New to me. It hogs all CPU resource in Windows XP, tries to hog all memory in Windows safe mode, doesn't appear in DOS cmd mode. Very resistant to the usual (free) anti-virus software. The Geek Squad quotes $199.99 to fix it, but no way is that reasonable. I'm writing software to copy files directory by directory (10,700 count in my case), then will re-install XP. Anyone have a better solution?

 

Avast has a boot up scan that will take care of most of those kind of viruses. It is different than safe mode.

What is your virus scanning software?

 

Found a thread here that was successful:
http://forums.malwarebytes.org/index.php?showtopic=100114&st=0
Maybe something like a Ubuntu Live CD would make copying files easier (just a bootable CD, no install required).

 

Geek Squad is a total ripoff. I avoid buying anything from Best Buy for what they did to my elderly father. They charged him more for a "diagnostic" check and virus can than the whole computer is worth.

Why he took it to them and not me is beyond me but they could have treated him more fairly.

 

I can't give you the exact names of the packages I used because the hard disk is currently mounted in a disk recovery kit transferring files to another hard drive. The names are like Seek and Destroy, Super Spy Bot, and Malware -- they show up on the first page of a Google search for "ping virus".
The copying software is painfully slow, but that's of little consequence. The infected computer wouldn't boot up in Windows safe mode today, and eventually refused to power up. Don't know if that's all related to the virus, but mounting the hard disk in the recovery device came not a moment too soon.

 

Go to

www.malwarebytes.org

download

run
reboot
run again
reboot
run again
repeat until no threats are found.

If malwarebytes saved your life and headaches (saved people I know dozens of times), buy it, because it cleans for FREE, while others just tell you what is wrong, and won't fix it until you pay them.

Goto
free.avg.com
download
install
update
run scan
reboot
repeat until no threats are found

Do not try to scan for malware and viruses at the same time. You most likely have malware, so get rid of it first.
You'll be good to go.

Uninstall all that other stuff unless one of them is Spybot S&D from Safer Networking, it is a good one and free. There are about a dozen named similarly, that are actually malware, so be sure to download it from http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html (the .com address IS SPYWARE, as are other spellings of that URL.

 

Here's a thread on bleepingcomputer where the ping.exe virus was dealt with:
http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/topic429058.html

Seems that Combofix will remove it, but other issues remain (like loss of Internet connectivity) and iterative executions need to be made; Malwarebytes also needs to be run, and various permissions need to be modified.

It seems that the person in that thread originally became infected due to music downloads from dubious sites.

 

I will pursue the threads given above. Don't know right now if I will pursue removal of the virus because (a) the infected hard drive is in my "fix it" kit yielding up all that good data to another, uninfected computer and (b) the CPU which had suffered the invasion decided not to power up at all. It may or may not be worth fixing, because it is at least 7 years old. Meanwhile, I looked on the infected disk and found the names of the software I tried: (1) Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware, (2) Spybot Search and Destroy, and (3) Super Anti-Spyware. All of this is yet another argument for establishing a Microsoft-free environment. Ah, for the days of PL/M. My first exposure to a microcomputer used in a real commercial application was a GNAT computer collecting data from my employer's 5 ft X 7 ft graphics tablets. It was a mere seven years out of date at that time.

 

Another site called MajorGeeks.com specializes in helping people with their computer problems. They also have a really large download list, most of it tools, and well veted not to be infected.

It is extremely similar to this site in many ways, only geared toward computers.

They have published a rather comprehensive procedure for most OSs I use when I've had the worst happen.