TrustFighter is a scareware program from the Wini family of rogues. This rogue is typically promoted through the use of Trojans that masquerade as an update to Adobe Flash. When the Trojan is downloaded and run it will install TrustFighter on your computer and configure it to start automatically every time Windows starts. The Trojan will also install a large amount of harmless files with random names in the C:\Windows and C:\Windows\System32 folder. Then, when TrustFighter scans your computer it will then detect these harmless files as infections and state that you need to purchase the program before it will allow you to remove it. This tactic of creating harmless files that will then be detected as infections is one that attempts to make you think you are infected in the hopes that you will then purchase the program. As you now see, the only infection is TrustFighter itself and you should not purchase the program as it will not do anything for you.

 

TrustFighter 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 the Trojan is running you will also see fake security notices and messages appear on your desktop. These alerts will give warnings that your computer is being hacked or that active malware has been detected. The Trojan will also display a window that impersonates the legitimate Windows Security Center. The only difference is that the imposter will suggest you purchase TrustFighter to protect your computer, while the original does not make any suggestions as to what programs should run on your computer. These alerts and the fake Security Center are just another tactic to make you think that your computer has a security problem and should be ignored.

If you find that you are infected with TrustFighter, then please use the guide below to remove it and any related malware from your computer. If you have already purchased the program, then we suggest you contact your credit card company and dispute the charges as this software is a scam.

 

Threat Classification:

• Information on Rogue Programs & Scareware

 

Advanced information:

View TrustFighter files.
View TrustFighter Registry Information.

 

Entries for this program found in the Uninstall Programs control panel:

TrustFighter

 

Tools Needed for this fix:

• Malwarebytes Anti-Malware

 

Symptoms that may be in a HijackThis Log:

O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [lil6.tmp.exe] C:\WINDOWS\system32\lil6.tmp.exe
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [TrustFighter] C:\Program Files\TrustFighter Software\TrustFighter\TrustFighter.exe -min

 

Guide Updates:

10/12/09 - Initial guide creation.

 

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Automated Removal Instructions for TrustFighter 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 TrustFighter 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 TrustFighter 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 TrustFighter 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 TrustFighter Files:

c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\TrustFighter
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\TrustFighter\1 TrustFighter.lnk
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\TrustFighter\2 Homepage.lnk
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\TrustFighter\3 Uninstall.lnk
c:\Program Files\TrustFighter Software
c:\Program Files\TrustFighter Software\TrustFighter
c:\Program Files\TrustFighter Software\TrustFighter\TrustFighter.exe
c:\Program Files\TrustFighter Software\TrustFighter\uninstall.exe
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Desktop\TrustFighter.lnk
c:\WINDOWS\system32\d3d550c.dll
c:\WINDOWS\z9815spy765.dll
c:\WINDOWS\z9cfthreat4589.bin
c:\WINDOWS\za23d9wnload5r515.exe
c:\WINDOWS\system32\d98thi5f2122z.ocx
c:\WINDOWS\system32\f85a9dware256z.exe
c:\WINDOWS\system32\lil6.tmp.exe
c:\WINDOWS\system32\z105hackto5l709.cpl
%Temp%\lil6.tmp.exe

File Location Notes:

%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 TrustFighter Windows Registry Information:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\TrustFighter
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\TrustFighter
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\svchost.exe
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\TrustFighter
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run "lil6.tmp.exe"
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run "TrustFighter"
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\svchost.exe "GlobalFlag" "0x02000100"
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\svchost.exe "VerifierDlls" = "d3d550c.dll"

 

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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.