Techies, Help!

[CaDi_LaCkLaNd]

So after running down some amputee midget porn about a week ago my comp went crazy. I'm guessing its a virus. Symptoms:
1. sudden crazy pop ups, mostly about adware and spyware.
2. programs crashing.
3. some of my music seems to have been deleted.

I ran McAfee and it said a-ok system. I installed a spyware detector called Spyzilla and it found like 42 threats to my system. I'm guessing these are what's f'in my computer up. However, Spyzilla does not delete these files. I tried to manually hunt them down but that was freakin impossible.
Does anyone know of an anti-spyware program which deletes corrupted files? Also, would that contribute to the above 3 problems?
Help! I can't delete my music....

[Soul Queen]

Someone told me of something called Panda. It is supposed to find spyware and viruses. The techies know best!

[larryhead]

1a. backup yer music & critical files to CD/DVD or another drive
1b. make sure you have all the recent Windows updates installed, Start->Windows Updates
2. install MS anti-spyware here (http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spyware/software/default.mspx) & run
3. install ad-aware personal here (http://www.lavasoftusa.com/software/adaware/) & run
4. install Hijack-This & CWS Shredder here (http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/downloads.html) & run
5. remove anything those programs find wrong and be careful with Hijack-This that you dont' remove any system files you need
6. install firefox here (http://www.mozilla.com/firefox/) and stop using Internet Explorer forever
7. make sure your McAfee virus definitions are up to date and run again
8. if all else fails, backup your shit, format your hard-drive and do a fresh install of Windows

Let us know how it goes. :)

[CaDi_LaCkLaNd]

I attempted to run the hijack this! program and it says a .dll file was missing after repeated attempts.
It also says there is not enough free memory to run the program and even after stopping all programs except two on my program list it still doesn't have enough. (my system is old and battle worn)
The CWShredder didn't find anything...
Still stuck in neutral...

[withoutcanseco]

i think before you do ANYTHING else you should back up all your stuff that you dont want to lose, such as music/documents/etc. onto an external harddrive.

[MigueL]

This is the same thing that happened to me and Poof. Call him and he will tell you how to fix it. Most of the problem comes from the fact that you probably dont have at least 15% of your hard drive free. This is a MUST! I would call poof and delete stuff you dont need until you have about 20% free space on your HD and see how it runs then. Im telling HD's hate not to have free space......I dont understand it but when I freed space on me 250 that was nearly full it solved all my probs. Then do a defrag and you should be ok. Poof will tell you how to recover your lost music, its not gone just hiding.

[bubz_bluez]

did you say some amputee midget porn ==chad

wow thats funny.....
norton is the best thats all i gotta say
you can update your old norton with the newest version online

bubz

[matty]

A non-techie perspective:
(Disclaimer: I know nothing!)

McAfee, apparently, stinks.

Norton is OK, except that every time it does anything it stops your whole computer to do it. I prefer silent updaters. Also, Norton is really bitchy about cooperting with other spy/ad programs. Once you go Norton, you're stuck with it, so be ready to commit.

I have the Panda antivirus because it's distributed in cooperation with Staples, so I got a good deal on it. I like it because it fixed all of the shit that had infiltrated my computer, and I was in big trouble, let me tell you. I also like Panda because just by buying the software they insure your computer for up to $1500 if anything gets through their firewall. Hopefully I'll never have to learn if this is bullshit or not.

Also, free tech support from an english-speaker, which is important for a non-techie like me. (See disclaimer.) I've not had to use the tech support yet, but it gives me a sense of security now that Slam's not around to always doctor my computer.

And Panda does silent upgrades. I never know it's doing anything, except that I don't get pop-ups, don't get viruses, and don't have to constantly tell it what to do.

The bad part is that every time you go to a new webpage, Panda investigates the page so hard that it is slow to load. But I find this an acceptable payoff; I'll spend an extra second or three waiting for a page to load if it means I won't get hit with some horrible infection.

I'm sure there's probably better shit out there, though....

[slam]

my $0.02:

mcaffee does indeed suck. i don't know how they f*cked it up so badly, but they sure as hell did. however, i have NEVER seen a virus get through norton A/V. so for antivirus, i would stick with norton.

for firewalls, if you have broadband, do yourself a favor and go buy a $40-$50 hardware firewall. don't let mcaffee, or norton, or windows, or zone alarm, or other shit like that try to protect your computer. they're OK, but if you're serious about keeping yourself safe and happy, go buy a real firewall.

otherwise, follow larryhead's suggestions up top. use firefox. install microsoft anti-spyware.

but that's all for the future. it sounds like, for the time being, you should seriously contemplate backing up all your stuff and reinstalling fresh.

[larryhead]

For what it's worth... I've never heard of anyone getting a virus on a Mac, and their OSX is pretty slick.. I use one at work and it's pretty idiot-proof. :)

[bubz_bluez]

i have heard good things about mac's. their easy to maintain in that way. when i move out im prob gonna get a mac laptop. i have heard their considerably cheaper so im prob gonna go for it.

bubz