Adware.hotbar

Hi guys, i've just done a complete format of my PC due to unwanted bugs.


So after doing my weekly scan with Malwarebytes it found this Adware.hotbar!
It cleaned it away, but i'm miffed to how it got on to my PC as i'm trying my very best to keep away from anything that could infect me.
I've done a bit of internet research, and it seems it may have got there through installing Windows live essentials.
Could this be true?
I thought in my little mind anything microsoft was safe to deal with!


Trevor.

Edited by Trevrev, 21 October 2010 - 04:17 PM.

Hotbar is a toolbar that offers a collection of browser and system enhancements. It adds graphical skins to Internet Explorer, Microsoft Outlook, and Outlook Express toolbars as well as its own toolbar and search button. Hotbar is considered Adware because it is advertising-supported software with targeted ads built into its toolbar that is intended to generate revenue.

Sophos also classifies Hotbar as a "Potentially Unwanted Program".

Hotbar is distributed primarily from Hotbar.com, Wowpapers.com and ShopperReports.com although some researchers claim it can be bundled with free software and promoted through misleading junk email. Hotbar and other Adware have been reported distributed via Bing Sponsored Search Result for Firefox using trickery. Installation of Hotbar can also occur without your knowledge via innocuous-looking banner ads and pop-ups at third-party web sites so if you did not intentionally install it, then that is probably how it was delivered to your computer. For a more detailed overview, refer to this Hotbar Software Review conducted by Sunbelt Software Research Center.

Thanks for the info quietman7,
I certainly didn't install it intentionally thats for sure! LOL.
So this isn't a malicious thing, just a pain in the backside as such? Is windows live messenger a safe thing to install?
As i said in my opening thread, thats where i thought the Hotbar had come from.

Trevor.

Windows Messenger is a proprietary instant messaging client included in Windows. Windows Live Messenger (formerly MSN Messenger)) is part of the package offered with Windows Live Essentials. It should not be confused with Windows Messenger Service which is a network-based system notification service and a component of Windows itself.

Both Windows Messenger and the Messenger Service can be a security risk.

• Windows Live Messenger & Windows Messenger Service: Two Oft-Confused Applications Are Very Different
• Security Issues of Instant Messaging

If you wanted to install Windows Live Messenger and conducted a search to download it, that search could lead to a third-party site which also offers Hotbar.

Would Malwarebytes have got rid of Hotbar completely?
Or will there still be traces of it left untouched?
I did install firefox after i formatted. I've been reading that there has been a fake page used for downloading Firefox which infects you with Hotbar.
All good stuff this computing!

Trevor.

Would Malwarebytes have got rid of Hotbar completely? Or will there still be traces of it left untouched?

The folks who make this crapware constantly update and add components to their software which install in various areas of your system and registry. This makes removing it completely more difficult. While MBAM should take care of removing most of it, subsequent scans may find remnants that previously were not detected. This is not uncommon when dealing with adware programs.