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Author Topic: Unable to access the internet and very slow response times  (Read 11348 times)

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Dr Jay

  • Malware Removal Specialist


  • Specialist
  • Moderator emeritus
  • Thanked: 119
  • Experience: Guru
  • OS: Windows 10
Re: Unable to access the internet and very slow response times
« Reply #15 on: July 15, 2010, 01:01:05 AM »
Please download the newest version of Adobe Acrobat Reader from Adobe.com

Before installing: it is important to remove older versions of Acrobat Reader since it does not do so automatically and old versions still leave you vulnerable.
Go to the Control Panel and enter Add or Remove Programs (Programs and Features in Vista/7).
Search in the list for all previous installed versions of Adobe Acrobat Reader. Uninstall/Remove each of them.

Once old versions are gone, please install the newest version.

==

Please download the newest version of Java from Java.com.

Before installing: it is important to remove older versions of Java since it does not do so automatically and old versions still leave you vulnerable.
Go to the Control Panel and enter Add or Remove Programs (Programs and Features in Vista/7).
Search in the list for all previous installed versions of Java. (J2SE Runtime Environment). Please uninstall/remove each of them.

Once old versions are gone, please install the newest version.

===========================================

Please read the following information that I have provided, which will help you prevent malicious software in the future. Please keep in mind, malware is a continuous danger on the Internet. It is highly important to stay safe while browsing, to prevent re-infection.

Software recommendations

Firewall
  • Tallemu Online Armor: the free version is just as good as the premium. I have linked you to the free version.
  • Comodo Firewall: the free version is just as good as the premium. I have linked you to the free version. The optional security suite enhances the firewall by 40% increase. If you would like to install the suite that includes antivirus, then remove your old antivirus first.
  • PC Tools Firewall Plus: free and excellent firewall.
AntiSpyware
  • SpywareBlaster
    SpywareBlaster is a program that prevents spyware from installing on your computer. A tutorial on using SpywareBlaster may be found here.
  • Spybot - Search & Destroy.
    Spybot - Search & Destroy is a spyware and adware removal program. It also has realtime protection, TeaTimer to help safeguard your computer against spyware. (The link for Spybot - Search & Destroy contains a tutorial that will help you download, install, and begin using Spybot).
NOTE: Please keep ALL of these programs up-to-date and run them whenever you suspect a problem to prevent malware problems.

Resident Protection help
A number of programs have resident protection and it is a good idea to run the resident protection of one of each type of program to maintain protection. However, it is important to run only one resident program of each type since they can conflict and become less effective. That means only one antivirus, firewall, and scanning anti-spyware program at a time. Passive protectors such as SpywareBlaster can be run with any of them.

Securing your computer
  • Windows Updates - It is very important to make sure that both Internet Explorer and Windows are kept current with the latest critical security patches from Microsoft.  To do this just start Internet Explorer and select Tools > Windows Update, and follow the online instructions from there.
  • hpHosts file replaces your current HOSTS file with one containing well known ad sites and other bad sites. This prevents your computer from connecting to those sites by redirecting them to 127.0.0.1, which is your local computer's loopback address, meaning it will be difficult to infect your computer in the future.
Please consider using an alternate browser
Mozilla's Firefox browser is a very good alternative. In addition to being generally more secure than Internet Explorer, it has a very good built-in popup blocker and add-ons, like NoScript, can make it even more secure. Opera is another good option.

If you are interested:
See this page for more info about malware and prevention.
~Dr Jay

mattp

    Topic Starter


    Rookie

    Re: Unable to access the internet and very slow response times
    « Reply #16 on: July 17, 2010, 03:33:51 PM »
    Great, does that mean I'm clean?

    There still seem to be some problems - I use the laptop to connect my 360 to the internet and now get a message about corrupt windows management instrumentation when I try to enable the internet connection sharing. It worked fine before - any ideas? Or do I need to post this elsewhere now?

    Dr Jay

    • Malware Removal Specialist


    • Specialist
    • Moderator emeritus
    • Thanked: 119
    • Experience: Guru
    • OS: Windows 10
    Re: Unable to access the internet and very slow response times
    « Reply #17 on: July 17, 2010, 09:21:26 PM »
    ~Dr Jay

    mattp

      Topic Starter


      Rookie

      Re: Unable to access the internet and very slow response times
      « Reply #18 on: July 18, 2010, 03:28:56 AM »
      Thanks for all your help, you've been amazing, I really can't thank you enough!