Malwarebytes Pro Question.

This question may belong to the Software forum but since it concerns many products discussed in this forum I decided to try here first.

I am getting ready to get a new desktop with Windows 10 to replace my 6 year old Vista desktop. To prepare for this I contacted Intuit today to make sure all of my previous years versions (2009 - 2014) of TurboTax and my current version of Quicken could be transferred to the new desktop. I run into problems with them that I will not get into but they made a comment that I would feel better hearing the opinion of the experts on MG.

They wanted access to my desktop to check the Intuit products and immediately saw that I had the following software installed: Avast free, MBAM premium, SpywareBlaster and CCleaner. (I have the same software installed on my Windows 10 laptop except I have Kaspersky instead of Avast installed.)

They said all of this software was not protecting my TurboTax and Quicken data, that it was probably corrupted, and I should remove all four of these security products and replace them with MalwareBytes Pro. Of course they said they would be willing to contact Malwarebytes Pro, installed it and then make sure my Quicken and TurboTax data was not corrupted for $199.99.

I hung up and called Malewarebytes and they agreed that Malwarebytes Pro could replace all four of the security software products mention above but the cost is only $39.99. I have no problem paying for a secure PC and $39.99 for MalewareBytes Pro (license for 3 devices) is actually cheap.

Here is my question: Is MalwareBytes Pro a much superior product that can replace Avast and or Kaspersky, Malwarebytes Premium, SpywareBlaster and CCleaner? If you guys need more information in order to provide a better answer, please ask.

Thanks in advance. My new desktop is scheduled to arrive in a couple of weeks.

 

Thanks for the quick reply. I will tell them my Computing Pro's feel my setup is very adequate. I got the feeling when I was talking to them that they were just trying to set me up with some scare tactics and trying to make a few quick bucks.

Would any of you have a suggestion on what I should say to them should they continue to insist on the MBAM Pro installation in order to get help from them on transferring all of my TurboTax and Quicken software?

 

There's no $39.99 program that can replace Avast and/or Kaspersky, Malwarebytes Premium, SpywareBlaster and CCleaner, irregardless of what Intuit and/or Malwarebytes stated.
Think about it, if there was, those 4/5 publishers would close their doors.

As TimW posted, keep what you've got.

What to say to them...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intuit

 

You contacted Intuit - why? How?

 

Thanks for all of your input. I had installed my security software using information from this forum and felt good about my decision. But if there had been something new that could handle everything I knew you guys would know about it. I will continue with what I have.

satrow, before I did much of my research on the transfer of my TurboTax and Quicken software, I thought I would contact them to see if they would provide this info. Sadly, Intuit doesn't actually interact with the public very well after the purchase of their products. I did some google searches and found support sites and some numbers supposedly of Intuit people or claiming they were. I probably got a hold of a shady character just trying to make a dishonest buck. In fact, when I contacted the MBAM people they wanted to know who the person was and the phone number I had called - they wanted to report him as a fraud.

 

So you had one fraudulent company asking for the phone # of a probable fraudulent company - I'd have had a good laugh at that.

Google's a dangerous place to go looking for serious help, you really need to use it for checking on the veracity of the phone #s that you find.

The (since edited out) # for 'Malwarebytes wasn't, had you looked up the number, you would have seen that for yourself.

 

Wow, thanks for the input satrow. I'll do that in the future. Sounds like I got lucky and dodged some problems here. The support groups (communities) for the Intuit software did end up being very helpful and asked for nothing in exchange for their information.

 

Well, someone accessed your PC remotely so you need to close that door, if they are bad guys, they might reconnect in the background just for fun - or worse.

Run a MBAM scan and also check what's been installed recently, anything suspicious needs further research/checks.

 

DAMN, didn't think about that. I'm going to start a scan now. And, will check for anything installed over the last few days.

 

Good. Anything suspicious, have the Malware team look over your logs.

 

satrow...

I have a question. Should wwalker555 take a look at his remote connection settings, while he's at it? If you are going to keep the PC around, wwalker, I would recommend taking a look to see if remote desktop is enabled. Whoever accessed your PC may have tinkered with some Windows settings. Taking a look in scheduled events might be a good idea too, to see if there are any you don't recognize. I know MBAM is great, but I don't think it touches settings or scheduled events and the like...

 

Guys, I finished the MBAM scan and it found NO Threats. The only odd thing I noticed was when I started MBAM. It said I had never run a scan - I run them regularly.

The only newly installed items were items I installed. But to make sure everything is in good shape, I would appreciate someone looking at my logs. But please help me out... what logs and how do I get them to you?

Also, What is the Remote Desktop and how do I know if it has been enabled? Sounds like a good idea by AtlBo. Also, where are the Scheduled Events? While I will be getting rid of this old PC, it's probably a good idea to make sure I am clean just to ensure the data I transfer is ok.

Thanks for all of the suggestions guys and I will do everything you guys suggest to make sure I am good.

 

Here you go.
http://forums.majorgeeks.com/index....ide-incl-spyware-virus-trojan-hijacker.35407/

 

wwalker555...

Type "remote" in the search bar and then open "Allow remote access to your computer". You can uncheck "Allow Remote Assistance connections to this computer" and then select "Don't allow connections to this computer". That will make sure Remote Assistance and Remote Desktop are off...

 

I typed in Remote and got the Remote desktop Application but did not see "Allow remote access to your computer" or "Don't allow connections to this computer".

I did type "don't allow remote connections to this computer" and was sent to the firewall where I turned off remote access. Please let me know if I need to perform additional steps to turn off remote access.

Also, I may very well have problems. After running the MBAM scan, I left the desktop running as I went to the den to watch a game. When I saw your entry above I went back to the desktop it had a message on the screen "System has Crashed".

I will start the Malware process tomorrow. I have printed out the directions to use as a check list.

 

Do you have Windows Vista 32-bit?

 

32-bit

 

I asked about your version of Windows Vista because... 64-bit will crash a PC.
Go here and you will have access to everything.
http://www.majorgeeks.com/news/story/activate_god_mode_on_windows_7_and_8.html

 

wwalker...

Yes, my mistake, I thought the process for turning off Remote Desktop was the same for Vista and 7. Never used Vista, but I know it has the search bar like W7. Here you go:

http://www.vistarevisited.com/2008/09/07/how-to-disable-remote-assistance-in-vista/

Not sure what you did in the Firewall. I am guessing it's the exact same setting as the one shown above...

 

I UNCLICKED "Allow Remote Assistance to this Computer"
Remote Desktop section was not displayed so I could not do anything with "Don't Allow Connections to this Computer"

Am I still doing something wrong?

 

I created the GodMod Icon on my desktop. I can see that it provides abilities to many many things. But, pardon me for being a littel dense... What do you want me to do with it now that I have it on my desktop?

 

I performed the two things requested. Did a little work in Quicken, rebooted, then opened a few other products and got on the internet and checked out a couple of sites I use and ran CCleaner. Everything worked with no problems

You may have read earlier in the thread that I had performed a questionable activity (let someone get access to my computer) and that was the reason I went through the Malware cleanup process. I just wanted to make sure I was bug free so I would feel safe transferring my documents and maybe some software products (Quicken and TurboTax) to my new computer.

With that being said, this computer will be done away with when I get my new desktop, hopefully, next week. My current computer is over 6 years old, slow and sometimes does things a little scary. I have had System Crashes, Blue Screens and recently I started getting the following Error message when I boot up:

Error: Important Windows Drivers and Updates missing. Kindly update them before using the computer. The error message has a Yes and No button. Regardless of the one you select all that happens is the computer is shutdown. I then discovered that I could just leave the message on the screen and it did not hinder any work I performed.

I download a product called "SlimDrivers" and attempted to correct/update some of the drivers that product said were out of date with no success getting rid of the message. So I decided what's the use and gave up since it was just a waste of time since the computer will be trashed after I get my new desktop.

At this point, do you think I am ok? Do I need to run either one of the scans I could not start? Or, should I just continue with the next steps in the Malware cleanup process: Enable User Account Control and Toggle System Restore?

 

GodMode is like one-stop-shopping. You now have access to all settings in Windows.

Examples:
Under System you'll find Remote Assistance and Remote Desktop.

Under Administrative Tools you'll find Task Scheduler and Services.
Etc.

If you're going to dump the PC, I suggest you turn off Windows Update. That message should disappear.
If you want to update the drivers, use DriverEasy.
http://www.majorgeeks.com/files/details/drivereasy.html

PS The malware-related posts have been moved to a new thread in the Malware Removal forum.
http://forums.majorgeeks.com/index.php?threads/malware-in-windows-vista.296151/

 

Eldon, I have a couple of questions now:
1-After I get my new desktop both of my computers will be Windows 10. Will GodMode work on Windows 10? If so I would like to install it on them.

Unless you feel that I should work on the following two items, I am just going to tell you my plans:
2-Since I am going to dump this computer, I am going to just ignore my drivers problems since everything seems to still work without any problems.
3-Since I am going to dump this computer, I am going to leave the Window Update as it is and just not install any more updates -- I have it set to just notify me when updates are available.

4-Windows Update does bring me to another question, maybe I should create another thread for it and will if you desire. But I will first mention it here:

In Windows 10 they do not give us the ability to set it up to just notify us when updates are available, they are installed automatically. I find this to be troublesome. When they are being installed in the background and I am doing other work. Sometimes it gives the appearance that my laptop is hung up. I have even done a forced shutdown (holding the start button down for 5+ seconds to force a shutdown then rebooting). That is when I realize it was actually doing an update. Is there a way to make Windows 10 Update work like past Windows versions -- "Check for updates but let me chose whether to download and install them"?

 

GodMode works in Windows 10. Have a look here.
http://www.majorgeeks.com/news/story/yes_you_can_activate_god_mode_in_windows_10.html

If you're dumping the computer... why bother with anything?

With regards to Windows 10, post a question, or search the forums.

I do not use, and will never use Windows 10.

 

That's a pretty strong, definitive statement.
I'm interested to know your thoughts about Win 10, and probably others would be too.
Maybe you could post something in the lounge.

 

My thoughts exactly, Eldon.
When support ends for 7 in January 2020, I'll pull those four computers off the internet and switch to a different operating system. No more Windows for me.