BleepingComputer.com: Adware in the Extreme?

Well, after at least a week of trying to handle this on my own, I've decided to come here for help. This certainly isn't the most serious infection I've ever dealt with. It doesn't appear to pose an immediate threat to my documents or my computer's security. But I can't get the damn thing off my computer.

About two weeks ago, Norton picked up on a file named "Suspicious.Cloud". It was a trojan. Shocker, right? I looked it up, and apparently it acts like a chameleon of sorts by constantly changing its coding so antiviruses can't pick up on it. I didn't download anything; Norton found it right after I updated my definitions, so I assume it had been on my computer for a while. My computer hadn't been acting funky, though, and Norton said it successfully removed it, so I didn't pay it much attention.

A few days later, I was Googling something- don't remember what, though I doubt it matters, as I didn't visit any suspicious looking sites -I clicked on one of the links, and instead of being taken to the website Google had listed, I was redirected to some "Monster Marketplace". I backed up and clicked the link again, and I was taken to the website I originally intended to go to. This kept happening throughout the night. Norton didn't pick up on anything, though I ran MBAM and had it remove three files it found. That seemed to be the problem, but soon I started getting redirected again, and to even more sites this time. I ran HijackThis and deleted two suspicious files... can't remember what they were called, something with "adhook" in the name, and I figured that they couldn't be good. Again, the problem subsided for a bit, but now I'm being redirected to even MORE sites- eBay, Scour.com, video sites, and more that I didn't bother to identify. The Monster Marketplace still comes up on occasion, as well.

Looking through my history, I've found some suspicious looking pages; one named "Redirect", which always comes up before the Monster Marketplace site; a bit more than a dozen called "nclk", that lead me to the sites I'm getting redirected to; and two named "c.php". This "c.php" might be the cause of my problem: when I clicked this, I was redirected to a very slow loading page, which abruptly had its connection reset when Norton popped up and said that "a recent attempt to attack my computer was blocked".

There's a depressingly small amount of reliable information on this out there. The virus (or whatever you'd call this) seems to have several different strains that redirect to different websites at different levels of frequency- compared to what I've read, I'm lucky in that this only happens about half the time, and that I can simply go back a page and click the link again to correct it. However, I'd like to correct the problem before it becomes more serious.

...wow, that's a lot of text. Anyone that bothers to read all that, could you please give me some suggestions?

This post has been edited by hamluis: 03 April 2011 - 04:47 PM
Reason for edit: Moved from XP to Am I Infected.

Note: This seems to be a recurring issue on this forum. Can anyone give me a solution?

Hello, can you post that MBAM log?

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. Be sure to post the complete log to include the top portion which shows MBAM's database version and your operating system.


Please download the TDSS Rootkit Removing Tool (TDSSKiller.exe) and save it to your Desktop. <-Important!!!
Be sure to download TDSSKiller.exe (v2.4.0.0) from Kaspersky's website and not TDSSKiller.zip which appears to be an older version 2.3.2.2 of the tool.

• Double-click on TDSSKiller.exe to run the tool for known TDSS variants.
  Vista/Windows 7 users right-click and select Run As Administrator.
  
• If TDSSKiller does not run, try renaming it.
  
• To do this, right-click on TDSSKiller.exe, select Rename and give it a random name with the .com file extension (i.e. 123abc.com). If you do not see the file extension, please refer to How to change the file extension.
  
• Click the Start Scan button.
  
• Do not use the computer during the scan
  
• If the scan completes with nothing found, click Close to exit.
  
• If malicious objects are found, they will show in the Scan results - Select action for found objects and offer three options.
  
• Ensure Cure (default) is selected, then click Continue > Reboot now to finish the cleaning process.
  
• A log file named TDSSKiller_version_date_time_log.txt (i.e. TDSSKiller.2.4.0.0_27.07.2010_09.o7.26_log.txt) will be created and saved to the root directory (usually Local Disk C:).
  
• Copy and paste the contents of that file in your next reply.

If one or more files on your computer have been classified as having a Suspicious.Cloud.5 threat, this indicates that the files have suspicious characteristics and therefore might contain a new or unknown threat. However, given the sensitive nature of this detection technology, it may occasionally identify non-malicious, legitimate software programs that also share these behavioral characteristics. Therefore, it is recommended that users manually check all files detected as Suspicious.Cloud.5 by Symantec antivirus products for potential misidentification, and submit any suspect files.

Have you submitted the file to Symantec ot another like VirusTotal?

Hello, and thank you for replying. The MBAM log, as per your request:
---------------------------------------
Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware 1.50.1.1100
www.malwarebytes.org

Database version: 6242

Windows 5.1.2600 Service Pack 3
Internet Explorer 8.0.6001.18702

4/1/2011 10:32:09 PM
mbam-log-2011-04-01 (22-32-09).txt

Scan type: Quick scan
Objects scanned: 161373
Time elapsed: 6 minute(s), 17 second(s)

Memory Processes Infected: 0
Memory Modules Infected: 1
Registry Keys Infected: 0
Registry Values Infected: 1
Registry Data Items Infected: 0
Folders Infected: 0
Files Infected: 1

Memory Processes Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Memory Modules Infected:
c:\WINDOWS\medics.dll (Trojan.Hiloti) -> Delete on reboot.

Registry Keys Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Registry Values Infected:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\Pbiqapax (Trojan.Hiloti) -> Value: Pbiqapax -> Delete on reboot.

Registry Data Items Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Folders Infected:
(No malicious items detected)

Files Infected:
c:\WINDOWS\medics.dll (Trojan.Hiloti) -> Delete on reboot.
----------------------------------------------------------
I rebooted my computer after this scan, and two error messages popped up saying that the medics.dll file could not be found. I took this to mean that the removal was a success.

Just ran the TDSS Rootkit Tool, the scan came up empty.

I just checked Norton's Security log, and apparently at the same time as the Suspicious.Cloud.5 I mentioned before, a whole lot of high-risk infected files were downloaded to my computer within a time frame of about two minutes. They were all temporary files and all six had similar names, which indicates to me that they may be from the same source. Specifically, there was one classified as a Backdoor.Trojan, one classified as a Trojan.FakeAV!Gen42, the Suspicious.Cloud.5 I mentioned before, and three files called "menoxacrws.tmp" that were quarantined for "suspicious behavior".

This post has been edited by Royalpeach: 03 April 2011 - 10:41 PM

OK lats clear the Temp files and run A Safe mode scan. I have to leave now but i'll look back tomorrow.
Run TFC by OT (Temp File Cleaner)
Please download TFC by Old Timer and save it to your desktop.
alternate download link

Save any unsaved work. TFC will close ALL open programs including your browser!
Double-click on TFC.exe to run it. If you are using Vista, right-click on the file and choose Run As Administrator.
Click the Start button to begin the cleaning process and let it run uninterrupted to completion.
Important! If TFC prompts you to reboot, please do so immediately. If not prompted, manually reboot the machine anyway to ensure a complete clean.

Reboot into Safe Mode with Networking
How to enter safe mode(XP/Vista)
Using the F8 Method
Restart your computer.
When the machine first starts again it will generally list some equipment that is installed in your machine, amount of memory, hard drives installed etc. At this point you should gently tap the F8 key repeatedly until you are presented with a Windows XP Advanced Options menu.
Select the option for Safe Mode with Networking using the arrow keys.
Then press enter on your keyboard to boot into Safe Mode.


>>>> Download this file and doubleclick on it to run it. Allow the information to be merged with the registry.

RKill....

Download and Run RKill

Please download RKill by Grinler from one of the 4 links below and save it to your desktop.

Link 1
Link 2
Link 3
Link 4



• Before we begin, you should disable your anti-malware softwares you have installed so they do not interfere RKill running as some anti-malware softwares detect RKill as malicious. Please refer to this page if you are not sure how.
  
  
• Double-click on Rkill on your desktop to run it. (If you are using Windows Vista, please right-click on it and select Run As Administrator)
  
  
• A black screen will appear and then disappear. Please do not worry, that is normal. This means that the tool has been successfully executed.
  
  
• If nothing happens or if the tool does not run, please let me know in your next reply

Do not reboot your computer after running rkill as the malware programs will start again. Or if rebooting is required run it again.


If you continue having problems running rkill.com, you can download iExplore.exe or eXplorer.exe, which are renamed copies of rkill.com, and try them instead.



Next run Superantisypware (SAS):

Download and scan with SUPERAntiSpyware Free for Home Users

• Double-click SUPERAntiSpyware.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. Double-click on the hyperlink for Download Installer and save SASDEFINITIONS.EXE to your desktop. Then double-click on SASDEFINITIONS.EXE to install the definitions.)
  
• In the Main Menu, click the Preferences... button.
  
• Click the Scanning Control tab.
  
• 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.
  
• 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.
  
• Click "Next" to start the scan. Please be patient while it scans your computer.
  
• 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".
  
• 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.

If you have a problem downloading, installing or getting SAS to run, try downloading and using the SUPERAntiSpyware Portable Scanner instead. Save the randomly named file (i.e. SAS_1710895.COM) to a usb drive or CD and transfer to the infected computer. Then double-click on it to launch and scan. The file is randomly named to help keep malware from blocking the scanner.

Alright, well, I just got home and restarted my computer, and now I'm experiencing a severe dip in performance. For good measure, I'm doing a Norton scan just to see if it can clean anything up before I download the programs you suggested; at this rate, it would probably take me half an hour to get to this post from my computer, and each program another half hour to download. I couldn't open Firefox, either. Not sure if it's due to malware blocking it or just the extreme lag I'm experiencing, but either way, it looks like things just took a turn for the worse. Later, I'll try downloading the files to a flash drive from this computer and running them that way.

Also, I opened up Task Manager to kill Firefox, and I noticed some processes I didn't recognize. They were eating up a lot of memory, so I ended them, but if they show up again I'll give you the names. (Probably not the best course of action I could've taken, I know.)

P.S. Norton's been running for 22 minutes and counting. It's scanned 40000 files.

This post has been edited by Royalpeach: 04 April 2011 - 06:55 PM