Remove Proof Defender 2009 (Uninstall Guide)

Posted by Lawrence Abrams on September 9, 2009 @ 04:19 PM · Views: 3,400

 

What this infection does:

Proof Defender 2009 is a rogue anti-spyware program from the same family as Perfect Defender 2009. This rogue is promoted through the use of malware and web pop-ups that state your computer is infected and then suggest that you use an online anti-malware scanner to check your computer. When you click on this pop-up you will automatically be brought to a page that shows an advertisement that pretends to be an online anti-malware scanner. When this advertisement is finished, it will state that your computer is infected and then prompt you to download and install Proof Defender 2009. It should be noted that this advertisement has no way of knowing what is running on your computer and is just trying to trick you into thinking there is a security problem.

 

Proof Defender 2009
For more screen shots of this infection click on the image above.
There are a total of 3 images you can view.

 

If you decide to install Proof Defender, it will be configured to start automatically when you login to Windows. Once started, it will automatically perform a scan and when finished state that your computer is infected with a variety of malware that it will not remove until you purchase the program. The malware it detects, though, are actually fake and do not exist on your computer at all. These results are only being shown to scare you into thinking you are infected in the hopes that you will then purchase Proof Defender 2009. If this rogue was installed via malware then you will also see pop-ups on your Windows desktop stating that your computer is infected, with further prompting for you to purchase the program.

If you find that Proof Defender 2009 is on your computer, then please do not purchase it. If you have already purchased it, then you should contact your credit card company and dispute the charges as it is scam. Finally, to remove this infection and any related malware, please use the removal guide below.

 

Threat Classification:

• Information on Rogue Programs & Scareware

 

Advanced information:

View Proof Defender 2009 files.
View Proof Defender 2009 Registry Information.

 

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

Uninstall Proof Defender 2009

 

Tools Needed for this fix:

• Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware

 

Symptoms that may be in a HijackThis Log:

O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [Proof Defender 2009] "C:\Program Files\Proof Defender 2009\pdfndr.exe"

 

Guide Updates:

09/09/09 - Initial guide creation.

 

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Automated Removal Instructions for Proof Defender 2009 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 Proof Defender 2009 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 Proof Defender 2009 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 Proof Defender 2009 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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Associated Proof Defender 2009 Files:

c:\Program Files\Proof Defender 2009
c:\Program Files\Proof Defender 2009\dbbase.div
c:\Program Files\Proof Defender 2009\pd.dll
c:\Program Files\Proof Defender 2009\pdfndr.exe
c:\Program Files\Proof Defender 2009\UnInstall.exe
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\Proof Defender 2009
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\Proof Defender 2009\Proof Defender 2009.lnk
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\Proof Defender 2009\Uninstall Proof Defender 2009.lnk

 

Associated Proof Defender 2009 Windows Registry Information:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\PDefender
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\PDefender
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run "Proof Defender 2009"