My laptop is infected with "Antivirus System Pro", tried to fix it and made it worse. Windows XP won't start. Please Help?

You can always take your hard drive out and scan it using another computer. While your at it, save your files off it. It takes less time to reinstall windows than to run scans that take forever.

If not, do a second install in parallel long enough to run scans if you don't have a second computer. The virus has to run somehow when the computer is started! Thats the trick :) Matter of fact, some even install as non-plug and play devices that redirect network traffic.

People will wipe out their whole computer and reinstall when all they had to do was disable TDSSRV.SYS. A little note about how infections can start when booted: Start, run, MSCONFIG . Kill items in the startup tab that don't belong there.

Start, run, MRT. The onboard tool for Malicious software removal. Never works, thought I would mention it.

Process Explorer - download this tool to see what is running. The bad stuff has to be executing somehow. technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals... .

Don't delete the bad stuff - set the permissions on the files to "No Access". If you delete they'll just come back. Do this long enough to get the system running half way right.

Malwarebytes does work most of the time, but sometimes you have to do this manually. Nt - remove these keys: (from http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/virus-removal/remove-antivirus-system-pro) HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\AvScan HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{BAD4551D-9B24-42cb-9BCD-818CA2DA7B63} HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Browser Helper Objects\{BAD4551D-9B24-42cb-9BCD-818CA2DA7B63} HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run "system tool.

I'd recommended doing the System Restore as a last resort. Googling "Antivirus System Pro" does give good ways to fix them manually and using tools. My parent's computer had gotten that at one point and after using some of the tools and manual fixes I knocked it out.

What tools or fixes did you try? At this point in time, like the other answer said, it sounds like XP might be corrupted or damaged. You'll want to find your bootable XP disk and restore XP the hard way with that.

If and when restoring XP works but the virus still persists, let us know please. I can recommend a couple antivirus/malware fixes in the meantime: SUPERAntiSpyware: URL1 Malwarebyte's anti-malware: malwarebytes.org/mbam.php I also recommend CCleaner for cleaning out your system: ccleaner.com/ Avast! Antivirus: http://www.avast.com/ And there's a great suite of system fix programs from Uniblue: http://www.liutilities.com.

I sorry about your problem This what happened to you. You installed Antivirus System Pro which is a Malware/virus. I know this because I heard about it on the Security Now podcast on the TWIT network.

How it usually works is that in order to fix the problem you have to pay the software makers for the product. Then pay an additional fee for processing. Basically extortion.To get rid of the Malware you need to format your hard drive or get a new hard drive.

If you need to get some of files off your computer, you could use a Linux Live CD to move the files off your machine. If you don't have a XP CD for the reinstall you can ask one of your friends in IT field and borrow theirs.IT people usually have stuff like this laying around. If you can't get a XP CD then this may also be a good time to switch to a Linux distro like Ubuntu or to upgrade to Win 7.

Don't worry so much about the bootable XP CD with a anti-virus on it, because Windows now has free anti-virus. I have heard good reviews on it so just use that it should be at the windows site. If and when you reinstall Windows go to windows update and update.

Install the anti-virus before you start using the computer normally.

Your operating system or a part of it either corrupted or damaged. Have you tried the "last known good configaration"? Select it and wait what is going on.

If it not work then I think you need a bootable CD of XP to setup your xp once again. Need help to boot your system? Clarify me then I will try to help you.

The solution to virus these days is always the same... DON'T GET THEM! Keep your AV upto date. Don't click on links in email.

Don't open files from friends unless you know they are sending them ahead of time. Now that said, your only solution at this point is to format and reinstall the machine. I suggest you take this opportunity to buy a new HD.

Install your fresh copy of this OS on this new HD. After you have this done install an AV of your choice. There are several free ones at this point that work well enough.

AVG from grisoft. Com and Microsoft's Security Essentials are both good choices. After you have completed this step.

Put your old drive back in the machine as your second drive. Have your AV scan it. Then move any data you need off that drive.

Finally format it. Good Luck!

Malicious viruses, and spyware is rampant with clients I deal with.. Some of these fake anti virus programs are a real pain to remove. You got some pretty good suggestions from some of the folks here. What I usually do if I can not get into the drive cause the Master Boot Record is corrupt and no longer boots, I will take the drive out of the computer and set it up a secondary drive and connect it to a know good computer that has a good AV program updated.Do a scan on your drive with Malware, Superantispyware, and any other available AV program.

The first 2 programs area available for free from Download. Com After doing the scan and removing any viruses, you will also want to do a SCANDISK to fix the corrupt MBR and system files so that it is bootable again.In most cases if you do this, you can avoid having to buy another hard drive. NOTE - If this is a laptop, you will need to purchase a device that will allow you to connect through a USB cable.

If this is a Desktop computer, you can open up the box and connect it inside. If you would like some more details on this, let me know and send me a direct question.

You can use a search engine to look up the "antivirus system pro" removal tool. However, if you can't access your desktop, you can try to access the drive from an external hard drive and run SuperAntivirus Spyware. This has removed many things I have picked up over the past year, or so.

These things get so embedded in the system, reverting back to a "good configuration" will do no good. If these other steps fail, you may have to put Windows XP back on. If you have your XP disc, just put that in and run the repair option.

If that is not an option, just re-install XP. If these things do not work - you may have to format your drive and reinstall Windows.

Go GeForce NVIDIA's Turbo Cache and the system's processors and video from the download kaspersky antivirus 2010 you can 'borrow extra 128 MB memory with a dedicated memory. The total video memory of 512 MB up. Kaspersky internet security 7 download kaspersky 2010.

This might be a little harder than the others for a novice but this is 98% effective. All you got to do is open your PC case, unplug the hard disk, fix it to a friend's PC with an UPDATED virus guard as slave and remove the virus by scanning the hard drive. After removing the virus plug it to your PC again and try to boot (it SHOULD boot).

If it doesn't boot by any chance you can repair your XP version keeping all your files and settings intact. Opening the PC case and removing hard might void any warranty (if your warranty period is not expired) If you have any problem, leave a comment.

The first thing you need to do is get a copy of an original Microsoft installation CD for the version of XP you are running. For instance, if you have Home Edition, you need a Home Edition install disc. Next, borrow a working computer and download the files needed to create the Ultimate Boot CD for Windows: download.cnet.com/UBCD4Win/3000-2086_4-1... Then follow the instructions on ubcd4win.Com to create a copy of the Ultimate Boot CD for Windows.

When it is finished, place it in the CD drive of the problem computer and boot from it. You should see a splash screen followed by a blue screen with several options.At this screen, press enter and wait for a fully functional Windows environment to start. Note that it will take some time to boot and make sure you start networking support when prompted.

Once it has finished booting, start an anti-virus program (I believe Avira is included by default) and update it. After the update is complete, run a full scan of your system, having it remove any malware it finds. Once your system is clean, shut down your computer as you normally would.

Then replace the Ultimate Boot CD for Windows with your Windows Setup disc. When prompted, press any key to boot from the CD. Once Windows setup has started, press enter at the first screen.

Then accept the license agreement.At the next screen, press R to start a repair installation. Wait for the installer to delete most of Windows and begin reinstalling it. When prompted, press enter to reboot your computer.

When your computer reboots, Windows will continue installing itself. During the install, it prompts you twice for information, including your license key. At the end, it will reboot again.

After reboot, you will need to configure it (it shouldn't take too long. ) After configuration, you should boot into your normal windows desktop. Head on over to Windows Update to reinstall updates from Microsoft.

Then reinstall any applications that are broken at that point. Hopefully, after all of that, your computer will be back to the way it was before the mishap. Contact me if you have any questions.

DO NOT take anyone elses fix and try it on your own system. Use a reputable online service, for free, that will clean your machine under instruction. You have to be willing to work with these people and do as you are told, but they will either clean your machine with tools, that they KNOW how to use, or tell you if it is not possible and if you need to reformat.

I am currently going through a system clean with them holding my hand, I have used them before and, although it took two weeks of patience and hard work, they succeeded in ridding my PC of lots of nasties I did not know existed, never mind that I actually had them on my system. Go to this link forum.securitycadets.com/index.php?showt... How to Create a HJT Log and carefully read the instructions on how to post an HJT log to their forum along with a description of your problem. Follow their instruction to the letter, I promise you they will fix whatever you have, for free.

You may make a donation after the fix if you wish, but it is not required. Good luck.

You can try wiping your computer if you have a restore disc. Here is how to wipe: Step 1: Back up your important information Be sure to back up your most important (and irreplaceable) files before formatting your hard drive. Usually, these are files such as documents (e.g. Microsoft Word files), spreadsheets, presentations, address book entries and calendar appointments, important email messages, Web site bookmarks and personal digital photos.

If your computer has a CD or DVD writer (a.k.a. "burner"), then you can use the disk copying software built into Windows XP, or pick up more sophisticated programs to copy this content to the disk. Important: make sure your burn onto a new disk was successful before formatting the hard drive.

Better yet, make two or three copies. Alternatively, you can copy data over to a USB memory stick or upload it to a "virtual" drive on the Internet for a small fee. Step 2: Prep for the format Unlike past versions of Windows, which had you create a start-up disk to reformat your hard drive, Windows XP handles this in an easier fashion, providing the disk when you purchase your computer.

But there's one caveat: you'll need to find your Windows XP disk. The good news is you'll need it anyway to reinstall the operating system after the format. Before you begin, make sure your computer is set to Boot to CD.

You can see if this is the case by looking into the BIOS (basic input/output system) settings when the computer starts. Tap the F10 key when your computer is starting and you'll see the BIOS settings; under Boot Order, make sure the CD-ROM is set to "boot first." Save settings and exit.

Step 3: Format the hard drive With the Windows XP CD-ROM in your drive, restart the computer. If you've done everything correctly, you should be prompted as follows: Press Any Key to Boot from CD. During this setup process, you may be asked to delete any partitions on your hard drive (if you have any).

Follow the instructions and eventually you will have just one option: Unpartitioned Space. Press Enter to install Windows XP. When asked how you would like to format the partition, choose the command "format using the NTFS file system.

" After this partition is formatted, Windows XP will begin to install itself and will reboot the computer until the operating system is finally installed.

Follow the steps below to fix it! Step 1 First of all, DO NOT BUY the Antivirus System Pro program. It is a big scam.

All it does is put a fake virus on your computer in hopes you'll pay for their system. The program is not a real anti-virus program and will do nothing to help your computer. They are essentially trying to steal your money.

Step 2 Next you need to close all running programs. You will want to do this to make sure nothing gets messed up during the next step. Step 3 Now with your computer just sitting idle, simply unplug the power cord from the wall.

This will naturally shut off the computer. Step 4 Plug the computer back in and turn the power on. On the reboot screen you will see two choices.

They should be something along the lines of repair Windows and start Windows normally. Step 5 Click on the repair Windows link. It will then scan the computer to find the problem.

Step 6 After your computer has finished scanning, it should tell you that a problem has been detected and the computer needs to find a restore point to fix the problem. Click on the find restore point link. Step 7 After your computer has done this, it will restart automatically.

And Just like that, the Antivirus System Pro has been easily removed from your computer.

Note: This is the Asker commenting Great Feedback Everyone! Unfortunately I haven't been able to work on my problem or connect to mahalo on the last 3 days. I'm writing this on a friend's computer as I did not tried to fix my laptop due to a lack of time.

I will work on this as soon as I finish writing this I really appreciate all the answers ( I didn't read in detail all of them), but I want to remark the great job @Chriswingate and @Safiqulislam did. Since I didn't tried yet any of the solutions posted here, I'm letting this one go to VOTES.

I'll assume you didn't backup so you need to get you system backup and running just long enough to do that at least. First a system restore point can be activated in XP at a DOS prompt or Command Prompt... support.microsoft.com/kb/304449/ I'd first try and get it back to where you were. Once there backup all you mydocuments on a USB flash drive or something.

Deactivate any software you need to and maybe make sure you got the serials of anything funky. (If this fails) If you can't get here run Windows install again or boot off an XP disk and try a repair operation. (not a reinstall or format) One of these should get you on your feet.

I'd recommend backing up and format and reinstall. Perhaps using the hidden partition. (often a keyboard command will launch this; reset to factory default) Some may recommend running malware removers such as mrt (type in the run box and press enter; built in malware remover for post infection).

Otherwise I'd consider spybot or something like that. But as an IT Security Expert I'd never trust a system after being infected till after I've formatted and reinstalled. Make sure you install an AV and scan your USB backup before copy it all over too your system again.

:).

Use your Windows XP installer to repair your operating system. If you still see that screen, do a clean installation of Windows XP which means you have to reformat your PC. If you can make it work using the repair method and the virus is still there, use Malwarebytes Antimalware.It will get rid of the Antivirus System Pro malware.

I found a step by step instructions on manually removing Antivirus System Pro, just click on the link below. Hope this helps. -quote- "Antivirus System PRO is fake antivirus software program that scams individuals out of money.

Even if you do not choose "yes" or "no" for the download it may sneak onto your computer and create problems such as pop-ups, slow performance, change in settings, and for those who choose this service they charge money and offer no protection. What should you do if this program attacks your computer? Here are some tips to help you manually remove the malware." -end of quote.

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