Remove Antivirus System Pro (Uninstall Guide)

Posted by Grinler on June 5, 2009 @ 08:54 AM · Views: 292,231

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What this programs does:

Antivirus System Pro is a rogue anti-spyware that uses false scan results, fake security alerts, and Internet Explorer hijacking in order to have you purchase this program. It is because of these actions that we classify Antivirus System Pro as a rogue anti-spyware program. When installed, Antivirus System pro will be configured to start automatically when you log into Windows. Once running it will scan your computer and display numerous infections that do not actually exist. Furthermore, it will state it will not remove these infections unless you first purchase the program. This method of stating there are infections, but not removing it until you purchase it, is just another tactic to have you purchase the software.

Antivirus System Pro screen shot
For more screen shots of this infection click on the image above.
There are a total of 6 images you can view.

While running, you will also be constantly barraged with fake security alerts stating that your computer is under attack or that you have viruses on your computer. For example, one alert is labeled Infiltration Alert and it states that your computer is being attacked by an Internet Virus. Another alert prompts you to scan your computer and when you click on it, will automatically launch Antivirus System Pro and then prompt you to purchase it. The text of this alert is:

Windows Security alert
Windows reports that computer is infected. Antivirus software helps to protect your computer against viruses and other security threats. Click here for the scan you computer. Your system might be at risk now.

Last, but not least, Antivirus System Pro will install a Internet Explorer Browser Helper Object that will hijack Internet Explorer so that when you are browsing web sites, instead of going to the page you want, you will be shown a warning message. This warning message will state that the site you are going to is harmful to your computer and that you should purchase Antivirus System Pro to protect yourself.

As you can see, this program utilizes many tactics to make you think you are infected and thus tricking you into purchase the program. Please do not purchase this program as it will not protect your computer in any way. Instead, use the guide below to remove this infection and any related malware for free.

Threat Classification:

• Information on Rogue Programs & Scareware

Advanced information:

View Antivirus System Pro files.
View Antivirus System Pro Registry Information.

Tools Needed for this fix:

• Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware

Symptoms that may be in a HijackThis Log:

The filenames may be random.

O1 - Hosts: ::1 localhost
O1 - Hosts: 209.44.111.57 security.microsoft.com
O1 - Hosts: 209.44.111.57 inetavirus.com
O1 - Hosts: 209.44.111.57 www.inetavirus.com
O1 - Hosts: 91.212.127.227 osawarepro2009.microsoft.com
O1 - Hosts: 91.212.127.227 osawarepro2009.com
O1 - Hosts: 91.212.127.227 www.osawarepro2009.com
O2 - BHO: BHO - {BAD4551D-9B24-42cb-9BCD-818CA2DA7B63} - C:\WINDOWS\system32\iehelper.dll
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [system tool] C:\WINDOWS\sysguard.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [vghuvmdh] C:\Documents and Settings\Bleeping\Local Settings\Application Data\qhpwjr\excksysguard.exe
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [vghuvmdh] C:\Documents and Settings\Bleeping\Local Settings\Application Data\qhpwjr\excksysguard.exe

Guide Updates:

06/05/09 - Initial guide creation.
11/12/09 - Updated to use new removal technique due to new variant.

Automated Removal Instructions for Antivirus System Pro using Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware:

1. Print out these instructions as we may need to close every window that is open later in the fix.
   
   
2. Before we can do anything we must first end the processes that belong to Antivirus System Pro so that it does not interfere with the cleaning procedure. To do this, download the following file to your desktop.
   
   rkill.com Download Link
   
   
3. Once it is downloaded, double-click on the rkill.com in order to automatically attempt to stop any processes associated with Antivirus System Pro and other Rogue programs. Please be patient while the programs looks for various programs and closes them. When it has finished, the black window will automatically close. While rkill is running, if you get a message stating that rkill or other executable is an infection, ignore it, and let rkill.com finish. This is just the infection trying to stop rkill from terminating it. Please note, you may have to run rkill a few times before the malware process is terminated.
   
   Do not reboot your computer after running rkill as the malware programs will start again.
   
   
4. Now you should download Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware, or MBAM, from the following location and save it to your desktop:
   
   Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware Download Link
   
   


5. Once downloaded, close all programs and Windows on your computer, including this one.
   
   
6. Double-click on the icon on your desktop named mbam-setup.exe. This will start the installation of MBAM onto your computer.
   
   
7. 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. If MalwareBytes' prompts you to reboot, please do not do so.
   
   
8. 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.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
9. 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 Antivirus System Pro related files.
   
   
10. 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.
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
11. 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 Antivirus System Pro removal process.
    
    
12. You will now be back at the main Scanner screen. At this point you should click on the Show Results button.
    
    
13. 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.
    
    
14. 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.
    
    
15. You can now exit the MBAM program.
    

Your computer should now be free of the Antivirus System Pro 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 Antivirus System Pro Files:

c:\WINDOWS\sysguard.exe
c:\WINDOWS\system32\iehelper.dll

Associated Antivirus System Pro Windows Registry Information:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\AvScan
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{BAD4551D-9B24-42cb-9BCD-818CA2DA7B63}
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Browser Helper Objects\{BAD4551D-9B24-42cb-9BCD-818CA2DA7B63}
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run "system tool"