Recently downloaded IE7 %26amp; got burned, managed to get back to IE6, now my browser is hijacked %26amp; I'm told to get system doctor and/or some other crap if I want it back. Norton seems to be unable to tackle this. Please help !!!
My IE homepage has been hijacked by system doctor. Anyone familiar with this hijacker %26amp; how I can remove it?windows mobile 6
First of all, you did not get burned by IE7. You either had it on your computer before downloading IE 7 or aquired it after downloading IE 7. System Doctor is an adware program that claims you are infected with bogus infections and then wants you to purchase it to remove them. It is a useless program and will remove nothing but money from you account.
The way you aquired System Doctor is through a download of another program. Failing to read the EULA allowed the download. The EULA would have told you that an additional program would be added to the download. Neither Yahoo or Microsoft add adware to their downloads.
I empathise with you for not wanting to read those long, boring EULA's. I don't like reading them either. That is why I use a free program called EULAlyzer. It anlyzes the EULA and alerts you to key word(s) and phrases that could indicate additional download(s). For example, the words "Third Party" could indicate another program will be downloaded, so, it alerts you to every instance of it being used in the EULA. Then you examine these parts of the EULA. Usually this refers to you providing the program to others to use. You can get this program here:
http://www.download.com/EULAlyzer/3000-2...
Now to the Most Important Part, the removal of the infection. The following looks long and daunting. It is long but not daunting. If you follow it step by step you will have not problems doing it. The programs listed will remove this infection and any others you might have hiding in your computer. AdAware SE with the setup as listed is the best adware remover available. I don't think they have made these Answers page Printer Friendly yet, so, you can copy and paste it to a Word or Email and then print it.
Trojan Removal Procedure.
Removing infections from your computer is never as easy as aquiring them. Malware infections are not meant to be removed, so, it takes TIME and PATIENCE to get rid of them. ONLY RESORT TO A REFORMAT AFTER ALL ELSE FAILS TO REMOVE THE INFECTION.
This procedure works for all Malware. Replace the Ewido and AdAware SE programs with any AntiVirus or AntiSpy program you choose.
Download and Update Ewido (now called the AVG Antispyware). Do not run:
http://www.ewido.net/en/download/...
Download AdAware SE and update. Do the setup. Do not run:
http://www.filehippo.com/download_ad-awa...
AdAware SE Setup:
1. Select "use custom scanning options" then select "customize". Make sure the following options are enabled: "scan within archives," "scan active processes," "scan registry," "deep scan registry," "scan my IE favorites for banned URLs," "scan my Hosts file."
2. Select the "tweak" option. Under "scanning engine," make sure "unload recognized processes and modules during scan" is enabled. Enable "scan registry for all users instead of current users."
3. Under "cleaning engine" turn on "always try to unload modules鈥?" "during removal unload explorer and IE if necessary," "let windows remove files in use at next restart," and "delete quarantined items after restoring."
4. Use the "select drives and folders to scan" option to ensure that your entire hard drive is scanned (if you have more than one hard drive, scan all of them (of course, do not include floppy and CD/DVD).
TEMPORARILY SHOW HIDDEN FILES AND FOLDERS.
1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
2. Click Appearance and Themes, and then click Folder Options.
3. On the View tab, under Hidden files and folders, click "Show hidden files and folders", and clear(uncheck) the "Hide protected operating system files" check box.
IMPORTANT: Files are hidden by Windows for a very good reason. It is not wise to experiment with these files. Unfortunately, to successfully remove modern spyware we must turn this protection off temporarily. Please turn the protection back on when you have finished cleaning your system.
EMPTY INTERNET EXPLORER BROWSER CACHE:
1. On the Internet Explorer Tools menu, click Internet Options.
2. On the General tab, in the Temporary Internet Files section, click the Delete Files button. Select the Delete all offline content check box in the confirmation dialogue box that appears, click OK. Click OK again.
RESTART IN SAFE MODE:
To do this you need to hold down or repeatedly tap the F8 key while the computer is booting (when the computer is displaying a black screen with white text). When the boot menu appears, use your keyboard arrows to select "Safe Mode."
Safe Mode can look quite ugly. The color may look bad, and all of your desktop icons will be very large. This is normal.
START THE SCAN WITH ADAWARE SE. THEN DO IT WITH EWIDO.
NOTE: Let AdAware complete its scan. Sometimes AdAware will be unable to remove everything that it finds and will prompt to be allowed to try again after restarting. If that happens, when the scan finishes restart immediately and allow the scan to finish.
When the scan and removal are completed REBOOT COMPUTER. This will restart you in normal mode. DON'T FORGET TO RESET HIDDEN FILES AND FOLDERS.
NEW RESTORE POINT:
The RESTORE POINTS may be infected with the Malware and cannot be used.
HERE'S HOW:
1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
2. Click Performance and Maintenance, click System, and then click on the System Restore tab.
3. Select the Turn Off System Restore check box, click Apply, then restart your computer.
4. Return to the System Restore Tab and turn System Restore back on.
TO SET A NEW RESTORE POINT:
1. Click the Start button.
2. Point to Programs, then navigate to Accessories, then System Tools, then click System Restore.
3. Choose Create a restore point, and then click Next.
4. In the Restore point description box, type a name for your restore point, and then click Next.
5. Click OK.
NOTE: If you are using Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) and are unable to access the Internet after removing Malware, there is a command that may fix the problem. It works by resetting the winsock catalogue. Click on Start, then Run and type CMD in the box. Click OK. Type "netsh winsock reset" (no quotes)into the DOS window that appears.
ADDITION INFORMATION ABOUT TROJANS:
There are Trojans that fall into the Smitfraud family. These require the use of a specialized program for removal. Here are two sites that specialize in removing these:
http://www.internetinspiration.co.uk/rog...
http://siri.urz.free.fr/Fix/SmitfraudFix...
My IE homepage has been hijacked by system doctor. Anyone familiar with this hijacker %26amp; how I can remove it?microsoft office 2003 internet explorer
spybot - Search %26amp; Destroy detects and removes spyware, a relatively new kind of threat not yet covered by common anti-virus applications. Spyware silently tracks your surfing behaviour to create a marketing profile for you that is transmitted without your knowledge to the compilers and sold to advertising companies. If you see new toolbars in your Internet Explorer that you haven't intentionally installed, if your browser crashes inexplicably, or if your home page has been "hijacked" (or changed without your knowledge), your computer is most probably infected with spyware. Even if you don't see the symptoms, your computer may be infected, because more and more spyware is emerging. Spybot-S%26amp;D is free, so there's no harm giving it a try to see if something has invaded your computer.
http://www.safer-networking.org/
After you download it, update it
a-squared . spybot . spyware doctor . antispyware blocker. avg antivirus. Aaware . trojan hunter all them will remove .spyware. trojans from ur pc . you have to scan pc in safemode with out any internet on
Try Adaware http://www.lavasoftusa.com/software/adaw...
It usually helps
Yeah, It's adware.
Once you get rid of it, get rid of IE too and never use it again.
sWitch to Firefox from mozilla
IE7 has only been out for a week or so and is already 100% unpatched.
http://secunia.com/graph/?type=sol%26amp;perio...
After you finish fixing your problem use firefox
http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/
Firefox has a history of being more secure than Insecure Explorer
http://www.webdevout.net/security_summar...
