How to remove Security Central

Posted by Grinler on July 8, 2009 @ 01:41 PM · Views: 2,631

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What this programs does:

Security Central is a rogue anti-spyware program that uses deceptive advertising and aggressive techniques to protect itself from removal. This program is installed without your consent through the use of malware that when executed, silently downloads and installs Security Central in the background and then launches the program. Once the program is launched it will scan your computer and then display a variety of false infections that were supposedly detected. It will not, though, allow you to remove any of these infections without first purchasing the program. These infections are all not really there, so you do not need to be concerned as Security Central is just trying to scare you into purchasing the program. To protect itself, Security Central will not allow you to run executable programs any anti-malware programs until the process is terminated.

Security Central 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 Security Central is running you will also see pop-ups and nag screens on your computer. These nag screens will state that malicious activity was detected and then suggest that you purchase Security Central in order to protect yourself. The text of one of these messages 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.

If you find Security Central is installed on your computer, then please do not purchase it. Instead you should use the free removal guide listed below in order to remove this infection from your computer.

Threat Classification:

• Information on Rogue Programs & Scareware

Advanced information:

View Security Central files.
View Security Central Registry Information.

Tools Needed for this fix:

• Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware

Symptoms that may be in a HijackThis Log:

O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [system ] C:\WINDOWS\systemdb.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [Security Central] C:\Program Files\Security Central\Security Central.exe

Guide Updates:

07/08/09 - Initial guide creation.
10/30/09 - Updated for the new version of this program.

Automated Removal Instructions for Security Central 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 Security Central 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 Security Central 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. Do not reboot your computer at this point, or the 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 Security Central 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 SecurityCentral 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 SecurityCentral 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 Security Central Files:

c:\WINDOWS\systemdb.exe
c:\Documents and Settings\Bleeping\Application Data\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\Security Central.lnk
c:\Documents and Settings\Bleeping\Desktop\Security Central.lnk
c:\Documents and Settings\Bleeping\Start Menu\Security Central
c:\Documents and Settings\Bleeping\Start Menu\Security Central\Security Central.lnk
c:\Program Files\Security Central
c:\Program Files\Security Central\Security Central.exe

Associated Security Central Windows Registry Information:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\AvScan
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run "system "
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run "Security Central"