics, reseat memory, cables ect.

Invisible Malware

In reply to Invisible Malware

Maybe your BIOS is infected? Some Bios’s will allow you to turn on antivirus block/check.
The other would be drivers, I had a simialer problem with Netgears latest PCI card wifi driver. I reverted to the prior driver and problem went away.

Malware

In reply to Invisible Malware

I find Asquared (A with a small 2 after it) particularly good for finding and removing malware. It’s a free program and you should be able to find a download location at any decent search engine.

simple problem = simple answer

In reply to Invisible Malware

i you know that the malware is in your HD then the ONLY solution is to zero out your harddrive. this is a low level format that will remove anything from your pc. the zero out means anything that has data on your HD will bne reset to 0 = no data = no malware

Any idea good idea

In reply to Invisible Malware

The technicial installed the WinXP SP2 and didnt even give me the disk.. But the problems have appeared again even before I install any of my old programs, therefore only using his software.

“solution is to zero out your harddrive. this is a low level format that will remove anything from your pc. the zero out means anything that has data on your HD will bne reset to 0 = no data = no malware”

How can I do that? After that the hardware will be working or I will need something like firmware update on everything?

Also I have tried a squared and almost any other possible adremoval or antivirus program and they dont find anything.

How can I remove possible virus from BIOS?

Thanks for taking the time to answer people, any idea is a good idea, as I have tried everything possible.

Try full erase

In reply to Any idea good idea

Try hdderase – find it online. Do a secure erase. Discuss with the technician what he is installing and it’s source.
Still, it could be hardware – it could require a bios or firmware update. Also, scan the harddrive for defects (many programs can do this, check the manufacturer’s website.)

You must use a process of elimination

In reply to Invisible Malware

A normal drive reformat will remove all Malware. A low-level format is not necessary. Writing anything else including zeroes on the hard drive is not necessary.

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Regarding:

“…The technicial installed the WinXP SP2 and didnt even give me the disk…”

This is probably where the problem is. How do you know the Windows disc is legitimate? You MUST start with a legitimate copy of Windows XP obtained from a legitimate source.

If you reformat the hard drive and install Windows XP from a legitimate CD, you know you have a solid starting place. If the comptuer does not work correctly at that point, you have a hardware or driver problem. If it does, then something you are adding after that point is introducing the problem. Using a process of elimination/introduction will discover what it is.

Questions:

1. Am I correct about the above?

2. From where are you installing Windows XP?

3. Where did you get your Windows XP disc?

windows

In reply to You must use a process of elimination

Dear TechExec2 you may be right about things you are saying but I had the problems even before the technicians installs these windows. The previous were from the shop I bought the PC.

Low level format

In reply to Invisible Malware

By the way, most hard drive manufacturers do not provide a true “low-level” formatting utility any more. What they provide is a utility which takes the HD back to the specifications of when it left their factory. So you can look for this utility for your particular type of HD at the makers website.

I have observed at least one case, however, when this did not work completely. It did not recover several MB’s of space. Something was too resistant to remove. In this case, only a new ND will suffice.

Also, you didn’t mention any spyware checker in your arsenal. When the problem is finally fixed, be sure to install and scan weekly with at least two of these.

[Author]

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