Manual Removal Guide for AdCom

The following instructions have been created to help you to get rid of "AdCom" manually.
Use this guide at your own risk; software should usually be better suited to remove malware, since it is able to look deeper.

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Threat Details:

Categories:

• malware

Description:

Website appears to be not properly working, but the AdCom installer is available.
AdCom installs as an advertising module and shows advertising within the Internet Explorer on alle webpages, even locally stored ones. It also enters some nonesense into the win.ini.
There is no information nor EULA or Privacy Policy stated by the distributor.

Removal Instructions:

Installed Software List:

You can try to uninstall products with the names listed below; for items identified by other properties or to avoid malware getting active again on uninstallation, use Spybot-S&D or RunAlyzer to locate and get rid of these entries.

• Products that have a key or property named "{755F08D5-0302-4754-B4DF-BF0672791EDD}".

Files:

Please use Windows Explorer or another file manager of your choice to locate and delete these files.

• The file at "<$APPDATA>\Microsoft\Installer\{755F08D5-0302-4754-B4DF-BF0672791EDD}\ARPPRODUCTICON.exe".
• The file at "<$WINDIR>\Downloaded Installations\{58C48DDD-AF75-4654-BD30-3EA31B99FD70}\AdCom.msi".
• The file at "<$SYSDIR>\AdCom.dll".
• The file at "<$SYSDIR>\AdComIFrame.htm".
• A file with an unknown location named "AdCom.dll".

Make sure you set your file manager to display hidden and system files. If AdCom uses rootkit technologies, use our RootAlyzer or our Total Commander anti-rootkit plugins.
You will have to use a global search for files without a name specified. Be extra careful, because just the name might not be enough to identify files!

Important: There are more files that cannot be safely described in simple words. Please use Spybot-S&D to remove them.

Folders:

Please use Windows Explorer or another file manager of your choice to locate and delete these folders.

• The directory at "<$APPDATA>\Microsoft\Installer\{755F08D5-0302-4754-B4DF-BF0672791EDD}".
• The directory at "<$WINDIR>\Downloaded Installations\{58C48DDD-AF75-4654-BD30-3EA31B99FD70}".

Make sure you set your file manager to display hidden and system files. If AdCom uses rootkit technologies, use our RootAlyzer or our Total Commander anti-rootkit plugins.
You will have to use a global search for files without a name specified. Be extra careful, because just the name might not be enough to identify folders!

Registry:

You can use regedit.exe (included in Windows) to locate and delete these registry entries.

• Delete the registry key "Adcom" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\".
• Delete the registry key "AdCom.AdCom" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\".
• Delete the registry key "AdCom.AdCom.1" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\".
• Delete the registry key "AdCom.PubDocEventHandler" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\".
• Delete the registry key "AdCom.PubDocEventHandler.1" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\".
• Delete the registry key "AdComTech.PopupBlocker.ToolsMenu" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\".
• Delete the registry key "AdComTech.PopupBlocker.ToolsMenu.1" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\".
• Delete the registry key "AdComTech.PubDomExtender" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\".
• Delete the registry key "AdComTech.PubDomExtender.1" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\".
• Delete the registry key "AdComTech.PubWindowEventHandler" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\".
• Delete the registry key "AdComTech.PubWindowEventHandler.1" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\".
• Delete the registry key "{4BC6BFC2-7DA8-4d76-BF62-A4843344AC86}" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\AppID\".
• Delete the registry key "AdCom.DLL" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\AppID\".
• Delete the registry key "{83EC9074-6CBA-43E8-B7E0-6A3809C4A958}" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\CLSID\".
• Delete the registry key "{D360501E-DC73-4DE6-A61C-21925AED7835}" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\CLSID\".
• Delete the registry key "{F9668ADA-FC6B-47F4-8381-DE861DBA5115}" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\CLSID\".
• Delete the registry key "{6ED8119A-E0C0-4F30-84B6-5294CFADC3DC}" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Interface\".
• Delete the registry key "{9D573D0E-663C-435F-BF31-2C4497373C41}" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Interface\".
• Delete the registry key "{B1E68D42-02C4-465B-8368-5ED9B732E22D}" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Interface\".
• Delete the registry key "{F3777260-7308-464A-BAA2-CC492C0CE7D2}" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Interface\".
• Delete the registry key "{55CE01A3-18BB-4E84-8E41-2D9B59B5AB66}" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Ext\Stats\".
• Delete the registry key "{D7950AB4-67F5-458E-A37D-9F2DE7F250AC}" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Ext\Stats\".
• Delete the registry key "{6ED8119A-E0C0-4F30-84B6-5294CFADC3DC}" at "HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Interface\".
• Delete the registry key "{4BC6BFC2-7DA8-4D76-BF62-A4843344AC86}" at "HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\TypeLib\".
• Delete the registry key "{55CE01A3-18BB-4E84-8E41-2D9B59B5AB66}" at "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Code Store Database\Distribution Units\".
• Delete the registry key "{D7950AB4-67F5-458e-A37D-9F2DE7F250AC}" at "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Browser Helper Objects\".
• Delete the registry value "5D80F557203045744BFDFB602797E1DD" at "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Installer\UpgradeCodes\28F5EFCE99A084F4BA3B35B9036A62C4\".
• References to the file "<$SYSDIR>\AdCom.dll" at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\SharedDlls\.
• A key in HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ named "AdCom.AdCom", plus associated values.
• A key in HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ named "AdCom.AdCom.1", plus associated values.
• A key in HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ named "AdCom.PubDocEventHandler", plus associated values.
• A key in HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ named "AdCom.PubDocEventHandler.1", plus associated values.
• A key in HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ named "AdComTech.PopupBlocker.ToolsMenu", plus associated values.
• A key in HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ named "AdComTech.PopupBlocker.ToolsMenu.1", plus associated values.
• A key in HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ named "AdComTech.PubDomExtender", plus associated values.
• A key in HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ named "AdComTech.PubDomExtender.1", plus associated values.
• A key in HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ named "AdComTech.PubWindowEventHandler", plus associated values.
• A key in HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ named "AdComTech.PubWindowEventHandler.1", plus associated values.
• Delete the registry key "{4BC6BFC2-7DA8-4d76-BF62-A4843344AC86}" at "HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\AppID\".
• Delete the registry key "AdCom.DLL" at "HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\AppID\".
• Delete the registry key "{D7950AB4-67F5-458e-A37D-9F2DE7F250AC}" at "HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\".
• Delete the registry key "{93F764AC-24D1-484F-92EA-3C84E31CDF72}" at "HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\".
• Delete the registry key "{24A7B369-63EB-4ADF-BDE2-267C7BDC8A9D}" at "HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Interface\".

If AdCom uses rootkit technologies, use our RegAlyzer, RootAlyzer or our Total Commander anti-rootkit plugins.

INI files:

The following .ini file entries may need corrections. You can open this files in Notepad or any other text editor.

• Please remove entry "Logic" from section "AdCom" in file "<$WINDIR>\win.ini".

Final Words:

If neither Spybot-S&D nor self help did resolve the issue or you would prefer one on one help,

1. Please read these instructions before requesting assistance,
2. Then start your own thread in the Malware Removal Forum where a volunteer analyst will advise you as soon as available.