Began having problems with the computer freezing shortly after boot, and ran Avast in safe mode (the computer would freeze as I tried to run Avast normally). Did a thorough / full scan (almost 6 hours) and it found virus / worm “VBS Trojano-472” in Windows\Internet Logs.
It recomended moving to chest, which I clicked and the scan then continued. At the end I received a log stating that an “error occured during moving file to chest”. The log also stated that it could do nothing with my Lavasoft files (have Ad-Aware). I then right clicked on the entry in the log list, and deleted.
When I rebooted in normal mode, the computer froze again within two minutes (I also have Zone Alarm and it froze as I was activating it - but I’ve used ZA and Avast together fr six months with no problems).
I also recently downloaded Registry Mechanic from CNET, but not sure if related because the freezing problem pre-dated that download, thought he problem has gotten worse (it initially would freeze after a couple of hours, and be fine after a restart for a few days - now it freezes within minutes).
Would appreciate and help / advice out there…had a virus problem last year, and am VERY CLOSE to getting an Apple to avoid these headaches. Thanks alot.
Is there any other into into Windows Events (Start > All Programs > Administrative tools > Events)?
The Lavasoft files are password protected and avast can’t scan them. It’s normal. It’s safe. Don’t worry.
Maybe if you uninstall / boot / install avast again / boot, you can have any issue solved.
About ZA, avast! Web Shield compatibility dialogue - Install/Update Question - YES or NO
If you are using ZoneAlarm Free you should click NO, because privacy features are not present in ZoneAlarm Free this will not turn off webshield transparent mode proxy. If you are using ZoneAlarm Pro and Privacy Control in ZoneAlarm is set to High and if you click YES in avast comptability dialog box the transparent mode proxy in webshield will be turned off you have to manually configure browser to access internet.
"Trojans/Worms" are best dealt with by "specialized" programs, such as the FREE "trial" of
AVG Antispyware from www.ewido.net AND/OR the FREE version of SUPERantispyware
from www.superantispyware.com . I have these 2 AND Ad-Aware on my computer .
SpiritSprings and Tech: Thanks…my main concern right now is that my computer freezes right away, stopping me from going to those sights or making any adjustments - and I can’t do much while it’s in Safe Mode (tried to go online, but the browsers didn’t get an internet connection). I ran the Avast! again in safe mode while I was at work today, and apparently it did not find any other (or the same) virus / worm, just the same Lavasoft message. Any suggestions of what else I can do while in Safe Mode. If I ran Ad-Aware in Safe Mode would that help? I also have WebRoot SpySweeper.
Tech: I’m using ZAPro - if I can access it I can adjust it - although I’m not sure I’m understanding your advice. When I installed Avast! on this PC, it didn’t flag any conflict with ZA (it did on another laptop that has Norton running) - would appreciate a little more detail for this Newbie!
Also - in case I need to, can I back up data files while in Safe Mode?
It should alert you that you have ZA… and when it alerts you, you should answer YES to the question.
If avast does not detect ZA, bad news… something different, something wrong…
Well, if you can’t go on-line, can you at least attach the HDD to another computer (as a slave HDD) and scan it from there?
There are a lot of good on-line scanners…
Interesting…Avast! did not detect ZA, although I load ZA after booting - found it too slow at initial start-up. Maybe there’s a defect with ZA - I did have a problem several months ago that it was not updating the virus definitions. It lasted for several weeks (and caused me to get Avast! in the first place) but then worked fine for the past month or so. Maybe I should try deleting ZA from Safe Mode (only have a few weeks left on the subsricption anyway).
Running my Spyware / Adware now; we’ll see what happens. Thanks again for you help.
Michael - do you have the Zone Alarm firewall or the Antivirus/Security Suite? If you have the latter, conflicts between this and avast! may be the cause of your trouble. Best to uninstall one of the antivirus programs as two resident AVs will cause problems.
It’s the ZA antivirus/security suite. I know you’re not supposed to have two resident antivirus programs, but the two seemed to be geting along fine! And after having a bad problem with a virus last summer, I liked having two programs to scan on a regular basis. But you’re probably right. Right now ZA is not active, and will delete soon - and so far no freezing.
As for this current problem, I have been able to download AVG anti-spyware and anti-virus (recommended elsewhere on this forum for Trojans / worms), and I’m running them now. I know, this will make two AVs again, but I just want to scan to see if anything else gets picked up.
AVG Antispyware should be fine since its not an antivirus. Just don’t try to use AVG Antivirus with avast! or you could have problems again.
Then try ClamWin or the free version of BitDefender. Both can be used as backup scanners and since they are non-resident (they only scan when you tell them to) you can avoid this kind of conflict.
If you still can’t quarantine this you may be able to get rid of it by deleting your temporary internet files. Try using CleanUp which you can download here
Thanks - system running for a couple of hours now, so far so good.
I’ve disabled the Resident shield on the AVG Anti-virus, so I’ll use that one as my on demand scanner and Avast! as the live shield. I’ll look into the others you mentioned.
While I couldn’t put the virus/worm into the Avast! chest, I think I did delete it - although I did have the freeze problem one more time after deleting it. Ran Avast! again in safe mode, and it was not found. Still fear that it’s lurking out there somewhere, so I’ll try the Cleanup tomorrow.
Sooner or later, you’ll get conflicts… Disable is not enough to AVG. Email scanning, Windows Security Center detection, etc., will be messed with this configuration.
At least, you can even install the email plugin and the guard of AVG to have avast running.
By the way, BitDefender (free, non-resident) will be much much better as a second opinion besides avast. Why do you trust AVG detection rate?
I took out the AVG and ZA antivirus (but did install ZA free firewall), and have Avast! as the only resident anti-virus program; installed free BitDefender as back-up on demand scanner.
The computer has worked well for a few days now, so I’ll keep my fingers crossed (and start saving my pennys for an IMac if it keeps happening!)
Good choices! Oh, indeed, ZA antivirus + AVG, and worse, + avast… you’ll have a lot of conflicts.
I’m glad you’re protected now. Enjoy avast protection 8)
Registry cleaners can hose your system easily. Using them without knowledge of restoring the registry from a backup will cause you to become proficient in the installation of windows!
Most people should just leave it alone…
One other thing,you should invest in a router with a built-in firewall(even if you have only one computer).
Its suprises me how little we discuss hardware firewalls on the forum even when we talk about layered protection. Even more surprising is how much people will spend on their computers, yet they won’t spend 2% more for a NAT router. Even SPI is cheap these days.
I think the future will bring broader use of firewall routers with gateway antivirus and IPS, though these options are still a bit pricey for the home user.
Hi Michael :