How to remove Malware Bell

Posted by Lawrence Abrams on April 16, 2008 @ 02:03 PM · Views: 12,567

 

What this infection does:

Malware Bell is a rogue anti-spyware from the same developers as IE Defender and Files Secure. Malware Bell is installed and advertised through the use of Trojans that are installed as Internet Explorer Browser Helper Objects. Once the Trojan is installed, when Internet Explorer is opened it will hijack search engine queries as well as pop up Internet Explorer windows showing different Google search queries. One of the advertisements that you are shown when you are infected is a warning stating that you have a security risk and that you should download Malware Bell.

If you choose to download and install Malware Bell, Malware Bell will scan your computer and list a variety of valid programs as security risks. An example of this type of false positive can be found below where Malware Bell is stating that a legitimate file, swg.dll, belonging to the Google Toolbar is a malware file. In order to remove these supposed infections, though, you must first purchase a license of the software.

Below are screen shots of MalwareBell and one of its false positives.

 

 

 

 

This guide will walk you through removing the Malware Bell program.

 

Threat Classification:

• Information on Rogue Programs & Scareware

 

Advanced information:

View Malware Bell files.
View Malware Bell Registry Information.

 

Entries for this program found in the Add or Remove Programs control panel:

Malware Bell

 

Tools Needed for this fix:

• Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware
• SmitFraudFix

 

Symptoms that may be in a HijackThis Log:

O2 - BHO: (no name) - {53E30863-280F-4CFA-99AB-55CAEB95271C} - (no file)

 

Guide Updates:

04/16/08 - Initial guide creation.

 

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Choose the removal method you would like to use:

• Automated Removal using Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware
• Automated Removal using SmitFraudFix

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Automated Removal Instructions for Malware Bell 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 (Download page will open in a new window)
   
   


3. Once downloaded, close all programs and Windows on your computer, including this one.
   
   
4. Double-click on the icon on your desktop named 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 full scan option is selected and then click on the Scan button to start scanning your computer for Malware Bell 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 MalwareBell 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 MalwareBell 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 Using Malware Removal Tools and Requesting Help

 

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Automated Removal Instructions for Malware Bell using SmitFraudFix:

 

1. Print out these instructions as we will need to close every window that is open later in the fix.
   
   
2. Download SmitfraudFix.exe from here and save it to your desktop:
   
   SmitFraudFix.exe
   
   Confirm that the file SmitfraudFix.exe now resides on your desktop, but do not double-click on the icon as of yet. We will use it in later steps. The icon will look like the one below:
   
   
   
   


3. Next, please reboot your computer into Safe Mode by doing the following:
   
   
   1. Restart your computer
      
      
   2. After hearing your computer beep once during startup, but before the Windows icon appears, press F8.
      
      
   3. Instead of Windows loading as normal, a menu should appear
      
      
   4. Select the first option, to run Windows in Safe Mode.
      
      
   5. When you are at the logon prompt, log in as the same user that you had performed the previous steps as.
      
      
4. When your computer has started in safe mode, and you see the desktop, close all open Windows.
   
   
5. Now, double-click on the SmitFraudfix icon that should be residing on your desktop.The icon will look like the one below:
   
   
   
   
6. When the tool first starts you will see a credits screen. Simply press any key on your keyboard to get to the next screen.
   
   
7. You will now see a menu as shown in the image below. Press the number 2 on your keyboard and the press the enter key to choose the option Clean (safe mode recommended).
   
   
   
   


8. The program will start cleaning your computer and go through a series of cleanup processes. When it is done, it will automatically start the Disk Cleanup program as shown by the image below.
   
   
   
   
   
   This program will remove all Temp, Temporary Internet Files, and other files that may be leftover files from this infection. This process can take up to a few hours depending on your computer, so please be patient. When it is complete, it will close automatically and you will should continue with step 11.
   
   
9. When Disk Cleanup is finished, you will be presented with an option asking Do you want to clean the registry ? (y/n). At this screen you should press the Y button on your keyboard and then press the enter key.
   



10. When this last routine is finished, you will be presented with a red screen stating Computer will reboot now. Close all applications. You should now press the spacebar on your computer. A counter will appear stating that the computer will reboot in 15 seconds. Do not cancel this countdown and allow your computer to reboot.
    
11. Once the computer has rebooted, you will be presented with a Notepad screen containing a log of all the files removed from your computer. Examine this log, and when you are done, close the Notepad screen.
    

Your computer should now be free of the Malware Bell infection.

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 Using Malware Removal Tools and Requesting Help

 

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Associated Malware Bell Files:

c:\smp.bat
c:\Documents and Settings\forensics\Local Settings\Temp\A4-tmpaoi.exe
C:\Windows\ps16sys.dll
c:\Documents and Settings\forensics\Desktop\Malware Bell 3.2.lnk
c:\Documents and Settings\forensics\Start Menu\Programs\Malware Bell 3.2.lnk
c:\Program Files\MalwareBell
c:\Program Files\MalwareBell\license.txt
c:\Program Files\MalwareBell\malwarebell.exe
c:\Program Files\MalwareBell\mb.db1
c:\Program Files\MalwareBell\mb.db2
c:\Program Files\MalwareBell\mb.db3
c:\Program Files\MalwareBell\mb.db4
c:\Program Files\MalwareBell\mb.db5
c:\Program Files\MalwareBell\mbuninst.exe

 

Associated Malware Bell Windows Registry Information:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\MalwareBell
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\Malware Bell
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Browser Helper Objects\{53E30863-280F-4CFA-99AB-55CAEB95271C}