BleepingComputer.com: Wiped out icons

Something on my wife's laptop completely wiped out her icons and right clicking on the screen has no effect. The only way I managed to access her computer at all was cntrl-alt-delete then new task and browse. The browser kept re-directing every time I did a search. I used stopzilla thinking that would help - but not much. They want $100 to go in and figure it out. I half think they did it to her computer so they could make money...
HELP! (No I dont have my OS disc anymore - I have no idea what happened to it..)

Do you still have the Taskbar and Start button?

No it wiped them out too

Try new task, explorer.exe by your Task manager.

Hi StumpedOne

It sounds like a browser hijack, virus, rootkit problem..I would recommend posting in the malware removal forum..



Pauline

jhayz, on 28 October 2011 - 07:45 PM, said:

It states windows cannot access .You may not have the appropriate permissions to access the item

Hello, I moved this from XP to Am I Infected
As you do not have a disk we can only try a couple things..



This infection family will also hide all the files on your computer from being seen. To make your files visible again, please download the following program to your desktop:

Unhide.exe

Once the program has been downloaded, double-click on the Unhide.exe icon on your desktop and allow the program to run. This program will remove the +H, or hidden, attribute from all the files on your hard drives. If there are any files that were purposely hidden by you, you will need to hide them again after this tool is run.


If you can Next run MBAM (MalwareBytes):

Please download Malwarebytes Anti-Malware and save it to your desktop.

Download Link 1
Download Link 2

MBAM may "make changes to your registry" as part of its disinfection routine. If using other security programs that detect registry changes (ie Spybot's Teatimer), they may interfere or alert you. Temporarily disable such programs or permit them to allow the changes.

• Make sure you are connected to the Internet.
  
• Double-click on mbam-setup.exe to install the application.
  For instructions with screenshots, please refer to the How to use Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware Guide.
  
• 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 definition 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.
  
• 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.
  
• Exit MBAM when done.

Note: If MBAM encounters a file that is difficult to remove, you will be asked to reboot your computer so MBAM can proceed with the disinfection process. If asked to restart the computer, please do so immediately. Failure to reboot normally (not into safe mode) will prevent MBAM from removing all the malware.

Troubleshoot Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware