How to remove StopingSpy (Removal Instructions)

Posted by Lawrence Abrams on February 26, 2008 @ 01:40 AM · Views: 2,064

 

StopingSpy is a rogue anti-spyware program that is part of the SpyShredder family. This family of rogue applications are aggressively advertised on the web with false information, false reviews, and misleading popups. Once installed, StopingSpy will scan your computer and list a variety of problems that can not be removed unless you first purchase a license of the software. Having to pay for a software to remove an infection is not an issue, but it becomes a problem when the results are all exaggerated or outright false. For example, StopingSpy lists a variety of files as the Complexel Trojan. All of these infections, though, are legitimate Microsoft files and are only being shown to scare you into purchasing StopingSpy. As you can see from the screen shot below, StopingSpy is labeling the file C:\WINDOWS\$hf_mig$\KB927779\update as a Trojan when in fact it is a security update for Microsoft Windows.

Screen shots of StopingSpy and a false positive are shown below:

 

 

 

This guide will walk you through removing the StopingSpy program.

 

Threat Classification:

• Information on Rogue Programs & Scareware

 

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

StopingSpy

 

Tools Needed for this fix:

• Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware

 

Symptoms that may be in a HijackThis Log:

O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [StopingSpy] C:\Program Files\StopingSpy\StopingSpy.exe

 

Guide Updates:

02/26/08 - Initial guide creation.

 

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Automated Removal Instructions for StopingSpy 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 StopingSpy 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 Stoping Spy 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 Stoping Spy 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