Manual Removal Guide for MiniBug

The following instructions have been created to help you to get rid of "MiniBug" 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:

• adware
• spywaresuspicion

Description:

My tests showed connections to DoubleClick, a company known for tracking cookies. WeatherBug also seems to have no button to close it - without killing it the hard way, it will run all the time.

Supposed Functionality:

Displays ads inside Weatherbug

Privacy Statement:

If you are providing us Personally Identifiable Information, it will only be used within the AWS, Inc Internet domains unless you choose to allow third party data sharing (by opting in for such distribution during the registration process). Should you choose to provide your information to third parties, WeatherBug.com will share aspects of your information with our valued partners.

Links (be careful!):

Website: http://www.aws.com/
Product: http://www.weatherbug.com/
Privacy: http://ww3.weatherbug.com/aws/default.asp?cid=13

Removal Instructions:

Files:

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

• The file at "<$PROGRAMFILES>\AWS\WeatherBug\Install\MiniBug.exe".
• The file at "<$WINDIR>\Downloaded Program Files\minibuginstaller.inf".

Make sure you set your file manager to display hidden and system files. If MiniBug 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!

Registry:

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

• Delete the registry key "MiniBug" at "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\AWS\".
• Delete the registry key "{9DBAFCCF-592F-FFFF-FFFF-00608CEC297C}" at "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Code Store Database\Distribution Units\".

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

Browser:

The following browser plugins or items can either be removed directly in your browser, or through the help of e.g. Spybot-S&D or RunAlyzer.

• Look for ActiveX software installed from "minibuginstaller.cab".

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.