MSIE 6.0; AOL Browser; Searchit; Firefox

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.general (More info?)

I just downloaded AOL's browser today, and it flagged me about some
potential Spyware called "Searchit". I clicked the button to go ahead
and block it, and this caused my attempts at opening other browsers
(e.g. MSIE, Firefox) to cause CPU utilization to spike, and these
browsers never opened up.

The only way to fix it was to backtrack and enable "searchit" again.


Is "searchit" a true pest to have? I don't remember installing it.

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.general (More info?)

See this http://www3.ca.com/securityadvisor [...] =453072546 then
download, install, update and run all of the following.

Ad-Aware
http://www.pcbutts1.com/downloads/aawsepersonal.exe

Spybot search and destroy
http://www.pcbutts1.com/downloads/spybotsd14.exe

Ewido Security Suite Trial version
http://www.pcbutts1.com/downloads/ewidosetup.exe

Microsoft Windows AntiSpyware (Beta1)
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads [...] laylang=en


--


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<valemike@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1123785170.752272.155870@g43g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
>I just downloaded AOL's browser today, and it flagged me about some
> potential Spyware called "Searchit". I clicked the button to go ahead
> and block it, and this caused my attempts at opening other browsers
> (e.g. MSIE, Firefox) to cause CPU utilization to spike, and these
> browsers never opened up.
>
> The only way to fix it was to backtrack and enable "searchit" again.
>
>
> Is "searchit" a true pest to have? I don't remember installing it.
>

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.general (More info?)

Is AOL your ISP? What exactly is "AOL's browser" and from where did you
download it? What flagged this potential Spyware called "Searchit"?

eTrust Spyware Encyclopedia - Searchit:
http://www3.ca.com/securityadvisor [...] =453072546

McAfee Inc.:
http://vil.mcafeesecurity.com/vil/content/v_130931.htm

doxdesk.com: database: Pugi:
http://www.doxdesk.com/parasite/Pugi.html

Checking for/Help with Hijackware
http://aumha.org/a/parasite.htm
http://aumha.org/a/quickfix.htm
http://aumha.net/viewtopic.php?t=5878
http://mvps.org/winhelp2002/unwanted.htm
http://inetexplorer.mvps.org/data/prevention.htm
http://inetexplorer.mvps.org/archive/tshoot.html
http://www.mvps.org/sramesh2k/Malware_Defence.htm
http://defendingyourmachine.blogspot.com/

When all else fails, HijackThis v1.99.1
(http://aumha.net/downloads/hijackthis.zip) is the preferred tool to use.
It will help you to both identify and remove any hijackware/spyware. **Post
your log to http://forums.spywareinfo.com/,
http://castlecops.com/forum67.html or http://aumha.net/viewforum.php?f=30
for expert analysis, not here.**

--
~Robear Dyer (PA Bear)
MS MVP-Windows (IE/OE) & Security

valemike@yahoo.com wrote:
> I just downloaded AOL's browser today, and it flagged me about some
> potential Spyware called "Searchit". I clicked the button to go ahead
> and block it, and this caused my attempts at opening other browsers
> (e.g. MSIE, Firefox) to cause CPU utilization to spike, and these
> browsers never opened up.
>
> The only way to fix it was to backtrack and enable "searchit" again.
>
>
> Is "searchit" a true pest to have? I don't remember installing it.

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.general (More info?)

> AOL uses IE as their internal browser, they just strip the MS header off
> and use AOL controls.

Kinda/sorta, but you only get that browser when you install the regular &
full AOL software package (which is why I asked OP...).

> AOL also has it's own external browser, but I thought it was still in
> Beta. It looks/feels a lot like Netscrape 8.
> In AOL 9, there is a spyware scanner installed by default. It runs
> automatically.

Yes, but does this free-standing "AOL browser"-cum-Netscape 8 (I'd never use
it) include the anti-spyware stuff? (I'd doubt it.)
--
~PA Bear

NotMe wrote:
> Well...the original post was not mine, but...
> AOL uses IE as their internal browser, they just strip the MS header off
> and use AOL controls.
> AOL also has it's own external browser, but I thought it was still in
> Beta. It looks/feels a lot like Netscrape 8.
> In AOL 9, there is a spyware scanner installed by default. It runs
> automatically.
> If it finds 'known spyware' it gives you the option to disable/remove it.
>
> > Is AOL your ISP? What exactly is "AOL's browser" and from where did you
> > download it? What flagged this potential Spyware called "Searchit"?
> >
> > eTrust Spyware Encyclopedia - Searchit:
> > http://www3.ca.com/securityadvisor [...] =453072546
> >
> > McAfee Inc.:
> > http://vil.mcafeesecurity.com/vil/content/v_130931.htm
> >
> > doxdesk.com: database: Pugi:
> > http://www.doxdesk.com/parasite/Pugi.html
> >
> > Checking for/Help with Hijackware
> > http://aumha.org/a/parasite.htm
> > http://aumha.org/a/quickfix.htm
> > http://aumha.net/viewtopic.php?t=5878
> > http://mvps.org/winhelp2002/unwanted.htm
> > http://inetexplorer.mvps.org/data/prevention.htm
> > http://inetexplorer.mvps.org/archive/tshoot.html
> > http://www.mvps.org/sramesh2k/Malware_Defence.htm
> > http://defendingyourmachine.blogspot.com/
> >
> > When all else fails, HijackThis v1.99.1
> > (http://aumha.net/downloads/hijackthis.zip) is the preferred tool to
> > use. It will help you to both identify and remove any
> > hijackware/spyware. **Post your log to http://forums.spywareinfo.com/,
> > http://castlecops.com/forum67.html or
> > http://aumha.net/viewforum.php?f=30 for expert analysis, not here.**
> >
> > --
> > ~Robear Dyer (PA Bear)
> > MS MVP-Windows (IE/OE) & Security
> >
> > valemike@yahoo.com wrote:
> > > I just downloaded AOL's browser today, and it flagged me about some
> > > potential Spyware called "Searchit". I clicked the button to go ahead
> > > and block it, and this caused my attempts at opening other browsers
> > > (e.g. MSIE, Firefox) to cause CPU utilization to spike, and these
> > > browsers never opened up.
> > >
> > > The only way to fix it was to backtrack and enable "searchit" again.
> > >
> > >
> > > Is "searchit" a true pest to have? I don't remember installing it.

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.general (More info?)

Yeah, this beta AOL browser installs the trigger-happy spyware package,
as a button on the toolbar.

Mike

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.general (More info?)

PA Bear wrote:
> OIC, AOL "Bring Your Own Access."
>
> Anyway, I'd say the real troublemaker is the AOL-bundled antispyware app,
> Mike. Tell us, if the AOL Browser isn't loaded, does IE work or has the
> antispyware thing totally killed IE now?
> --
> ~Robear Dyer (PA Bear)
> MS MVP-Windows (IE/OE, Shell/User, Security), AH-VSOP
>

I'm trying to recall since i don't have my affected laptop with me
right now. But this is what i remember yesterday:

Yes, starting IE works just fine when the AOL standalone beta browser
isn't loaded. So i have an IE instance running, and then i later open
an AOL browser. The bundled-in AOL spyware then flags me that it found
Searchit, and asks if i want to block it. So when I say yes, it blocks
me, and kills the MSIE instance altogether, and it disappears. Later
double-clicks on the IE icon then cause iexplore.exe to launch, but it
gets stuck. Thus the IE browser never launches. I can double-click on
it a few more times, and my CPU utilization goes up more and more. Like
i said, i can eventually get IE to launch the browser again, but by
now, everything is sluggish, and I have to kill all IE instances.

Now if i have a freshly booted machine, and i launch the AOL browser,
then since there is yet no IE instance running, then i don't get any
alerts of Searchit being present.

There is an option though in the aol antispyware to allow things like
Searchit, Gator, etc. to continue to run. If i allow Searchit to run,
then IE has no problems running later.

I wonder if Searchit is truly loaded in my machine, or perhaps the AOL
antispyware is sounding a false alarm and being more of a pest if
anything.

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.general (More info?)

valemike@yahoo.com wrote:
>
> I just downloaded AOL's browser today, and it flagged me about some

Got a deathwish?

> potential Spyware called "Searchit". I clicked the button to go ahead
> and block it, and this caused my attempts at opening other browsers
> (e.g. MSIE, Firefox) to cause CPU utilization to spike, and these
> browsers never opened up.
>
> The only way to fix it was to backtrack and enable "searchit" again.
>
> Is "searchit" a true pest to have? I don't remember installing it.

--
http://www.bootdisk.com/

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.general (More info?)

See my first post in this thread. If the usual & reliable anti-malware
tools (including HijackThis log interpretation by an expert) don't find
Searchit, well..., now you know what to do with that AOL browser *and* it's
anti-spyware feature.
--
~Robear Dyer (PA Bear)
MS MVP-Windows (IE/OE, Shell/User, Security), AH-VSOP

valemike@yahoo.com wrote:
> PA Bear wrote:
> > OIC, AOL "Bring Your Own Access."
> >
> > Anyway, I'd say the real troublemaker is the AOL-bundled antispyware
> > app, Mike. Tell us, if the AOL Browser isn't loaded, does IE work or
> > has the antispyware thing totally killed IE now?
> > --
> > ~Robear Dyer (PA Bear)
> > MS MVP-Windows (IE/OE, Shell/User, Security), AH-VSOP
> >
>
> I'm trying to recall since i don't have my affected laptop with me
> right now. But this is what i remember yesterday:
>
> Yes, starting IE works just fine when the AOL standalone beta browser
> isn't loaded. So i have an IE instance running, and then i later open
> an AOL browser. The bundled-in AOL spyware then flags me that it found
> Searchit, and asks if i want to block it. So when I say yes, it blocks
> me, and kills the MSIE instance altogether, and it disappears. Later
> double-clicks on the IE icon then cause iexplore.exe to launch, but it
> gets stuck. Thus the IE browser never launches. I can double-click on
> it a few more times, and my CPU utilization goes up more and more. Like
> i said, i can eventually get IE to launch the browser again, but by
> now, everything is sluggish, and I have to kill all IE instances.
>
> Now if i have a freshly booted machine, and i launch the AOL browser,
> then since there is yet no IE instance running, then i don't get any
> alerts of Searchit being present.
>
> There is an option though in the aol antispyware to allow things like
> Searchit, Gator, etc. to continue to run. If i allow Searchit to run,
> then IE has no problems running later.
>
> I wonder if Searchit is truly loaded in my machine, or perhaps the AOL
> antispyware is sounding a false alarm and being more of a pest if
> anything.