Last week my computer got hit with some sort of malware that calls itself "Adware.W32.ExpDwnldr". [img]graemlins/1pissed.gif[/img]
I kept getting popups like
this.
Er, NO, just because you infected my computer with a virus I do not feel obligated to buy your software to remove it! [img]graemlins/firedevil.gif[/img]
Other times the popup would start Internet Explorer at
this antivirus retailer.
Later my desktop wallpaper would be covered with a bright red biohazard sign with a link to another antivirus site. [img]graemlins/madhell.gif[/img] At random times within three minutes one of these popups would appear interrupting whatever I was doing and forcing me to "ALT+F4" it away.
Sympatic Antivirus (I scheduled this to scan every time I signed on) did not pick it up; I can understand that given that it is a trojan not a virus. AdAware did not stop the popups. Checking the forums here, previous members recommended Spybot SD. I downloaded it from Tucows website which also recommended Super Antispyware.
After hitting it with every scan I could use the popups stopped... for an hour... then came back with a vengence!
Symantic reported a "Winfix.exe" bug. It started in my son's .../IE/TemporaryInternetFiles/... directory. My son needs Internet Explorer for Maple Story- a MMORG he plays: for the record I use Opera exclusively. Google found a description of "Winfix.exe" that matched my symptoms exactly. It went into how to edit the registry to remove the pest. Unfortunately my computer skills were not up to the task so I ended up formatting the C: drive and reinstalling everything.
Be careful out there...