What is wrong with my PC?

[Disappointed]

My antivirus (Norton) expired three weeks ago, I won't be getting a new disk till Wednesday. About a week ago I started noticing the fan on my PC was running full steam, not knowing much about hardware I thought it was strange and it continues to get worse.

I started checking my CPU usage through Task Manger and found that it was going 100%. Even when no application was running it was still fluctuating. Today after I turned off my Fidelity Active Trader Pro program I startedhearing my PC fan Erving up again, no application was running.

I looked at applications through Task Mgr and saw three things running through IE, I did not initiating any of these thee
Kaa.im running
[mod edit] running
Careers-Find.com Careers - Windows IE running

These applications keep changing and the CPU sometimes running 100%.

looks like my PC was either infected with virus or hijacked? Somebody is using my PC to send out ads?

Help!

 

[NW-Bound]

Can you kill that task? Then, download AVG, Malwarebytes, and Microsoft Security Essentials, etc..., and run them all, one after another, until the malware is purged. May have to download the software with another PC, then run it on the infected PC in Safe Mode.

I once got a nasty virus that took me a long time to kill. Several AV software could detect that "rootkit", but failed to remove it.

PS. That link you included in the OP points to a bad Web site!

 

[Brat]

Several months ago I had issues so I purchased RegCurePro. It took a while for it to work its magic but now I have no problems. I have it check every day for malware and once in a while it finds one. I tell it to fix and it does.

It also eliminated those ads that crop up on top of Explorer which infected my computer when I downloaded an Oracle update. Need to do that on DH's new computer.

 

[target2019]

My antivirus (Norton) expired three weeks ago, I won't be getting a new disk till Wednesday. About a week ago I started noticing the fan on my PC was running full steam, not knowing much about hardware I thought it was strange and it continues to get worse.

I started checking my CPU usage through Task Manger and found that it was going 100%. Even when no application was running it was still fluctuating. Today after I turned off my Fidelity Active Trader Pro program I startedhearing my PC fan Erving up again, no application was running.

I looked at applications through Task Mgr and saw three things running through IE, I did not initiating any of these thee
Kaa.im running
[link deleted here]
. running
Careers-Find.com Careers - Windows IE running

These applications keep changing and the CPU sometimes running 100%.

looks like my PC was either infected with virus or hijacked? Somebody is using my PC to send out ads?

Help!

Avast flags that link as Mal. Better steer clear.

 

[easysurfer]

Sounds like a heat issue.

My PC does that but not all the time. Every so often the CPU fan starts cranking on full.

To check if the computer is a heat issue with the CPU, what you can do is get a CPU heat monitoring program (there some some free ones around). When the fan goes cranking, watch the temperature to see if it rises up.

If that is the case, sounds like the CPU heat sink may need a re-coating of thermal paste.

 

[Lakewood90712]

Advise to NOT use that PC online until disinfected. I am no fan of Norton, but it is better than nothing. If you really need this machine everyday , get it to a local computer shop. They can purge the bad stuff. Expect to pay $75 -$100. Money well spent IMHO. Good computer geeks don't work for free.

 

[gauss]

The free "Process Explorer" program has been quite useful for me to monitor what is hogging CPU and allows for killing and restarting processes.

-gauss

 

[Disappointed]

Thank you all. Mailman delivered the Norton antivirus this afternoon. Unable to download it through IE, but was able to do it through Chrome.
Norton found Trojan.Asprox.B
Suspicious.Cloud.5.A
Trojan.Gen

And many others. Will try to get other antivirus programs and run them again.

Mp



Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum

 

[bjorn2bwild]

This is the reason to have a good back-up plan - just roll back to that squeaky clean copy and carry on.

 

[Disappointed]

Just checked my computer, Norton did not resolve the problem. CPU is running at 100%, no applications running

May have to take it in to have it looked at.




Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum

 

[Chuckanut]

Silly question. How old is the PC? Have you opened it an vacuumed out the insulating layer of dust?

 

[Disappointed]

Had it cleaned up about a year ago. It was not acting like this until about a week or two ago.




Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum

 

[bjorn2bwild]

It would be a useful exercise to eliminate the PC software question by booting into a Linux CD from the BIOS - e.g. F12/boot from CD/enter. If the fan is still running hard, it would indicate a hardware problem.

 

[Sunset]

Boot your Pc into safe mode, without loading drivers.
Then run your antivirus program and it should be able to kill off the offending files.

Also download this from microsoft (its free and legit and rated pretty good)
Microsoft Security Essentials - Microsoft Windows

Again, after you install it, reboot your computer into SAFE mode and run the MS antivirus or any other antivirus programs. This is because the viruses sometimes cannot be removed when running in normal mode as the programs are active (even if hidden).

This is not your issue, but later take your vacuum, open your computer box and vacuum the dust out of it. I did that and my fan became much quieter.

 

[target2019]

There is a possibility that the virus and malware have used system restore to back up their installation. If you see files being flagged that look like "C:\System Volume Information\_restore…" then you must turn off System Restore and run the antivirus system AND Malwarebytes to eliminate the problem. This may take several runs of the programs and rebooting. I do something like the following:

1. Reboot to Safe Mode with networking.
2. Turn off System Restore.
3. You may or may not be able to update the AV/Malwarebytes definitions. If you can, great.
4. Kill what I can with AV + Malwarebytes.
5. Reboot to normal.
6. Update the software in normal mode if you can.
7. Run AV/Malwarebytes again.
8. Reboot.
​

There are always slippery, bad things which can possibly slip through the cracks. Then you'll need to troubleshoot and employ manual fixes or specialized tools during the sequence above.

If you have an older system, and get infected, you're never quite sure if the system is 100% cleaned. (Do you want to fix your 10-year old car that has spotty performance due to faulty electronics?) It is much simpler to get a new system and carefully copy your data to a USB device, and go forward.

The bad guys have unlimited resources and have been working around Norton and Microsoft for many years. I have zero confidence in those two companies being able to stay ahead. I use Avast and Malwarebytes, and very little else.

 

[Totoro]

Seems like you either have an application you installed gone haywire or a virus / trojan that puts you in a botnet (or run e.g. bitcoin mining).

Just one way to resolve this: re-install from scratch from a known "good source".

Also, don't use internet explorer anymore. Firefox, Chrome or similar are usually better to avoid nasty software installs and viruses. If you can muster it, install linux (ubuntu, mint or similar).

 

[frank]

I bought a new desktop about a year ago and had the same problem with the cpu. I went to a site called major geeks and checked their forums under hardware and then under software, don't remember which gave me the info.. type in the problem and they have a procedure set up on thier site for just this situation. this is the link address READ & RUN ME FIRST Malware Removal Guide (incl. spyware, virus, trojan, hijacker) - MajorGeeks Support Forums

 

[Disappointed]

Thank you all. I ran complete scan with Norton twice last night and it SEEMS to solve the problem, not exactly sure if it did. Will download other programs and run them again.

mp

 

[Brat]

I purchased a printer cable yesterday at Office Depot and they gave me a coupon for a free computer check. See if your local store is offering that deal.

 

[mike143]

This works 90% of the time, every time: Mandatory Steps Before Requesting Assistance Security Cleanup FAQ | DSLReports, ISP Information

 

[Lakewood90712]

I am surprised the Apple camp hasn't chimed in with the obvious solution of Apple fans.

 

[Sunset]

It was this type of thing, a few years ago that pushed me to use Ubuntu. I highly recommend it unless you have a very specific piece of MS software to use. Its free so you can stick in a new hard drive and try it out, if you don't like it, just put back your old hard drive.

 

[NW-Bound]

I don't remember the nasty "rootkit" virus that I had, but several programs were able to detect and identify it, but not purge it. Or rather, they claimed they did, and it kept popping back up. I remember searching the Web using the name of the virus, found a special program written just to exterminate that particular virus. It was even free.

As this special program with a unique function was from a not so well-known site, I spent time to vet it to make sure it was not another Trojan horse. And it was the only thing I found that worked.

 

[steelyman]

It was this type of thing, a few years ago that pushed me to use Ubuntu. I highly recommend it unless you have a very specific piece of MS software to use. Its free so you can stick in a new hard drive and try it out, if you don't like it, just put back your old hard drive.

To just try it out, it can be easier than that. Download a live CD/DVD image from ubuntu.com, burn it to disc or USB stick, and boot from that.

 

[Sunset]

To just try it out, it can be easier than that. Download a live CD/DVD image from ubuntu.com, burn it to disc or USB stick, and boot from that.

You are correct, as long as the person testing it, realizes the slow speed is the cd/dvd drive.
I just recently moved 2 elderly folks off XP to Ubuntu, and I used the new drive method (preserving their old drive) so they could give it try for weeks without my being there to help.

Both of them, have stayed with Ubuntu.