A question for computer experts...

HOw to explain...

I use internet explorer through a cable hook up to get on the internet. I had my home page rigged to my email provider, so the whole family could go straight in, enter thier password, and read email. BUT... Something has changed the homepage to about:blank, and turned off the pop-up blocker, so now when we log on we get pop ups warning about spyware (which my norton antivirus says isn't there). Changing the homepage back to my email provider and turning on the pop up blocker doesn't work, as when you turn off internet explorer it resets the homepage back to about:blank and turns off the pop up blocker...

So...

How do I get my homepage to stay set where I want it, and the pop up blocker to stay on?

browser hijacker. My suggestion is to download Spybot S&D (search and destroy) and run it. Spybot can be downloaded from http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html

I hope that helps. After that, reset your homepage, etc!

NOW I CAN'T FIND IT! I mean, it downloaded to a temporary folder, and now my computer doesn't know where it is so I can't run it...

running coolwebshredder at http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/win/32891

This will remove the most common (and most nefarious) malware program and only takes about 30 seconds to run.

Run that, then run both Ad-Aware and Spybot Search & Destroy. Then run the immunize tool included in Search and Destroy.

Should get rid of most of your problems.

I hit the link you provided, the page started to come up... and it went to about:blank, and two pop ups came up about spyware.
So I tried copying the link, put it in the address line, hit enter... and the same thing happened.

They redirect websites to prevent you from downloading things that would remove them :)

http://www.spychecker.com/program/hijackthis.html

Also, switch to Firefox (http://www.getfirefox.com). Seriously. It'll prevent such things from happening and you will not regret it.

Switch from Internet Explorer to Mozilla Firefox. Very good browser with a built-in popup blocker, and less of the security headaches that IE has.

You can get Mozilla Firefox at http://www.mozilla.org/products/firefox/

He'll still get pop-ups and redirects. Re-directs affect the hosts file which will reroute web traffice to different addresses, and pop-ups will still open up an IE window if they are being caused by an external program (such as cool web search).

You won't get infected while using Firefox (I use it myself), but you will still suffer the effects if you don't remove the infestation before switching.

settings, then just configure it yourself.

Sorry you're having probs with it, Hawk.

Tom Yossarian Joad

Microsoft Anti-Spyware (free beta)
http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spyware/software/default.mspx

clever virus. Whoever wrote it has quite the protection racket going, redirecting you away from his competitors... "buy my product or I'll not let you go where you want". Straight out of the organized crime handbook, he is.