can i ask how you got it?

Traded in on a cruiser.

This should help...

The "Sasser" worm that emerged on the Internet this weekend can infect a computer even if no one is using it. Infected computers might display error messages and try to repeatedly reboot themselves.

Here are instructions to follow if you suspect that your computer has been infected:

1. Disconnect your computer from the Internet.

2. Locate and stop the worm's actions: Press the keys "Ctrl" "Alt" and "Del" at the same time. That should launch Windows Task Manager. Click on the "Processes" tab. Look for a file called "avserve.exe" or "*_up.exe". If one of these files appears, highlight it and click on the "End Process" button. Click "yes" when it asks for confirmation.

3. Find and delete the worm: Click on the "Start" button in the bottom-left corner of your screen, then choose "Search". Search your entire computer (in the field next to the "all files and folders" option) for the following files: "avserve.exe", and "*_up.exe". Delete any matching files.

4. Enable a firewall: Right-click on the Internet connection icon in the bottom-right corner of your screen (or wherever the task bar is located). Click on "open network connections". When a box pops up, right-click on the connection you use to get online, and select "properties". Then, on the "Advanced" tab you should see a box underneath the words "Internet connection firewall". If that box is not checked, check it.

5. Reconnect your computer to the Internet.

6. Visit Microsoft's Windows Update site: go to windowsupdate.microsoft.com. Let the site scan your computer and apply any "critical" updates.

7. Check to make sure your computer is disinfected: Visit Microsoft's Sasser page on its Web site and click on the button that reads "Check My PC for Infection". Follow the instructions provided.

If your computer continues to try to restart:

Click on the "Start" button at the bottom-left corner of your screen, then choose "Run" from the list of options. Type "cmd.exe" (without the quotation marks). When a command prompt pops up, type in "shutdown -a" (again -- without the quotation marks). That should stop the reboot process and give you enough time to carry out steps two through four.

Several cybersecurity firms and Microsoft have released tools that can detect and remove Sasser.

This type of virus can be blocked by a simple free firewall program like Zone Alarm. There is no reason anyone should be on the net without without a firewall no matter what type of connection.

Heres a link directly to the free version download page:
http://www.zonelabs.com/store/conten...eeDownload.jsp

Now you should also be running a spyware program such as Spybot or Adaware. I run both. Spybot can be set to automaticly block spyware but Adaware seems to do a better job locating and removing spyware that slips by. I just run a scan once a week.

Spybot Free version:
http://download.com.com/3000-2144-10...ml?tag=lst-0-1

Adaware free version:
http://www.lavasoftusa.com/

All this stuff is free and you guys know I like free stuff.

?/?//?/??/?////

HOW?

how is that possible?

i got hit with it but norton popped up and stopped it.

thanks for the links Mr. Demeanor. i run spybot regularly and swear by it. i am going to give the Adaware a try also. i will also run that firewall you put the link up to. i have been on a broadband connection for a year or so with no protection. i need to get somthing installed before my luck runs out :D

does anybody know if this virus is only contracted through email? i actually still run win98 on the home pc and it says its not as big of a threat to that opsys.

Run the Trend Micro Housecall - a FREE online antivirus scan.
Trend Micro is usually the first with the fix.

Housecall

Mn---

Here's the HOW? answer from a "techie" article I found in my local newspaper...

"Unlike e-mail worms that are launched only when the recipient opens an e-mail attachment containing a virus, worms like Sasser spread to vulnerable computers without any action by the victim. Sasser wriggles into computers through a software hole in the Windows security program that decides who can gain access to a computer.

Network worms are an annoyance for home users, but they do their worst damage inside corporate networks. While Sasser does not appear to do any permanent damage to computers running the Windows operating system, it generates so much Internet traffic that it can overwhelm corporate networks with a flood of data as it tries to spread."

With a firewall in place and the security patch installed, this worm shouldn't be a problem...

it just kills me to think some computer dink sat at his PC and put this worm together. thats grounds for a serious ass kick'n. :mad: :mad: