How to remove Virus Melt (Uninstall Guide)

What this programs does:

Virus Melt is a clone of the rogue anti-spyware programs called Virus Doctor. Just like Virus Doctor, Virus Melt uses false online advertising, fake scan alerts, and false security alerts on your computer in order to coerce you into buying their program. This variant does introduce a change by installing fake malware files onto your computer. These malware files are used to impersonate real malware infections, but are in reality harmless files. They are only being installed in order for the program to be able to falsely detect them as infections.

Virus Melt screen shot
For more screen shots of this infection click on the image above.
There are a total of 13 images you can view.

Once installed, an entry to the Windows Registry will be made that causes Virus Melt to start automatically when you logon to Windows. Once running, it will perform a scan and list a variety of infections that can't be removed until you purchase the program. The infections found, though, are actually the files that were installed by the program in the first place and are all fake. While the program is running you will also be bombarded with numerous alerts and and pop-ups stating that your computer is infected, that your computer is sending out private data to remote computers, and that you need to register the program to fix all of these issues. These screens are called nag screens and are only being shown to scare you into thinking you are infected and hopefully you purchase the program. Please disregard these messages and instead use the removal guide below to remove Virus Melt for free.

Threat Classification:

• Information on Rogue Programs

Advanced information:

View Virus Melt files.
View Virus Melt Registry Information.

Tools Needed for this fix:

• Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware

Symptoms that may be in a HijackThis Log:

O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [Virus Melt] "%UserProfile%\Desktop\ReleaseXP.exe" /s

Guide Updates:

03-02-09 - Initial guide creation.

Automated Removal Instructions for Virus Melt using Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware:

1. Print out these instructions as we will need to close every window that is open later in the fix.
   
   
2. Download Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware, or MBAM, from the following location and save it to your desktop:
   
   Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware Download Link
   
   


3. Once downloaded, close all programs and Windows on your computer, including this one.
   
   
4. Double-click on the icon on your desktop named Download_mbam-setup.exe. This will start the installation of MBAM onto your computer.
   
   
5. When the installation begins, keep following the prompts in order to continue with the installation process. Do not make any changes to default settings and when the program has finished installing, make sure you leave both the Update Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware and Launch Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware checked. Then click on the Finish button.
   
   
6. MBAM will now automatically start and you will see a message stating that you should update the program before performing a scan. As MBAM will automatically update itself after the install, you can press the OK button to close that box and you will now be at the main program as shown below.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
7. On the Scanner tab, make sure the the Perform quick scan option is selected and then click on the Scan button to start scanning your computer for Virus Melt related files.
   
   
8. MBAM will now start scanning your computer for malware. This process can take quite a while, so we suggest you go and do something else and periodically check on the status of the scan. When MBAM is scanning it will look like the image below.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
9. When the scan is finished a message box will appear as shown in the image below.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   You should click on the OK button to close the message box and continue with the Virus Melt 2009 removal process.
   
   
10. You will now be back at the main Scanner screen. At this point you should click on the Show Results button.
    
    
11. A screen displaying all the malware that the program found will be shown as seen in the image below. Please note that the infections found may be different than what is shown in the image.
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    You should now click on the Remove Selected button to remove all the listed malware. MBAM will now delete all of the files and registry keys and add them to the programs quarantine. When removing the files, MBAM may require a reboot in order to remove some of them. If it displays a message stating that it needs to reboot, please allow it to do so. Once your computer has rebooted, and you are logged in, please continue with the rest of the steps.
    
    
12. When MBAM has finished removing the malware, it will open the scan log and display it in Notepad. Review the log as desired, and then close the Notepad window.
    
    
13. You can now exit the MBAM program.
    

Your computer should now be free of the VirusMelt program. If your current anti-virus solution let this infection through, you may want to consider purchasing the PRO version of Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware to protect against these types of threats in the future.

If you are still having problems with your computer after completing these instructions, then please follow the steps outlined in the topic linked below:

Preparation Guide For Use Before Posting A Hijackthis Log

Associated Virus Melt Files:

c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\7c69f0c
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\7c69f0c\VMelt.exe
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\7c69f0c\System Data
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\7c69f0c\System Data\vd952342.bd
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\System Data
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\System Data\mscfg.ini
c:\WINDOWS\$NtServicePackUninstall$\SICKBOY.exe
c:\WINDOWS\assembly\GAC_MSIL\System.Web.Mobile\2.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a\ANTIGEN.sys
c:\WINDOWS\ie7\delfile.sys
c:\WINDOWS\ie7\sld.exe
c:\WINDOWS\inf\sld.sys
c:\WINDOWS\Installer\$PatchCache$\Managed\D6461317C3DC4F04799BDCE9E42626FE\2.0.50727\exec.dll
c:\WINDOWS\Installer\$PatchCache$\Managed\D6461317C3DC4F04799BDCE9E42626FE\2.0.50727\SM.exe
c:\WINDOWS\pchealth\helpctr\System\Remote Assistance\Common\gid.dll
c:\WINDOWS\Prefetch\fix.drv
c:\WINDOWS\system32\mui\0009\snl2w.sys
c:\WINDOWS\system32\mui\0401\fix.drv
c:\WINDOWS\system32\mui\0401\PE.sys
%UserProfile%\Application Data\Virus Melt
%UserProfile%\Application Data\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\Virus Melt.lnk
%UserProfile%\Application Data\Virus Melt\Instructions.ini
%UserProfile%\Application Data\Virus Melt\wrkdata.cfg
%UserProfile%\Desktop\Virus Melt.lnk
%UserProfile%\Start Menu\Virus Melt.lnk
%UserProfile%\Start Menu\Programs\Virus Melt.lnk

Associated Virus Melt Windows Registry Information:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{3F2BBC05-40DF-11D2-9455-00104BC936FF}
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\VMelt.DocHostUIHandler
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\5.0\User Agent\Post Platform "URVMLT[]"
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run "Virus Melt"

BleepingComputer.com can not be held responsible for problems that may occur by using this information. If you would like help with any of these fixes, you can post a HijackThis log in our HijackThis Logs and Analysis forum.

If you have any questions about this self-help guide then please post those questions in our AntiVirus, Firewall and Privacy Products and Protection Methods forum and someone will help you.