Q&A Need help regarding an infected PC (Urgent)

MegaApple

Just another Video Game Enthusiast
Sep 20, 2018
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I don't know if this is the right place but I need some help. I'll remove it on community's suggestion.
I think some bad malware has infected my PC.

I've never had viruses come through torrent, so downloaded a pirated Adobe Photoshop copy and I opened it, didn't install and closed the installation. But I think it installed a bunch of crap in the background while I was not looking. There were a lot of background stuff in the task manager, and I sourced them and tried to delete as much as I can.

This was all well until today when my PC started showing 62% CPU usage. I tried to run Defender, but somehow it put the malware folders in the "Exclusions" (and they come back few minutes after removing them). I tried to install Malwarebytes, but it kept making the folder "Read Only" despite how much I tried to change it. And it didn't do anything when I downloaded Avast.

If anyone knows what to do or anyone else that can help, I'll be very very grateful.
Thank you
 
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「Echo」

鈴鹿御前。
Nov 1, 2018
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Mt. Whatever
I'm not an expert, so maybe someone who knows better will chime in... but I would think if the malware is resistant to anti-virus, defender, and all that your best bet would be to format the drives and re-install Windows from scratch? :/

You'd only be really screwed if it was one of those viruses/malware that locks into your BIOS chip instead of the OS...
 

Exzyleph

Dark Eroge Lord
Oct 9, 2018
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I agree with † Echo †: This computer should be considered compromised, even if you manage to clean up the obvious signs of malware.

If I were you, I'd boot using a Linux Live CD/USB Stick, backup everything of value to an external harddrive, and then nuke the disk and re-install windows from scratch. And then only re-connect the external harddrive once I had installed the tools needed to scan its content for malware.
 
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MegaApple

MegaApple

Just another Video Game Enthusiast
Sep 20, 2018
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Actually I manage to do something. For some reason, it didn't block "AdwCleaner" (Malware bytes other s/w). It manage to delete something, which helped Avast to get installed.
After which it removed viruses and removed the 62% usage. I now think it's fine.
I'll keep this thread up for few more days if any emergency arrives then I'll delete it.

Thank you for your suggestions
I'm not an expert, so maybe someone who knows better will chime in... but I would think if the malware is resistant to anti-virus, defender, and all that your best bet would be to format the drives and re-install Windows from scratch? :/

You'd only be really screwed if it was one of those viruses/malware that locks into your BIOS chip instead of the OS...
Did you try ComboFix? I've used it a few times with great results, even in situations where Malwarebytes failed.
I agree with † Echo †: This computer should be considered compromised, even if you manage to clean up the obvious signs of malware.

If I were you, I'd boot using a Linux Live CD/USB Stick, backup everything of value to an external harddrive, and then nuke the disk and re-install windows from scratch. And then only re-connect the external harddrive once I had installed the tools needed to scan its content for malware.
 

Exzyleph

Dark Eroge Lord
Oct 9, 2018
878
1,313
93
I'm glad you fixed that particular symptom, but it is foolhardy to keep running the same installation after you got owned this hard.

You could still have key-loggers, back doors, or other malware installed, none of which would necessarily use a measurable amount of CPU.
 
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MegaApple

MegaApple

Just another Video Game Enthusiast
Sep 20, 2018
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I'm glad you fixed that particular symptom, but it is foolhardy to keep running the same installation after you got owned this hard.

You could still have key-loggers, back doors, or other malware installed, none of which would necessarily use a measurable amount of CPU.
I have the same fear, so I ran Avast's boot-scan, which scans viruses before Windows even starts, and it eliminated a good deal of Trojans and stuff.

For anything not detectable by Anti Virus, I can't do anything about it.
 
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