Google Redirect Problem

You're kidding right?

Okay, the full scan is finished and all it picked up were several tracking cookies.

edited 20th Jul '11 4:10:35 PM by Pokénatic

Well, I had thought about linking to Sarcasm mode, but I was too lazy.

Yeah, I figured as much.

What I got when I tried to get back to Google's main page. [1]◊

How do I access the menu for the Internet Explorer add-ons?

edited 20th Jul '11 4:16:42 PM by Pokénatic

Thread Hop: it sounds a great deal like you've been infected with something. I will now list several programs that you can use to clean your machine. If these do not work, you may wish to find a professional.

Spybot: wiki page

Avast: wiki page

CCleaner: wiki page

This is the bulk of the stuff I use. You may also wish to try different browsers to see if it's just IE (as it's a shit pile). I use Firefox and Opera myself, I've heard Chrome is good, but haven't used it myself. I refuse to download Safari since it comes packaged with other programs.

See that spot where it says tools? I'd say it's likely under there. I don't have the version of IE you do, so it is just a guess, mind you.

I would recommend re-setting Explorer to it's default settings (you can do that within the menus). If that doesn't work, try re-installing Explorer. If it's just some stupid add-on or a default setting that got changed by accident, one of those should solve it.

Sounds like one of those damned browser hijack programs.

I think I might have found the problem. I just disabled AIDEX Runtime on the add-ons manager and I haven't been redirected so far.

Which is a virus/trojan, seeing the number of Google hits.

Sounds like you got it. Now be alert for anything that tries to reinstall it, and in the future be more careful about clicking the "run add-on" on random websites.

Bringing this thread back because I myself got this problem recently. About 10% of the time it would send me to some random website. I thought Google itself was hacked for a while (because for a couple weeks, I'd been having problems with the PM system in You Tube acting weird), but apparently I got this damn virus. Tools specifically designed to remove it didn't even find it. Cute.

It seems this fucking virus is evolving to new forms. Any suggestions on how to get rid of it now?

How exactly are you trying to remove it? Since redirects can be a symptom of a bunch of different things, including rootkits, you're going to want to be pretty thorough. If you're not using Safe Mode for your scans, that's one thing that I've seen often causes scans to miss malware when they'd normally detect it. And if you've got a rootkit, then even Safe Mode is gonna be iffy.

That's the problem. All these sites say the cause is something different. Look for this file in control panel (not found), run this program that tries to find it (not found), etc. I'm glad the virus is nice enough to let my searches act normal 90% of the time, but it's still pissing me off, and it's hard to get rid of.

It's important to understand that redirects are a symptom that's often caused by setting changes that many types of malware can cause, rather than a specific classification of malware. So you're best off with a general anti-malware scanner (I have a horse in that race, so legally I can't really recommend specific brands) and as thorough a scan of your PC as is possible (don't do the 'quick' versions, since they often skip areas that rootkits can infect). I recommend Safe Mode while scanning because that stops unnecessary programs from loading and will often prevent less-sophisticated types of malware from starting automatically, although it's not foolproof. And, of course, you should make sure any scanners you use are up-to-date for threat definitions. Don't be afraid to try multiple scanners until you find one that works - or at least detects what the issue is specifically.

I've done that, and while I was able to get rid of another nasty virus that came out of nowhere just last night (a fake antivirus that prevented me from running any programs), it appeared for a long time that the Google redirect was gone... then I started getting the redirects again. This thing is nasty.

Oh Jesus Christ. I had the exact same thing at one point. I know a guy who helped me out with it: I ended the process in Windows Task Manager, used a program called Unlocker to unlock the protected file it had set up, and I DELETED IT MANUALLY.

I might be able to get him to help again; that's if he even remembers the problem in the first place. Do you want me give it a try?

EDIT: Whoops, i'm a bit late, aren't I? My bad :/

edited 31st Jan '12 7:49:36 AM by MrMallard

Late? I still have the problem. I look at the processes in task manager and can't see which one it is. Whatever variant I have redirects me a certain percent of the time instead of all the time, but it's still a pain in the ass. It may also have been directly responsible for installing a nasty fake antivirus program that prevented me from doing anything at all (I got THAT off my computer, but the Google redirect is still there). I want this fucking thing gone.

Yeah, that sounds like a rootkit to me. You're probably best off getting a step by step walkthrough on a tech forum that's devoted specifically to removing malware. I will add that Unlocker does have a pretty good reputation, but it can't help if you don't know what needs to be removed in the first place.

NEVER use Internet Explorer.

I don't use Internet Explorer. I never liked it.

Yeah, rootkits sound like a pain in the ass to get rid of. I'd really need to know what to do.