CoolWebSearch????

[Sean]

I seem to have a problem with a CoolWebSearch program that seems to have attached itself to my computer...I have Ad-awareSE and every time I run the scanner it always has 20-25 CoolWebSearch items in the scan. Is there a way of permanatly removing this Spyware? Thanks guys Sean :)

[dynamicspot]

add remove or cookies
delete them

Greg

[straddie]

Heya Sean

Download and run this proggy from here, (they are trustworthy),

http://www.trendmicro.com/cwshredder/

From memory I think it does all removal automatically without the need to manually edit your registry.

[Maria]

You'll find with most adware/spyware they write themselves to reinstall on startup. Your adware removal program might delete it, but it will automatically reinstall itself soon after (usually on reboot). There's a host of programs out there that are specifically made to kill the likes of CoolWebSearch - it's quite a well known and common infection.

Also be sure to check out what programs you or your family are installing. Alot of programs (freeware and shareware generally) include spyware/adware bundled into the installation as a way of financing their program. P2P or file sharing programs are the most common culprits, as are dodgy sites such as porn etc.

For future infections a simple google search with the name of the infection (or if you don't know the name of it a direct quote of a message it displays etc) will bring up a host of results from forums and sites with people who have suffered from the same problems and usually include methods and/or programs for removal.

Cheers

Ben

[JewseeTHAT]

Autoruns http://www.sysinternals.com/ will let you find anything that is loading on startup and allows you to take control of it. As a first step to removing a problem file disable it from there, reboot then run your adaware or spybot, should clean it up for you. Handy for other things too, including just making your computer boot up a bit faster by not loading as much crud as it might otherwise.... a lot of programs you don't need to be running all the time will make an entry and be started on booting.