Security Defender is a rogue anti-spyware program that displays fake scan results and security alerts on your computer in order to scare you into purchasing it. This program is typically installed on to your computer through the use of web sites that display advertisements pretending to be an online anti-malware scanner. When this advertisement has finished, it will state that your computer is infected and then prompt you to download and install Security Defender onto your computer.

 

Security Defender screen shot
For more screen shots of this infection click on the image above.
There are a total of 8 images you can view.

 

When installed, Security Defender will be configured to start automatically when Windows starts. Once started, it will scan your computer and list numerous infections, but when you attempt to remove any of them it will state that you first need to purchase the program. As all of the infections it states are present on your computer are false, please ignore anything that it displays and do not purchase the program.

While the program is running it will also display a continuous stream of fake security alerts on your computer that are designed to make you think that your computer has a severe security problem. The text of some of these alerts include:

Security Defender Firewall Alert
Suspicious activity in your registry system space was detected. Rogue malware detected in your system. Data leaks and system damage are possible. Please use a deep scan option.

Harmful software detected
Security Defender has detected malicious software that may cause crash of your computer. Click Remove All button to remove them now.

Security Defender
Viruses have been found in your system. We highly recommend you to get license for Security Defender to remove immediately harmful software.

Just like the fake scan results, these alerts are also fake and are only being used to scare you into purchasing the program. Therefore, please ignore them.

Without a doubt, Security Defender was created to scare you into thinking your computer has a severe security problem so that you will then purchase this program. For no reason should you purchase Security Defender, and if you already have, you should contact your credit card company and dispute the charges stating that the program is a computer infection and a scam. Finally, to remove this infection and other related malware, please use the removal guide below.

 

Threat Classification:

• Information on Rogue Programs & Scareware

 

Advanced information:

View Security Defender files.
View Security Defender Registry Information.

 

Tools Needed for this fix:

• Malwarebytes Anti-Malware

 

Symptoms that may be in a HijackThis Log:

O2 - BHO: {56a10a26-dc02-40f1-a4da-8fa92d06b357} - {56a10a26-dc02-40f1-a4da-8fa92d06b357} - C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\56a10a26-dc02-40f3-a4da-8fa92d06b357_33.avi
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [56a10a26-dc02-40f3-a4da-8fa92d06b357_33] "C:\WINDOWS\system32\rundll32.exe" "C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\56a10a26-dc02-40f3-a4da-8fa92d06b357_33.avi", start
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [56a10a26-dc02-40f3-a4da-8fa92d06b357_33] "C:\WINDOWS\system32\rundll32.exe" "C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\56a10a26-dc02-40f3-a4da-8fa92d06b357_33.avi", start

 

Guide Updates:

02/10/11 - Initial guide creation.

 

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Automated Removal Instructions for Security Defender 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. It is possible that the infection you are trying to remove will not allow you to download files on the infected computer. If this is the case, then you will need to download the files requested in this guide on another computer and then transfer them to the infected computer. You can transfer the files via a CD/DVD, external drive, or USB flash drive.
   
   
3. Before we can do anything we must first end the processes that belong to Security Defender so that it does not interfere with the cleaning procedure. To do this, please download RKill to your desktop from the following link.
   
   RKill Download Link - (Download page will open in a new tab or browser window.)
   
   When at the download page, click on the Download Now button labeled iExplore.exe download link. When you are prompted where to save it, please save it on your desktop.
   
   
4. Once it is downloaded, double-click on the iExplore.exe icon in order to automatically attempt to stop any processes associated with Security Defender and other Rogue programs. Please be patient while the program looks for various malware programs and ends them. When it has finished, the black window will automatically close and you can continue with the next step. If you get a message that RKill is an infection, do not be concerned. This message is just a fake warning given by Security Defender when it terminates programs that may potentially remove it. If you run into these infections warnings that close RKill, a trick is to leave the warning on the screen and then run RKill again. By not closing the warning, this typically will allow you to bypass the malware trying to protect itself so that rkill can terminate Security Defender . So, please try running RKill until the malware is no longer running. You will then be able to proceed with the rest of the guide. If you continue having problems running RKill, you can download the other renamed versions of RKill from the rkill download page. All of the files are renamed copies of RKill, which you can try instead. Please note that the download page will open in a new browser window or tab.
   
   Do not reboot your computer after running RKill as the malware programs will start again.
   
   
5. Now you should 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)
   
   


6. Once downloaded, close all programs and Windows on your computer, including this one.
   
   
7. Double-click on the icon on your desktop named mbam-setup.exe. This will start the installation of MBAM onto your computer.
   
   
8. 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.
   
   
9. 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.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
10. 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 Security Defender related files.
    
    
11. 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.
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
12. 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 Security Defender removal process.
    
    
13. You will now be back at the main Scanner screen. At this point you should click on the Show Results button.
    
    
14. 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.
    
    
15. 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.
    
    
16. You can now exit the MBAM program.
    
    
17. As many rogues and other malware are installed through vulnerabilities found in out-dated and insecure programs, it is strongly suggested that you use Secunia PSI to scan for vulnerable programs on your computer. A tutorial on how to use Secunia PSI to scan for vulnerable programs can be found here:
    
    How to detect vulnerable and out-dated programs using Secunia Personal Software Inspector

 

Your computer should now be free of the Security Defender 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 Security Defender Files:

c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\56a10a26-dc02-40f3-a4da-8fa92d06b357_.mkv
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\56a10a26-dc02-40f3-a4da-8fa92d06b357_33.avi
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\56a10a26-dc02-40f3-a4da-8fa92d06b357_33.ico
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\56a10a26-dc02-40f3-a4da-8fa92d06b357_33.lnk
c:\Program Files\Security Defender
c:\Program Files\Security Defender\Security Defender.dll
%UserProfile%\Application Data\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\Security Defender.lnk
%UserProfile%\Desktop\Security Defender.lnk
%UserProfile%\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\56a10a26-dc02-40f3-a4da-8fa92d06b357_33.lnk
%Temp%\<random>.dll

File Location Notes:

%UserProfile% refers to the current user's profile folder. By default, this is C:\Documents and Settings\<Current User> for Windows 2000/XP, C:\Users\<Current User> for Windows Vista/7/8, and c:\winnt\profiles\<Current User> for Windows NT.

%Temp% refers to the Windows Temp folder. By default, this is C:\Windows\Temp for Windows 95/98/ME, C:\DOCUMENTS AND SETTINGS\<Current User>\LOCAL SETTINGS\Temp for Windows 2000/XP, and C:\Users\<Current User>\AppData\Local\Temp in Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8.

 

Associated Security Defender Windows Registry Information:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{56a10a26-dc02-40f1-a4da-8fa92d06b357}
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Browser Helper Objects\{56a10a26-dc02-40f1-a4da-8fa92d06b357}
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run "56a10a26-dc02-40f3-a4da-8fa92d06b357_33"
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run "56a10a26-dc02-40f3-a4da-8fa92d06b357_33"

 

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BleepingComputer.com can not be held responsible for problems that may occur by using this information. If you would like help with any of these fixes, you can ask for malware removal assistance in our Virus, Trojan, Spyware, and Malware Removal Logs forum.

If you have any questions about this self-help guide then please post those questions in our Am I infected? What do I do? and someone will help you.