Solved My Security Shield - No Icons in System Tray

[Littleolady]

Below is my previous post to the General PC Forum - I was advised to post my problem to this Forum along with the requested logs. Since my first post I now have Task Manager back and the McAfee icon is now in the system tray. Logs posts are below.

Logs would not copy and paste so I had to attach them......

"I was recently struck with "My Security Shield" - nothing that usually works to eradicate malware worked including using rkill to stop the running processes, Malware Bytes Anti-Malware, Spybot Search and Destroy then returning the hosts file to its original Microsoft version. Even doing these items in Safe Mode did not work - the malware came right back - I then installed and ran Hitman Pro 3.5 which worked. I then ran CCleaner and Registry Mechanic to clean things up. Hitman Pro immediately killed the application files I was trying to delete and I am no longer plagued with "My Security Shield". Unfortunately I no longer have the ability to use the Task Manager and all the icons in the system tray on the right corner are gone except for the time and the sound icon.

I have gone into the registry and used this procedure to regain the Task Manager:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System . With that key highlighted in the left pane, move to the right pane and double click on Disable TaskMgr. Type "0," as in zero, in the Value Data field, then click on OK.

It has not worked. I have tried numerous other items suggested on the internet to restore my lost icons - none have worked........and there have been many. I've been working on this now for three days - nothing works. The computer works great - is now malware free but there is no Task Manager and no icons in the system tray. Does anyone have any suggestions ???"

 

[Broni]

Welcome aboard

Please, uninstall Registry Mechanic, to start with.
Registry tools are not recommended and here is why: http://miekiemoes.blogspot.com/2008/02/registry-cleaners-and-system-tweaking_13.html

========================================================================

Your Malwarebytes log says "No action taken" after each line.
Please, re-run it, fix all issues and post fresh log.

========================================================================

Download MBRCheck to your desktop

Double click MBRCheck.exe to run (Vista and Windows 7 users, right click and select Run as Administrator).
It will show a black screen with some data on it.
Enter N to exit.
A report called MBRcheckxxxx.txt will be on your desktop
Open this report and post its content in your next reply.

 

[Littleolady]

OK - I uninstalled Registry Mechanic as you requested. I re-ran Malware Bytes and have attached the log.

Also ran MBR and have attached those results as well.

 

[Broni]

Looks good

Please download ComboFix from Here or Here to your Desktop.

**Note: In the event you already have Combofix, this is a new version that I need you to download. It is important that it is saved directly to your desktop**

1. Please, never rename Combofix unless instructed.
2. Close any open browsers.
3. Close/disable all anti virus and anti malware programs so they do not interfere with the running of ComboFix.
   • Very Important! Temporarily disable your anti-virus, script blocking and any anti-malware real-time protection before performing a scan. They can interfere with ComboFix or remove some of its embedded files which may cause "unpredictable results".
   • Click on this link to see a list of programs that should be disabled. The list is not all inclusive. If yours is not listed and you don't know how to disable it, please ask.
   NOTE1. If Combofix asks you to install Recovery Console, please allow it.
   NOTE 2. If Combofix asks you to update the program, always do so.
   • Close any open browsers.
   • WARNING: Combofix will disconnect your machine from the Internet as soon as it starts
   • Please do not attempt to re-connect your machine back to the Internet until Combofix has completely finished.
   • If there is no internet connection after running Combofix, then restart your computer to restore back your connection.
4. Double click on combofix.exe & follow the prompts.
5. When finished, it will produce a report for you.
6. Please post the "C:\ComboFix.txt"

**Note: Do not mouseclick combofix's window while it's running. That may cause it to stall**

Make sure, you re-enable your security programs, when you're done with Combofix.

DO NOT make any other changes to your computer (like installing programs, using other cleaning tools, etc.), until it's officially declared clean!!!

 

[Littleolady]

Here are the results of the Combo Fix log.....

 

[Broni]

Please, uninstall Ask.com, as it's considered as an adware.

===========================================================================

1. Please open Notepad

• Click Start , then Run
• Type notepad .exe in the Run Box.

2. Now copy/paste the entire content of the codebox below into the Notepad window:

Folder::
c:\documents and settings\All Users\Application Data\MSTUSOQKWS

Registry::
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\software\microsoft\security center\Monitoring\McAfeeAntiVirus]
"DisableMonitoring"=-
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\software\microsoft\security center\Monitoring\McAfeeFirewall]
"DisableMonitoring"=-

3. Save the above as CFScript.txt

4. Close/disable all anti virus and anti malware programs again, so they do not interfere with the running of ComboFix.

5. Then drag the CFScript.txt into ComboFix.exe as depicted in the animation below. This will start ComboFix again.

6. After reboot, (in case it asks to reboot), please post the following reports/logs into your next reply:

• Combofix.txt

 

[Littleolady]

Here is the newest Combo Fix text

 

[Broni]

Good

How is computer doing at the moment?

Download OTL to your Desktop.

• Double click on the icon to run it. Make sure all other windows are closed and to let it run uninterrupted.
• Under the Custom Scan box paste this in:

netsvcs
drivers32
%SYSTEMDRIVE%\*.*
%systemroot%\Fonts\*.com
%systemroot%\Fonts\*.dll
%systemroot%\Fonts\*.ini
%systemroot%\Fonts\*.ini2
%systemroot%\Fonts\*.exe
%systemroot%\system32\spool\prtprocs\w32x86\*.*
%systemroot%\REPAIR\*.bak1
%systemroot%\REPAIR\*.ini
%systemroot%\system32\*.jpg
%systemroot%\*.jpg
%systemroot%\*.png
%systemroot%\*.scr
%systemroot%\*._sy
%APPDATA%\Adobe\Update\*.*
%ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Favorites\*.*
%APPDATA%\Microsoft\*.*
%PROGRAMFILES%\*.*
%APPDATA%\Update\*.*
%systemroot%\*. /mp /s
CREATERESTOREPOINT
%systemroot%\System32\config\*.sav
%PROGRAMFILES%\bak. /s
%systemroot%\system32\bak. /s
%ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Start Menu\*.lnk /x
%systemroot%\system32\config\systemprofile\*.dat /x
%systemroot%\*.config
%systemroot%\system32\*.db
%APPDATA%\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\*.lnk /x
%USERPROFILE%\Desktop\*.exe
%PROGRAMFILES%\Common Files\*.*
%systemroot%\*.src
%systemroot%\install\*.*
%systemroot%\system32\DLL\*.*
%systemroot%\system32\HelpFiles\*.*
%systemroot%\system32\rundll\*.*
%systemroot%\winn32\*.*
%systemroot%\Java\*.*
%systemroot%\system32\test\*.*
%systemroot%\system32\Rundll32\*.*
%systemroot%\AppPatch\Custom\*.*
%APPDATA%\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Recent\*.lnk /x
%PROGRAMFILES%\PC-Doctor\Downloads\*.*
%PROGRAMFILES%\Internet Explorer\*.tmp
%PROGRAMFILES%\Internet Explorer\*.dat
%USERPROFILE%\My Documents\*.exe
%USERPROFILE%\*.exe
%systemroot%\ADDINS\*.*
%systemroot%\assembly\*.bak2
%systemroot%\Config\*.*
%systemroot%\REPAIR\*.bak2
%systemroot%\SECURITY\Database\*.sdb /x
%systemroot%\SYSTEM\*.bak2
%systemroot%\Web\*.bak2
%systemroot%\Driver Cache\*.*
%PROGRAMFILES%\Mozilla Firefox*.exe
%ProgramFiles%\Microsoft Common\*.*
%ProgramFiles%\TinyProxy.
%USERPROFILE%\Favorites\*.url /x
%systemroot%\system32\*.bk
%systemroot%\*.te
%systemroot%\system32\system32\*.*
%ALLUSERSPROFILE%\*.dat /x
%systemroot%\system32\drivers\*.rmv
dir /b "%systemroot%\system32\*.exe" | find /i " " /c
dir /b "%systemroot%\*.exe" | find /i " " /c
%PROGRAMFILES%\Microsoft\*.*
%systemroot%\System32\Wbem\proquota.exe
%PROGRAMFILES%\Mozilla Firefox\*.dat
%USERPROFILE%\Cookies\*.txt /x
%SystemRoot%\system32\fonts\*.*
%systemroot%\system32\winlog\*.*
%systemroot%\system32\Language\*.*
%systemroot%\system32\Settings\*.*
%systemroot%\system32\*.quo
%SYSTEMROOT%\AppPatch\*.exe
%SYSTEMROOT%\inf\*.exe
%SYSTEMROOT%\Installer\*.exe
%systemroot%\system32\config\*.bak2
%systemroot%\system32\Computers\*.*
%SystemRoot%\system32\Sound\*.*
%SystemRoot%\system32\SpecialImg\*.*
%SystemRoot%\system32\code\*.*
%SystemRoot%\system32\draft\*.*
%SystemRoot%\system32\MSSSys\*.*
%ProgramFiles%\Javascript\*.*
%systemroot%\pchealth\helpctr\System\*.exe /s
%systemroot%\Web\*.exe
%systemroot%\system32\msn\*.*
%systemroot%\system32\*.tro
%AppData%\Microsoft\Installer\msupdates\*.*
%ProgramFiles%\Messenger\*.*
%systemroot%\system32\systhem32\*.*
%systemroot%\system\*.exe
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\AU
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WindowsUpdate\Auto Update\Results\Install|LastSuccessTime /rs
/md5start
/md5stop

• Click the Quick Scan button. Do not change any settings unless otherwise told to do so. The scan wont take long.
• When the scan completes, it will open two notepad windows: OTL.txt and Extras.txt. These are saved in the same location as OTL.
• Please copy (Edit->Select All, Edit->Copy) the contents of these files, one at a time, and post them back here.

 

[Littleolady]

The computer is running well - still no icons in the system tray other than McAfee and the sound icon. There was only one report issued by OTL - I tried it several times and only got the one. Here it is...

 

[Broni]

still no icons in the system tray other than McAfee and the sound icon

What other icons did you have there before?
You have just a few startups, so you shouldn't see a lot of them there.

============================================================================

Update your Java version here: http://www.java.com/en/download/installed.jsp

Note 1: UNCHECK any pre-checked toolbar and/or software offered with the Java update. The pre-checked toolbars/software are not part of the Java update.

Note 2: The Java Quick Starter (JQS.exe) adds a service to improve the initial startup time of Java applets and applications. If you don't want to run another extra service, go to Start > Control Panel > Java > Advanced > Miscellaneous and uncheck the box for Java Quick Starter. Click OK and restart your computer.

Now, we need to remove old Java version and its remnants...

Download JavaRa to your desktop and unzip it to its own folder

• Run JavaRa.exe (Vista users! Right click on JavaRa.exe, click Run As Administrator), pick the language of your choice and click Select. Then click Remove Older Versions.
• Accept any prompts.

=======================================================================

Run OTL

• Under the Custom Scans/Fixes box at the bottom, paste in the following
  
  

  :OTL
  O6 - HKLM\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Restrictions present
  O7 - HKCU\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Control Panel present
  O16 - DPF: {E2883E8F-472F-4FB0-9522-AC9BF37916A7} http://platformdl.adobe.com/NOS/getPlusPlus/1.6/gp.cab (Reg Error: Key error.)
  @Alternate Data Stream - 48 bytes -> C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\DRM:مايكروسوفت
  @Alternate Data Stream - 151 bytes -> C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\TEMP:D1B5B4F1
  @Alternate Data Stream - 109 bytes -> C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\TEMP:DFC5A2B2
  
  :Services
  
  :Reg
  
  :Files
  
  :Commands
  [purity]
  [emptytemp]
  [emptyflash]
  [Reboot]

• Then click the Run Fix button at the top
• Let the program run unhindered, reboot the PC when it is done
• You will get a log that shows the results of the fix. Please post it.

========================================================================

Last scans....

1. Download Security Check from HERE, and save it to your Desktop.

• Double-click SecurityCheck.exe
• Follow the onscreen instructions inside of the black box.
• A Notepad document should open automatically called checkup.txt; please post the contents of that document.

2. Download Temp File Cleaner (TFC)

• Double click on TFC.exe to run the program.
• Click on Start button to begin cleaning process.
• TFC will close all running programs, and it may ask you to restart computer.

3. Go to Kaspersky website and perform an online antivirus scan.

• Disable your active antivirus program.
• Read through the requirements and privacy statement and click on Accept button.
• It will start downloading and installing the scanner and virus definitions. You will be prompted to install an application from Kaspersky. Click Run.
• When the downloads have finished, click on Settings.
• Make sure these boxes are checked (ticked). If they are not, please tick them and click on the Save button:
  
  • Spyware, Adware, Dialers, and other potentially dangerous programs
  • Archives
  • Mail databases
• Click on My Computer under Scan.
• Once the scan is complete, it will display the results. Click on View Scan Report.
• You will see a list of infected items there. Click on Save Report As....
• Save this report to a convenient place. Change the Files of type to Text file (.txt) before clicking on the Save button. Then post it here.

 

[Littleolady]

OK - things look really good - as to the system tray, I have probably forgotten what all was there plus I already stopped a ton of other stuff so what is actually there is probably appropriate. Plus programs that would not start are now functioning.

I have followed your instructions on the Java - attached the OTL results, the Security Check is also attached and the Kapersky report is attached which really looks good

Are we now done ??? Things sure seem to be operating correctly....

 

[Broni]

Good

Update Adobe Reader

You can download it from https://www.techspot.com/downloads/2083-adobe-reader-dc.html
After installing the latest Adobe Reader, uninstall all previous versions.
Note. If you already have Adobe Photoshop® Album Starter Edition installed or do not wish to have it installed UNcheck the box which says Also Download Adobe Photoshop® Album Starter Edition.

Alternatively, you can uninstall Adobe Reader (33.5 MB), download and install Foxit PDF Reader(3.5MB) from HERE.
It's a much smaller file to download and uses a lot less resources than Adobe Reader.
Note: When installing FoxitReader, make sure to UN-check any pre-checked toolbar, or other garbage.
On this page:

make sure, you have both boxes UN-checked AND (important!) click on Decline button

==========================================================================

Your computer is clean

1. We need to reset system restore to prevent your computer from being accidentally reinfected by using some old restore point(s). We'll create fresh, clean restore point.

Run OTL

• Under the Custom Scans/Fixes box at the bottom, paste in the following:

:OTL
:Commands
[purity]
[emptytemp]
[EMPTYFLASH]
[CLEARALLRESTOREPOINTS]
[Reboot]

• Then click the Run Fix button at the top
• Let the program run unhindered, reboot the PC when it is done
• Post resulting log.

2. Now, we'll remove all tools, we used during our cleaning process

Clean up with OTL:

• Double-click OTL.exe to start the program.
• Close all other programs apart from OTL as this step will require a reboot
• On the OTL main screen, press the CLEANUP button
• Say Yes to the prompt and then allow the program to reboot your computer.

If you still have any tools or logs leftover on your computer you can go ahead and delete those off of your computer now.

3. Make sure, Windows Updates are current.

4. If any Trojan was listed among your infection(s), make sure, you change all of your on-line important passwords (bank account(s), secured web sites, etc.) immediately!

5. Download, and install WOT (Web OF Trust): http://www.mywot.com/. It'll warn you (in most cases) about dangerous web sites.

6. Run Malwarebytes "Quick scan" once in a while to assure safety of your computer.

7. Run Temporary File Cleaner (TFC) weekly.

8. Download and install Secunia Personal Software Inspector (PSI): https://www.techspot.com/downloads/4898-secunia-personal-software-inspector-psi.html. The Secunia PSI is a FREE security tool designed to detect vulnerable and out-dated programs and plug-ins which expose your PC to attacks. Run it weekly.

9. (optional) If you want to keep all your programs up to date, download and install FileHippo Update Checker.
The Update Checker will scan your computer for installed software, check the versions and then send this information to FileHippo.com to see if there are any newer releases.

10. Run defrag at your convenience.

11. Read How did I get infected?, With steps so it does not happen again!: http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/topic2520.html

12. Please, let me know, how is your computer doing.

 

[Littleolady]

You asked for the OTL results which are attached..... It definitely appears to me that the computer is clean and running smoothly !!!! I have done everything else you mentioned in your last post and will continue to monitor the situation as you have advised. How can I ever thank you for all your hard work ???

 

[Broni]

How can I ever thank you for all your hard work ???

You already did
Good job
Good luck and stay safe