BleepingComputer.com: Ad.yieldmanager.com

I have been noticing that my browser keeps inserting a page <http://ad.yieldmanager.com?????> into my back/forward pages when I am viewing websites. My home page was www.comcast.net (my isp) and after my homepage loaded I would navigate away and go about my business on the internet. Every so often I would go up and hit the back button but nothing would happen, then click it again and still nothing. So I would bring down the drop down list of web pages and that web site (ad.yieldmanager.com) would be 2 pages back and I would have to choose the website just beyond that to get it to navigate back from where I came from. I currently pay for and use XoftSpySE v4.33 and Ad-Aware 2008 Plus Version 7.1.0.11, I also use Spybot - Search & Destroy 1.6.0 and your program Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware which are both free. I use these spyware programs regularly and they all find different things to remove each time I use them but niether ever come up with anything related to this yieldmanager spyware. I literally spent 5 hours straight last weekend trying to remove this from my computer, this being one attempt of several over the last few months all of which have gotten me nowhere. Now here is where it gets wierd. I started noticing if I did not let my comcast.net (my isp) homepage load completely before I navigated away, then the yieldmanager site quit appearing in my recent visited sites list and I could use my back button normally anytime I tried. Then as soon as I went to my comcast.net homepage and let it completely load ad.yieldmanager.com would be back almost immediately. Due to this I changed my homepage to another site and reran all my spyware programs and have avoided comcast's home page for a week now and have yet to see yieldmanager show back up. Can you explain this to me, why would my internet service provider put this into thier homepage? I don't understand why that would be, why would a huge corp. like comcast let something like this spread from thier homepage, not only did it mess with my back button and act as a tracking cookie I swear it slowed down my computer. Do I have a virus that is just attacking through that site or is it from comcast, I surely can't figure it out.

Thanks for any advice you can give me
Casey

Please download Malwarebytes Anti-Malware and save it to your desktop.
alternate download link 1
alternate download link 2

• Make sure you are connected to the Internet.
  
• Double-click on Download_mbam-setup.exe to install the application.
  
• When the installation begins, follow the prompts and do not make any changes to default settings.
  
• When installation has finished, make sure you leave both of these checked:
  • Update Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware
    
  • Launch Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware
  
  
• Then click Finish.
  
• MBAM will automatically start and you will be asked to update the program before performing a scan. If an update is found, the program will automatically update itself. Press the OK button to close that box and continue. If you encounter any problems while downloading the updates, manually download them from here and just double-click on mbam-rules.exe to install.
  
• On the Scanner tab:
  • Make sure the "Perform Quick Scan" option is selected.
    
  • Then click on the Scan button.
  
  
• If asked to select the drives to scan, leave all the drives selected and click on the Start Scan button.
  
• The scan will begin and "Scan in progress" will show at the top. It may take some time to complete so please be patient.
  
• When the scan is finished, a message box will say "The scan completed successfully. Click 'Show Results' to display all objects found".
  
• Click OK to close the message box and continue with the removal process.
  
• Back at the main Scanner screen, click on the Show Results button to see a list of any malware that was found.
  
• Make sure that everything is checked, and click Remove Selected.
  
• When removal is completed, a log report will open in Notepad and you may be prompted to restart your computer. (see Note below)
  
• The log is automatically saved and can be viewed by clicking the Logs tab in MBAM.
  
• Copy and paste the contents of that report in your next reply and exit MBAM.

Note: If MBAM encounters a file that is difficult to remove, you will be presented with 1 of 2 prompts. Click OK to either and let MBAM proceed with the disinfection process. If asked to restart the computer, please do so immediately. Failure to reboot will prevent MBAM from removing all the malware.

Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware 1.28
Database version: 1182
Windows 5.1.2600 Service Pack 3

9/20/2008 6:03:45 PM
mbam-log-2008-09-20 (18-03-45).txt

Scan type: Quick Scan
Objects scanned: 65997
Time elapsed: 6 minute(s), 36 second(s)

Memory Processes Infected: 0
Memory Modules Infected: 0
Registry Keys Infected: 0
Registry Values Infected: 0
Registry Data Items Infected: 0
Folders Infected: 0
Files Infected: 0

Memory Processes Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Memory Modules Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Registry Keys Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Registry Values Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Registry Data Items Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Folders Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Files Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Please download hosts.zip and save it to your Desktop.

• Extract (unzip) the file to its own folder C:\hosts. (Click here for information on how to do this if not sure.)
  
• Open up the hosts folder and double-click on the mvps.bat file.
  
• The script will rename your present HOSTS file to HOSTS.MVP and copy the new HOSTS file to the correct location on your system.
  
• You can read more about what we are doing in Blocking Unwanted Parasites with a Hosts File.

MVPS HOSTS File Install Instructions with screenshots if you need them.

Then download and install SpywareBlaster.

Okay did that this morning and now throughout the day I am getting the same result just now it is several differnt sites instead of the usual ad.yieldmanager.com not it is pn1.adserver.yahoo and a couple of hours ago it was a differnt one and couple hours before that yet another different one than either of the two previously mentioned. Although I have not seen the ad.yieldmanager.com I now have seen 3 new sites pop up in my list of visited sites and when I press back button nothing happens. I even turned on ad-watch just the cookie setting turned on and it has detected nothing. I just don't know what else to do, I even went as far as running all my virus softwares in safe mode and still this happens.

I think Quietman7 will answer here... (?)

What browser are you using? If you are using IE, have you checked the Pop-up Blocker Settings?

Check your Trusted Sites List and look for unwanted websites related to any of the pop ups you are getting. If you find any, then remove them.

Please download DelDomains.inf
alternate download

• Save it to your desktop.
  
• Right-click DelDomains.inf and select: Install (no need to restart).
  
• You may not see any noticeable changes or prompts - this is normal.
  
• Note: The DelDomains.inf file will remove ALL entries in the Trusted, Restricted, and Enhanced Security Configuration Zones. Any entries that you had will need to be entered again. You will have to reimmunize with SpywareBlaster, ZonedOut and/or Spybot after doing this if you use any of these programs.

You may also have other malware on your system that has not been detected so lets try another scan.

Please download ATF Cleaner by Atribune & save it to your desktop. alternate download link DO NOT use yet.
Please download and install SUPERAntiSpyware Free

• Double-click SUPERAntiSypware.exe and use the default settings for installation.
  
• An icon will be created on your desktop. Double-click that icon to launch the program.
  
• If asked to update the program definitions, click "Yes". If not, update the definitions before scanning by selecting "Check for Updates". (If you encounter any problems while downloading the updates, manually download them from here and unzip into the program's folder.)
  
• In the Main Menu, click the Preferences... button.
  
• Click the "General and Startup" tab, and under Start-up Options, make sure "Start SUPERAntiSpyware when Windows starts" box is unchecked.
  
• Click the "Scanning Control" tab, and under Scanner Options, make sure the following are checked (leave all others unchecked):
  • Close browsers before scanning.
    
  • Scan for tracking cookies.
    
  • Terminate memory threats before quarantining.
  
  
• Click the "Close" button to leave the control center screen and exit the program.
  
• Do not run a scan just yet.

Reboot your computer in "Safe Mode" using the F8 method. To do this, restart your computer and after hearing your computer beep once during startup (but before the Windows icon appears) press the F8 key repeatedly. A menu will appear with several options. Use the arrow keys to navigate and select the option to run Windows in "Safe Mode".

Double-click ATF-Cleaner.exe to run the program.

• Under Main "Select Files to Delete" choose: Select All.
  
• Click the Empty Selected button.
  
• If you use Firefox browser click Firefox at the top and choose: Select All
  
• Click the Empty Selected button.
  If you would like to keep your saved passwords, please click No at the prompt.
  
• If you use Opera browser click Opera at the top and choose: Select All
  
• Click the Empty Selected button.
  If you would like to keep your saved passwords, please click No at the prompt.
  
• Click Exit on the Main menu to close the program.

Note: On Vista, "Windows Temp" is disabled. To empty "Windows Temp" ATF-Cleaner must be "Run as an Administrator".

Scan with SUPERAntiSpyware as follows:

• Launch the program and back on the main screen, under "Scan for Harmful Software" click Scan your computer.
  
• On the left, make sure you check C:\Fixed Drive.
  
• On the right, under "Complete Scan", choose Perform Complete Scan and click "Next".
  
• After the scan is complete, a Scan Summary box will appear with potentially harmful items that were detected. Click "OK".
  
• Make sure everything has a checkmark next to it and click "Next".
  
• A notification will appear that "Quarantine and Removal is Complete". Click "OK" and then click the "Finish" button to return to the main menu.
  
• If asked if you want to reboot, click "Yes" and reboot normally.
  
• To retrieve the removal information after reboot, launch SUPERAntispyware again.
  • Click Preferences, then click the Statistics/Logs tab.
    
  • Under Scanner Logs, double-click SUPERAntiSpyware Scan Log.
    
  • If there are several logs, click the current dated log and press View log. A text file will open in your default text editor.
    
  • Please copy and paste the Scan Log results in your next reply.
  
  
• Click Close to exit the program.

Okay, I have completed all the steps listed and the super anti spy software found no problems, just a note in safe mode it took like 12 hours or more to complete the scan but found 0 over each scan. Also completed atf cleaner and the other item you wanted me to install I guess I will just monitor it for a couple of days and if the problem returns I will let you know.

If there are no more problems or signs of infection, you should Create a New Restore Point to prevent possible reinfection from an old one. Some of the malware you picked up could have been saved in System Restore. Since this is a protected directory your tools cannot access to delete these files, they sometimes can reinfect your system if you accidentally use an old restore point. Setting a new restore point AFTER cleaning your system will help prevent this and enable your computer to "roll-back" to a clean working state.

The easiest and safest way to do this is:

• Go to Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools and click "System Restore".
  
• Choose the radio button marked "Create a Restore Point" on the first screen then click "Next". Give the R.P. a name, then click "Create". The new point will be stamped with the current date and time. Keep a log of this so you can find it easily should you need to use System Restore.

• Then use Disk Cleanup to remove all but the most recently created Restore Point.
  
• Go to Start > Run and type: Cleanmgr
  
• Click "Ok"
  
• Disk Cleanup will scan your files for several minutes, then open.
  
• Click the "More Options" Tab.
  
• Click the "Clean up" button under System Restore.
  
• Click Ok. You will be prompted with "Are you sure you want to delete all but the most recent restore point?"
  
• Click Yes, then click Ok.
  
• Click Yes again when prompted with "Are you sure you want to perform these actions?"
  
• Disk Cleanup will remove the files and close automatically.

Did the restore stuff the other day and haven't really used the pc that much the last few days. Got on tonight spent about a minute on ebay and here we go first item I looked at hit the back button and nothing happened pulled the drop down arrow and found the last two pages showed this address: pn1.adserver.yahoo.com/a?kw=alpi So any other thoughts about what I might do? I sure am at a loss.

There may be another piece of malware on your system that we have not found so further investigation is required. Before that can be done you will need you to create and post a hijackthis log.

Please read the pinned topic titled "Preparation Guide For Use Before Posting A Hijackthis Log". If you cannot complete a step, then skip it and continue with the next. In Step 9 there are instructions for downloading the HijackThis Installer and creating a log. This is an automatic setup version which will install the program in the proper location.

When you have done that, post your log in the HijackThis Logs and Malware Removal forum, NOT here, for assistance by the HJT Team Experts. A member of the Team will walk you through, step by step, on how to clean your computer. If you post your log back in this thread, the response from the HJT Team will be delayed because your post will have to be moved. This means it will fall in line behind any others posted that same day.

Start a new topic, give it a relevant title and post your log along with a brief description of your problem, a summary of any anti-malware tools you have used and a summary of any steps that you have performed on your own. An expert will analyze your log and reply with instructions advising you what to fix. After doing this, we would appreciate if you post a link to your log back here so we know that your getting help from the HJT Team.

Please be patient. It may take a while to get a response because the HJT Team members are very busy working logs posted before yours. They are volunteers who will help you out as soon as possible. Once you have made your post and are waiting, please DO NOT "bump" your post or make another reply until it has been responded to by a member of the HJT Team. Generally the staff checks the forum for postings that have 0 replies as this makes it easier for them to identify those who have not been helped. If you post another response there will be 1 reply. A team member, looking for a new log to work may assume another HJT Team member is already assisting you and not open the thread to respond.

If after 5 days you still have received no response, then post a link to your HJT log in the thread titled "Haven't Had A Reply In Five Days?".