I'm not a happy camper!
I was getting ready to do a blog post tonight and got this weird pop up on my computer that my antivirus didn't catch...something about my computer being at risk.
I didn't click anything.....but it wouldn't let me run a scan or anything, so I know I've got a bug. Most of my regular programs are GONE...I can't access them and there are no icons on my desktop but miraculously IE is still in my tool bar!
I can get this fixed at home, I'm not worried about it, I'll set it back to factory settings, but as I'm leaving for home in the morning, I won't have a post to leave you ((Other than this one!))
These people and their viruses.....what is UP with that?! I don't even remember clicking anything so I don't know how it could have gotten in.....so if you don't hear from me until I get home, you'll know why.
Good thing I still have my old laptop, it will likely go to Texas with me next week while this one gets left off with the geek squad at Best Buy, if we can't get the "restore to factory settings to work"
((Yes, I tried to reset it to an earlier date and that did NOTHING with these pop ups telling me that my computer is at risk...blahhhhh))
Hasta La Vista, baby! We deal with it as it comes!
*****UPDATE!**** Thanks to a friend who called to help me in my time of distress, I learned that I have to restart the computer in SAFE mode and THEN restore it to an earlier date to get rid of the malware. So it's gone, I've got my icons back, etc......but all my photos are gone :c( Good thing I have all the photos from this trip saved on my phone, but all the others that were saved on the laptop are no longer here. BUGGERS!! Why do they do this? (*&@#($*&(*&!
I had that on my brand new laptop a couple weeks ago! System restore didn't work. I ended up having to go in and dig around til I found the rogue registry keys, with the help of a scan from SpyDoctor in safe mode. Once deleted...WALAAH! It was gone.
ReplyDeleteWe had the same issue with our daughter's computer. It was Malware. My son fixed it in about 10 minutes. Hope your fix is that easy. :)
ReplyDeleteYep try Spy Doctor Bonnie. Hope you get it fixed. Blogger is not showing some peeps followers. Lots are having this problem, but didn't find out thru them. Thought I'd been hacked. Wish these idiots would pick on terrorist or something like that instead of us regular folks.
ReplyDeleteThere's a free program malwarebytes.org it should make things right or you-- worked on dh's computer.
ReplyDeleteWe had the same thing happen on our computer...the an even worse experience with a computer guy who comes to your home to fix it. We ended up have to scrub our desktop computer by the time that guy got done. Technology...love it and hate it!!
ReplyDeleteDeb from clutteredquilter.blogspot.com
PS: And I'm having that same problem with blogger...no followers...I just figured it is another glitch. :)
Sounds a little like what my son got a couple of weeks ago. The guy who fixed his said it was going around really bad in his college town and all over. The one he had was being spread by a pop-up that looked legit saying your Adobe Flash player had an update available and when you clicked yes it gave you this virus and it looked like everything was gone from your desktop and hard drive, but it was just hidden. He was able to get everything back on his - pictures, music, all of it. So you might not want to give up on your pics until you talk with someone about it. Especially if you have clicked yes on an update lately. The geek guy told my son not to click on those because the virus people are making them look just like the real thing. Click no then go check the actual website to see if there is an update for your program. Don't trust a pop-up box.
ReplyDeleteI second malwarebytes.org. It fixes those viruses that pop up and say "You're at risk, click here". Those are so annoying.
ReplyDeleteWhy don't they all just leave our computers alone!
ReplyDeleteI agree -- creating viruses is just nasty and mean. I get that it's a challenge to overcome to these people. But why not challenge themselves with something productive!?!?! I hope you're able to recover everything! Happy trails :-D
ReplyDeleteI am curious as to why an anti-virus program would not have caught that as it came in.....
ReplyDeleteUGH.......I don't want to spend my time fighting my computer I want to see quilts and make'em too.
ReplyDeleteGood luck clearing up the mess.
Safe travels and Happy sewing
Bonnie,
ReplyDeleteBuy Carbonite, it backs up every time you go on the computer. Not expensive either. Easy and you will never lose you pics again
I had this a few weeks ago, fixed it your way and then took it to the "Geeks" and they found everything missing. Well worth it to get back my contact lists, recipes and my to do list???? Have no idea why that was missing.
ReplyDeleteGet a mac. No problem!
ReplyDeleteI second the Carbonite recommedation!!!!
ReplyDeleteI second the recommendation to get a Mac. Have had Mac computers for years, never anything else actually, and have never had a virus. So worth it to avoid that hassle I hear others constantly talking/writing about. No worries!
ReplyDeleteI second, or is it third it! Get a Mac! If you are into photography especially. I have had a computer since the old Commodore 64 days, always had a PC until last year. I happened to see an iMac at Best Buy. The clarity and ease of use was so appealing. I thought about it for several weeks and finally couldn't resist. I bought mine at the local Apple store. I have a small Dell laptop with Windows 7 on it for my EQ, embroidery software and stuff like that in the sewing room. But, I primarily use the Mac. I'm never going back to PC's. Bonnie, you should try one, If you don't like it, you can always sell it. I also have an iPad, Great for traveling. Especially the newer iPad 2.
ReplyDeleteI'll chime in with the Carbonite or similar service. I have an older pc and I figured eventually the worst would happen, like a drive crash.
ReplyDeleteAlso.....if you don't already,back up your pictures onto disks OR buy extra memory sticks for your camera. They're really cheap at the moment and you can still download them to the computer, simply tell the downloader software not to delete them from the stick.
Lori in VA
Thereof a web site called Dropbox, that will give you 2 gb space for free to store info or photos you don't want to lose or that you would like to share with family and friends. They will rent you more space for a fee.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean. My computer is at Greener Computer Store getting cleaned up now. All my documents had disappeared so I hope that is a temporary thing and they can be found. To bad there isn't a way to catch the people doing this and prosecute them.
ReplyDeleteIt's called Malware, and Scareware, and they do it because they can. It didn't matter that you clicked OK, if you click anywhere, you're screwed. Malwarebytes.org is TERRIFIC, and it's the best. SpyBot, not so much. Your AV program didn't detect it because it wasn't a virus. I also suggest an online backup service.
ReplyDeleteThree things: 1) sympathy, and I share your bewilderment that someone who is smart enough to program a computer would use their talents for evil instead of good 2)ask anyone you've ever emailed or texted a picture to to send it back,I got rather a lot of mine back after a crash that way, and don't forget if you did a webshots album or blog post, you can recover from there and 3)consider using a Picasa or webshot album for all of your photos, because then they are not dependent on your device3. I have a password/private Picasa album for all my family photos and it gives me a lot of piece of mind.
ReplyDeleteThose Fake Anti-Virus viruses are so aggravating. I cleaned up three computers last week and they all had one or two versions of it. I find that shutting off System Restore and then rebooting in Safe Mode and running Malwarebytes Anti-Malware and SuperAnti-Spyware do a pretty good job of taking them off. Turn System Restore back on when finished. Sometimes trojans & other stuff gets on too and can be more difficult to remove.
ReplyDeleteNasty! I hope it's not catching!!! Glad you got your computer working again.
ReplyDelete