- Sep 9, 2014
- 7
- 0
- 4,510
I recently was using an unactivated copy of Windows 7 and tried to use a third party activator as I was planning on installing Windows 8 in the very near future and did not want to have to buy 2 copies of Windows (I know stupid right). Well the activator installed some adware (YTDownloader, Speeditup, and something else) as a byproduct of the install despite me conducting a custom installation.....again I know, I should have ended the process then and there. I immediately began trying to undo the damage I had done by running AVG and Malwarebytes they detected the adware but did little to actually get rid of them. I then used IObit and Ccleaner to force uninstall these junk programs and supposedly deleted all trace files associated with them (mainly plugins to my internet browser). However, I was told to try Hitman Pro to insure that the adware was completely removed and sure enough, upon running it, there they were. Hitman Pro removed these files (supposedly) and upon running Hitman again no malicious items were detected. I have not experienced any ill effects in terms of the actual operation of my computer but I am a little worried that a rootkit could have been installed....I ran GMRE and it initially crashed my computer (that scared me) but after reboot, I ran it again and it successfully operated and did not detect any rootkits. (I ran whocrashed and it stated that something associated with AVG caused the crash) I am completely okay with conducting a fresh install with a legit copy of windows and wiping the hard drive as I do not have any important files on it. Also, is flashing my BIOS something I should do? Is a fresh install my best option at this point to ensure no future damage. Again, I know I should not have tried to acquire Windows in this fashion and have learned my lesson (I guess I got what I deserved)..........I could really use some advice here......
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