malware 2nd opinion please

Let me first just ask how you can say:
They have a yahoo search bar, which has a pop-up blocking feature, and I know that they use Yahoo, so I left it.
Click to expand...
and then turn around and say:
It is the same pop-ups... "Important message from Yahoo" that I described before.
Click to expand...
I can tell you that I will allow nothing Yahoo on any computer I own. Why do you think the popups are about Yahoo? Why not email them and ask them how to stop the junk?
Smitfraud and Winfixer is installed by hackers. At least we know where that stuff is coming from.
I can not make your decisions for you, but reformating is not always a bad thing. I am out of ideas, we can run more scans but I believe it would be a waste of your time and mine.

I can provide you with a good registry cleaner and instructions for using it if you wish.

Let me know. You can remove all tools we downloaded. You can keep ATF-Cleaner if you wish.

Thanks
 
Duh... yeah, that kind of crept into my head as I was typing it.
I've been using Yahoo webmail for years, but I don't download any toolbars or junk like that. I am going to uninstall all that stuff, and see if it helps.

I'm going to recommend they use Firefox, which has Google search built in.

Yes, I'm interested in the info regarding the registry cleaning and instructions on the best way to do that.

Thanks again for all the help.
 
http://www.hoverdesk.net/freeware.htm

http://ts.mcafeehelp.com/faq3.asp?docid=68037

Backup your Registry...
- Press "CTRL - ALT - DEL" keys all at the same time to start "Task Manager"
- In the Task Manager window click on "File", then from the drop-down menu select "New Task (Run...)"
- In the "Create New Task" window enter\type "regedit" (without quotes)
- Once Regedit opens click on the FILE menu and select Export
- Save the file as backup. Save the file somewhere you will remember and not delete.
IMPORTANT: make sure to set the export range to ALL

Download RegSeeker. Extract it to it's own folder,
open and double click RegSeeker.exe to start the program.
Maximize the window and click clean registry. Check all sections and click OK.
When the scan is complete, verify the backup box in lower left corner is checked
and click the select all button, then select all again. Then right click within
the search results and select delete. Run it again and again, deleting everything
it finds until it finds nothing. Reboot and make sure your programs are working properly,
control panel and add/remove programs windows open, etc (basically just do a quick check of everything).
In the event anything was 'broken', you can open RegSeeker, click backups and double click
any/all files to put the information back. A reboot may be required for the effects to be seen.
Reboot When done.
 
Phil,

Thanks so much for all your help. It has been an enlightening experience.

We have decided to go with the format/ re-install option, and get a fresh start.

What apps/tools in your opinion would you recommend or consider essential for keeping safe on the internet? Would you run more than one anti-spyware app? How often would you do a full scan?

Thanks again for your time, advice and expertise.

Mark
 
I Mark, in my post #10 I posted links from expert advisors. Once you read those, if you still have questions, let me know. I will tell you this, I have three computers and here is what I run:

McAfee VSO: about to drop them due to the hugh amount of junk they are trying to dump on folks now, getting as bad as Symantec.
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=review+antivirus+programs&btnG=Google+Search <<< see what is being said.

I run free Zone Alarm and these freeware programs:
http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/tutorial43.html

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/tutorial48.html

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/tutorial49.html

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/tutorial50.html

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/tutorial53.html

Some additional good information:
http://spyware-free.us/tutorials/reformat/
http://www.cyberwalker.net/faqs/how-tos/reinstall-faq.html

Hope it helps...Phil
 
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