Remove PCAntiMalware (Removal Guide)

Posted by Grinler on April 27, 2009 @ 05:58 PM · Views: 1,727

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What this programs does:

PCAntiMalware is a a rogue anti-spyware program from the same family as Cleaner2009 and AntiMalwareSuite. PCAntiMalware is considered a rogue program because it is promoted through the use of Trojans and also displays false scan results as a tactic to have you purchase the software. When you are infected with certain Trojans you will begin to see messages from your Windows taskbar stating that your computer is infected and that you should install PCAntiMalware. When you click on these alerts, this program will be installed without your consent onto your computer. After downloading, PCAntiMalware will be configured to start automatically, and once running, scan your computer. When the scan has finished it will display a variety of fake infections, such as the KeyHost Trojan, but will not remove any of them until you purchase the program. These supposed infections, though, are all fake and are only being shown to scare you into purchasing the program.

PCAntiMalware screen shot
For more screen shots of this infection click on the image above.
There are a total of 4 images you can view.

While PCAntiMalware is running it will also generate nag screens and fake security alerts on your desktop. These alerts will be displayed on top of your running programs and will not minimize until you acknowledge them in some manner. Your computer may also begin to operate slower because PCAntiMalware is always running in the background and using up your computer's resources. If you suspect that you are infected with this rogue, or the Trojans that advertise it, then please do not purchase the program. Instead use the free removal guide below to remove PCAntiMalware from your computer.

Threat Classification:

• Information on Rogue Programs & Scareware

Advanced information:

View PCAntiMalware files.
View PCAntiMalware Registry Information.

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

PCAntiMalware 4.1.228.0

Tools Needed for this fix:

• Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware

Symptoms that may be in a HijackThis Log:

O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [PCAntiMalware] "c:\program files\pcantimalware\pcam.exe" /min

Guide Updates:

04/27/09 - Initial guide creation.

Automated Removal Instructions for PCAntiMalware 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 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 PCAntiMalware 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 PCAntiMalware 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 PCAntiMalware 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 PCAntiMalware Files:

c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\PCAntiMalware
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\PCAntiMalware\Data
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\PCAntiMalware\Data\Abbr
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\PCAntiMalware\Data\ProductCode
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\PCAntiMalware
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\PCAntiMalware\Contact customer support.url
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\PCAntiMalware\PCAntiMalware on the Web.url
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\PCAntiMalware\PCAntiMalware.lnk
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\PCAntiMalware\Uninstall PCAntiMalware.lnk
%UserProfile%\Application Data\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\PCAntiMalware.lnk
%UserProfile%\Desktop\PCAntiMalware.lnk
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\Activate.dat
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\appupdate.dat
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\AsAgents.dll
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\AsAgents.xml
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\atl71.dll
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\AutoProcess.dat
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\dbupdate.dat
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\InstUp.exe
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\lapv.dat
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\license.rtf
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\mfc71.dll
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\msvcp71.dll
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\msvcr71.dll
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\PCAM.exe
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\PCAM.xml
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\PP.exe
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\pv.dat
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\readme.rtf
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\scanlog.xml
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\settings.ini
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\shellext.dll
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\shellext.xml
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\Summary.dat
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\tasks.dat
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\threatnet.dat
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\threatnet.ini
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\unins000.dat
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\unins000.exe
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\uninstall.ico
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\UserAgent.dll
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\database
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\database\knownfiles.dat
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\database\MalwareDB.dat
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\database\TEBase.dat
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\database\vbpv.dat
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\quaratine.dat
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\quaratine.dat\#post_quarantine
c:\Program Files\PCAntiMalware\RTMonitor.dat
c:\WINDOWS\system32\bootrem.exe

Associated PCAntiMalware Windows Registry Information:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\PCAntiMalware
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\ExplorerWAS
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\amshellext.ShellHook
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\amshellext.ShellHook.1
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{_CLSID_WAShellExecuteCheck}
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{4567AB12-EDED-4675-AF10-BA15EDDB4D7A}
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{4ADD95DA-B25D-4d21-9C5C-05FC6DE05860}
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\ExplorerWAS
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\ExplorerWAS
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Interface\{4567AB12-A884-4CA6-B739-CEDB12FEF096}
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\TypeLib\{4567AB12-7DFC-4C46-BD8F-41259D169A0D}
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\TypeLib\{4567AB12-AE24-4FD6-B479-E2B464F32DA6}
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\washellext.WASContextMenu
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\washellext.WASContextMenu.1
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\PSAMAP_is1
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\PCAntiMalware
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\ShellExecuteHooks "{4ADD95DA-B25D-4D21-9C5C-05FC6DE05860}"
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\5.0\User Agent\Post Platform "UPSAMAP 4.1.228.0"
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run "PCAntiMalware"