I'm not sure how I came to catch this computer virus. I was in a busy stage of checking several personal e-mails plus looking up some facts for research on a piece when all of a sudden, my computer starting blinking through dozens of full page pop-ups. Many were from internet companies that sell tickets, services, etc. Some were about getting pictures of old Beulah without any clothes on.
Whatever they were, they were unwanted and so I went to my security center to see what had happened. Somehow, my firewall had been turned off but after putting it back on it was already too late.
The Microsoft Security Center popped up saying my computer was being attacked and in recommendations it said to install Spyware Guard 2008 to remove the problems.
It only took a brief look to see that the program wasn't from Microsoft so I closed it out and then it popped up again and again.
I'm not a novice with computers so I went into my control panel and saw the program had installed itself. I removed it and then went into program folders, found it there and removed it as well. For the next two days this crap, which must be illegal, continued to pop up every minute on the minute.
I had reputable anti-spyware on the system so I asked it to run a scan. It found hundreds of malware, Trojan and several Spyware Guard 2008 folders imbedded in my machine.
Unfortunately, when I asked it to remove them all, it stated it couldn't remove five of them because there was no application available. This garbage had actually removed the necessary files to get rid of it.
It also prevented me from going back to a past restore point before this crap had infected my computer.
I looked through all the chat rooms and found out this malware is causing a lot of problems everywhere. The scam is it continues to harass you until you buy their program but then you are subject to them allowing in whatever they want all the while telling you they are protecting your computer.
I tried several of the geek ideas to remove it but some where just too encompassing. The people at the computer/internet business I work for were all busy getting internet service up after the tower came down so I had to try to repair this on my own for at least a few days. The boss did say to be careful what I did as going too far down a long dark tunnel might make it impossible to find my way back. Understanding this I gave up on the geek ideas since I had no idea what they were talking about most of the time anyway.
Now I was extremely aggravated with this crap taking over my computer and disguising itself as a good guy when in fact it was malicious malware itself.
I looked at all the companies that promised to get rid of this program and gave three of them a try. All of them were reputable and all were rated highly. None of them worked so I spent a day spending money and then asking for refunds.
I was beside myself with aggravation and was preparing to copy all my important files and just dump the computer back to original computer specs. I didn't relish the idea as I have a ton of special programs on my home machine and reloading them and then finding out they too were infected could mean an entire day of futility.
I went back to looking for anti-spyware and stumbled across SUPER anti-spyware.
The name made me wince but it specifically did say it could knock out Spyware Guard 2008 so I gave it a shot as they offered a free version.
I could tell right away that this program was going places I had never known about before. It also quarantined problems as soon as they were found keeping them from spreading again while a scan was in progress.
In all, it took an hour and a half to complete the scan. Several times while the scan was running I received a pop-up from Spyware Guard 2008 warning that I was in the process of being infected. It was as if they didn't want this scan to go through and it gave me hope.
When the scan was complete, it showed an incredible 1143 issues on my machine that had been scanned in the just the last day by four different anti-spyware programs.
I hit remove all and expected again to get a message saying almost all were removed but a few (the root programs) could not be removed.
Instead I received a message all programs were quarantined
It said I had to restart my computer and I reluctantly did so since most spyware finds it way back to a machine on a reboot.
Thankfully, when I was up, the Microsoft Security message was gone. Looking everywhere, I found no trace of the crap and couldn't believe I had found a program that had finally delivered as promised.
The company offers an upgrade to the program for only $29.95 and under the circumstances I found that more than fair.
Now I can't say for certain those other companies wouldn't remove this malware on your computer nor will I make the claim that SUPER anti-spyware will do the job for you. I know the extent of infections probably is as varied as the people who use computers.
All I know is it worked for me. Its basic program is free so maybe you should give it a try.
Freelance writer, columnist, author and writing coach, ex-Chicagoan Mike Fak presently resides in Central Illinois. More information about Mike's services are available at his home website www.mikefak.com
Mike currently writes primarily humor columns for searchwarp bi-weekly and is the managing editor of www.lincolndailynews.com
Mike now offers a 26,000 word e-book on making money as a freelance writer for only $10.00 at this page. http://www.mikefak.com/id45.html
Thanks. Wish we'd known about this a few months back. I'm not sure how Bernd finally fixed the problem; it took him days and days. I gave up after a couple of days. We had all the same issues that you mention. It boggles my mind sometimes the things people will do to make a buck off of you.
Thanks Diannne. It is amazing that people who obviously have talent can't make the choice to be honest. Sadly there is little govt. oversight of these shifty people although they probably are half-way around the owrld. Mike
Mike, they're calling this type of program "hostageware". Very appropriate. We use SuperAntiSpyware at work and there are very few items it can't remove. A very good product to have in your software arsenal.
My daughter fell for the same thing and we had to take her computer in for work. I wish I had known about your discovery! I too got the same message from this software but luckily the day before, my firend had warned me about some trojan that looked just like a microsoft product. I guess I should have shared that little tidbit with my dauther before it cost me $65!
I've been using SUPER Anti-Spyware (Free Edition) for a while now and it is excellent - highly recommended.
Combine it with other reputable free software for a more secure computer - I recommend AVG (anti-virus) + Zone Alarm or Comodo (firewalls), + Firefox (web browser) with AdBlock+ and NoScript plugins.
There is really no point at all (for most home users) in paying for security software - the above free programs, plus a bit of common sense, are better than a lot of expensive alternatives.
Thanks Ben. It looks like you have a real handle on keeping yourself safe. A shame that we have to do thiings like this. But until we start prosecuting these internet thieves I guess we must. Mike
This virus wont let you run the malware software that you need to remove it so you have to do the following, it worked perfectly for me.
1. On an uninfected PC download Malwarebytes' anti-malware (you can google and download from CNET, its free). Then download the UPDATE.
2. Save both files to a memory stick. Boot the infected PC in SAFE MODE then copy both files to the Desktop of the infected PC.
3. Once the files are copied to your desktop Spyware Guard will keep it from installing so right click on the files and change the names of both files to something else I used dome.exe and domi.exe
4. Click and install the newly renamed Malwarebytes program. It will now run since its been renamed. Take note of what directory that you put it in, your going to need that in a minute.
5. Once it installs, believe it or not this piece of Sh*t virus still wont let it run so you have to go into the directory that you installed in into, typically: Program Files/Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware and rename the .exe file, I think it's mbam.exe, to something else, I used dome.exe Then click on the newly renamed file, it will now run.
6. Once Malwarebytes loads go to your desktop and click the update file that you renamed earlier to load the updates.
7. Now run the scan. It will find a bunch of trash related to Spyware Guard 2008. When the scan finishes click the button that removes the spyware. It will probably find some files that it cannot remove until you reboot.
I had to fix a computer with a variant of this that wouldn't let me boot into safe mode (nasty!). To get round that I had to boot the computer from the Windows XP CD and pick the "Recovery Console".
From the Recovery Console, I had to use FIXMBR and then FIXBOOT commands, as the malware infection had altered these. Doing this should allow you to boot into safe mode, then you can proceed as advised in the comment this is a response to to clear the rest of it off.
Another piece of advice I'd give with this - once you've got your computer working again, TURN OFF the System Restore tool, reboot, then turn it back on again - this will delete any restore points you had saved.
The reason for this is that the virus can hide itself within these restore points, so if you manage to fix the PC, then later restore it to a previous point you'll get the virus back again!
Gee Mike, I'm curious just what kind of "research" you were up to that caused this problem. Don't answer that question, I've heard it all before. Glad you were able to fix your problem and continue delivering your wondeful articles. I can tell this really upset you because you did not lace the story with your normal wit and humor. I said it before and I'll say it again, I HATE COMPUTERS!!
Hi Mike. I can't thank you enough, I have been trying to get rid of the spyware guard crap for days and had just about given up when I read your article. I tried SUPER Anti-Spyware and in a very short time it was gone. It is hard for me to believe that a program that works so great is FREE but it is and I for one am very appreciative. You not only made my day but saved me me money as well. Thanks again.
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