Malware help - completed half the process, scared of Combofix

Hello,

I recently started having some trouble with my Windows 7 (64 bit) HP laptop. I use Avast and Comodo for antivirus/firewall protection. I was watching TV online through Putlocker and received a message from Avast about a threat being blocked, but my computer suddenly began running slowly. When I opened Avast to run a scan, it said that it was turned off and wanted to turn itself back on, and I got a message from Comodo asking if AvastUI.exe was a trusted program. I've been running both of these programs for years and definitely did not manually turn off Avast. Thinking that perhaps this was malware masquerading as Avast, I clicked No on the Comodo window, but Avast turned itself back on anyway.

This all seemed suspicious so I downloaded Malware Bytes and ran a quick and a complete scan. It found one threat (Pup.Bundle.IIQ) and supposedly got rid of it. Computer was still slow, though, so I decided to run an Avast boot scan. It found a few Java files that were supposedly infected, so I removed them. However, the computer was still running slowly and taking 10 minutes to boot fully. I then uninstalled and reinstalled Avast, to no avail. Ran Malware Bytes again and it found the same file, which it again supposedly removed (this time it prompted me to restart, though). I've attached this log for reference.

Then I found this lovely site and began the malware cleansing process posted here. I have all of the software downloaded (including a new copy of Malware Bytes, just in case) and have my UAC turned off. I ran the SAS and MB scans (logs attached). I couldn't find the folder specified in the instructions for SAS, though, so I opened the log from the program and saved it to my desktop.

I've run Combofix on my work computer before, but with IT guidance, and I'm a little terrified to do it on my home computer given all the dire warnings out there about using it without professional expertise. Since I'm not even sure this is a malware issue, I wanted to check with people who know better before I take the next step! Can someone look at my logs and give me some advice? Thank you!

 

Kestrel, thank you so much for your reply. I will run MGTools, but I do have one question - when I downloaded it I wasn't able to save it directly to the C:/ directory as the instructions stated. I saved it to the desktop instead - will it work properly?

 

Done and done! I've attached the log. I turned my antivirus and firewall back on, but didn't restart the computer. Performance still seems slow. Let me know if you see anything - thank you!

 

Hi Kestrel,

Thanks for your help. I ran Cleano, TDSS, MBR, SAS and MB again - the logs are attached. I don't think any of the scans found anything of note. My computer is also telling me that it wants to reboot to install Windows updates - should I let it do that, or wait until you've had a chance to look at these scans?

 

Not sure I understand this reply - does this mean that you didn't see any malware problems in the last batch of logs I posted? If it's not malware, do you have any other ideas about what might be causing my system to boot and run so slowly (or a suggestion for where I can ask for help)? Thanks!

 

Will do - thanks!

 

Hi Kestrel,

Sorry to bug you again, but I just noticed something strange after doing a Windows update today. Two icons titled desktop.ini have appeared on my desktop. They are greyed out, and when I right click and look at properties they are supposed to be hidden. I did a quick google search and it appears that this might be a symptom of a virus, but of course Avast hasn't found anything, nor did you see anything on the scan logs I posted. Is this normal? Let me know, and thank you for your help!