May have a trojan

[Corrine]

I suspect the threats ESET found were from the AdwCleaner log so go ahead and restart your computer and reinstall MSE.   

[deew]

I now get this message:

An error has occurred in the program during initialization. Error ode: 0x80073b01. 

As you might imagine, I still can't access MSE.  I'd like to get rid of it, but can't do that either.  What now?

Dee

[Corrine]

Hi, Dee.  Let's take a look with ComboFix.  When reading the instructions, don't worry about attempting to disable MSE. :)

Please follow these instructions carefully.  Download ComboFix from the following location:  Link 1

!!! IMPORTANT !!! Save ComboFix.exe to your Desktop

• Disable your antivirus and anti-malware security applications. If not disabled, these programs will likely interfere with cleanup process. This can usually be accomplished by a right-click on the icon in the System Tray. 
  
  Note:  If you are unsure how to disable your security software, see the instructions in this topic at Tech Support Forum:  How to disable your security applications.
  
  
• If infections are found, ComboFix will automatically reboot the machine to complete the removal process.  Please ensure all opened windows are closed before proceeding.
  
• Double-click ComboFix.exe on your desktop and follow the prompts. 
  
• Your desktop may go blank. This is normal. It will return when ComboFix is done. ComboFix may reboot your machine. This is normal.
  
• When finished, a log will be produced. Please copy C:\ComboFix.txt in your next reply.
  

[deew]

Corrine, I ran Combofix, but my computer did not like it that MSE wasn't disabled.  The scan took a very long time, however, my computer seems to have a talent for hiding logs.  When I clicked on the Combofix folder in C:\ there were three files and two folders and none of them were the log.  Also, Combofix never rebooted my computer nor did I ever see the Desktop go blank.  One thing I did notice was that the Template settings for my Word Processor program were wiped out.  I have no idea how that happened.

Should I delete Combofix and try running it again?

Dee

[Corrine]

Hi, Dee. 

In researching Error Code 0x80073b01, the most common solution appears to be using the trial version of HitmanPro.  It can be downloaded and run from a flash drive.  See http://www.surfright.nl/en/hitmanpro

[deew]

Corrine, I ran HitmanPro, and it found several items that it said disabled MSE, so I selected repair.  It also fiouun several items to be deleted, which I approved.

I logged out and held my breath when I logged back in.  Yippee, the MSE icon was back in the Taskbar.  Let's hope it stays there.

I can't thank you enough for all your patient help. Is there anything else you think may need to be done?

Dee

[Corrine]

Oh, my goodness, Dee.  I am so sorry that I missed your last reply. 

Since you haven't run ComboFix, if your computer is running fine, you can delete it from your desktop. 

Please do the following to uninstall AdwCleaner:

Double-click on AdwCleaner.exe to run the tool again.

• Click on the Uninstall button.
  
• Click Yes when asked are you sure you want to uninstall.
  
• Both AdwCleaner.exe, its folder and all logs will be removed.

Adobe Reader is scheduled to be updated on Tuesday, October 8.  Although the recent incident (Illegal Access to Adobe Source Code) shouldn't affect Adobe Reader, it will be a good idea to be sure and update.