My Documents Folder emptied without my doing so

[Jay Gee]

Hello,
I turned on my computer and went to my documents to edit a long report I had completed the day before. It gave me an error message that My Documents was not accessible. I tried again and same result. I then checked the properties and it shows the file as empty. I did a back up and I can see the files scrolling and saved on the back up but I cannot access them . What do you suggest. I use Windows XP

 

[Chicano]

1. If you haven't done a virus scan, do it now and include a malware scan with Malwarebytes Anti-Malware.
2. Reset the Registry and the File Permissions in Windows XP with Secedit for Pro or Subinacl for Home Edition. All necessary instructions and downloads in the article.
http://www.winhelponline.com/blog/reset-the-registry-and-the-file-permissions-in-windows-xp/
3. If you still can't access the backup, take ownership of the folder following these instructions
How to take ownership of a file or a folder in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/308421/en