Lots of problems with Laptop, Windowx XP

[slafa23]

I am supposed to run CCleaner? Because I did and it deleted a lot of stuff. Was that what I was supposed to do?

[evilfantasy]

No I don't need the JavaRA log. Yes running CCleaner is always good. You can run it daily to clean up unwanted junk on your hard drive.

[slafa23]

Generally, how long does the Kaspersky scan take?

[evilfantasy]

It will take at least an hour, possibly more. It does take a while.

[slafa23]

The Kaspersky scan didn't have anything in the Scan Report. It was blank.
I think that's a good thing...

[slafa23]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
KASPERSKY ONLINE SCANNER 7 REPORT
 Monday, December 22, 2008
 Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP Professional Service Pack 3 (build 2600)
 Kaspersky Online Scanner 7 version: 7.0.25.0
 Program database last update: Monday, December 22, 2008 11:04:03
 Records in database: 1499780
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scan settings:
   Scan using the following database: extended
   Scan archives: yes
   Scan mail databases: yes

Scan area - My Computer:
   C:\
   D:\

Scan statistics:
   Files scanned: 58597
   Threat name: 0
   Infected objects: 0
   Suspicious objects: 0
   Duration of the scan: 01:28:08

No malware has been detected. The scan area is clean.

The selected area was scanned.

[evilfantasy]

Looks good.

How is the computer running now?

Use the Secunia Software Inspector to check for out of date software.

• Click Start Now
  
• Check the box next to Enable thorough system inspection.
  
• Click Start
  
• Allow the scan to finish and scroll down to see if any updates are needed.
• Update anything listed.

.
----------

Go to Microsoft Windows Update and get all critical updates.

----------

Here are some great FREE tools to help you keep from getting infected again. These tools use little or no resources so won't slow down your PC.

Concerned about Browser Security? Consider using Mozilla Firefox 3.0 with Adblock Plus and NoScript

To prevent unknown applications from being installed on your computer install WinPatrol 2008
* Using Winpatrol to protect your computer from malicious software

I suggest using SiteAdvisor. SiteAdvisor rates sites on business practices and spam. Safety ratings from McAfee SiteAdvisor are based on automated safety tests of Web sites.

SpywareBlaster - Secure your Internet Explorer to make it harder for ActiveX programs to run on your computer. Also stop certain cookies from being added to your computer when running Mozilla based browsers like Firefox.
* Using SpywareBlaster to protect your computer from Spyware and Malware
* If you don't know what ActiveX controls are, see here

Check out Keeping Yourself Safe On The Web for tips and free tools to help keep you safe in the future.

Also see Slow Computer? It May Not Be Malware for free cleaning/maintenance tools to help keep your computer running smooth.

[slafa23]

The computer is running well now. I will try those things. Also, what can I delete and what should I keep of the things I've downloaded over the past 2+ days? Everything is saved to the desktop.

[evilfantasy]

Keep MBAM and SAS. Update and run them now and again to make sure nothing strange has found it's way in.

Keep CCleaner, run it daily to keep the HD clean.

You can uninstall or delete anything else.

[slafa23]

Ok thank you.
I did the OSI scan and I have red "X"s next to...
AOL Instant Messenger 5.x (though AIM 6.x is installed)
Adobe Reader 8.X
All of my old Adobe Flash players, I have 10.x

Should I follow the instructions to download the updates?

[slafa23]

Which is SAS?

[evilfantasy]

Which is SAS?

SUPERAntiSpyware.

---

Check in your add/remove programs for old versions of AIM and uninstall them if found.

Do this to remove all unstable older versions of Flash.

Download the Flash Player Uninstaller and save it to your desktop.

Run the uninstaller program and then reboot your computer to complete the uninstall.

Download and install the latest version of Flash Player

[slafa23]

In my Add or Remove programs, there is...
Adobe Flash Player 10 ActiveX
Adobe Flash Player plugin
Adobe Reader 8.1.2
Adobe Shockwave Player

Which should I delete?

[evilfantasy]

Those are all OK. If you run the uninstaller from above then install the new version you should be OK.

[slafa23]

Ok will do! Thanks so much for all of your help!