indication for a trojan infection

CaptainHaplo · 08-25-12, 09:56 AM

You don't need to replace the hard drive.
Repartition it instead. There are a few security threats out there that can write to "sector 0" of the partition. By deleting the partitiions on the HD and recreating them, (preferably with a slightly different size - even 1kb difference) - you rewrite the tables, eradicating any "leftovers".

Also - when you formatted the HD - did you do a "quick" format? If so, you didn't rewrite the data on the drive - you simply deleted the file system location table. Always do a "full" or "unconditional" format. This forcibly rewrites all the data on the drive with 0's.

A couple of other security hints concerning rebuilding a machine. Whenever possible - preperation is always the best course. If you have the ability - download (from an uninfected machine) the latest virus definitions, updates, etc for your system beforehand. Put them on something that you can move them to the newly rebuilt machine. For things like service packs for the OS - download the "redistributable" or the version for IT folks. This is the full package, not just the "web install" that is usually used.

Secondly - rebuild the machine and apply the updates you have BEFORE you connect to the internet. The security holes that exist in freshly installed versions of windows NEED to be plugged before you expose the machine to the outside world. Not all attacks are "passive" - waiting on you to access a web site or whatnot. Many are active - port scanning on known vulnerabilities on new machines.

Good luck Skybird!

08-25-12, 09:56 AM	#25
CaptainHaplo Silent Hunter Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 4,404 Downloads: 29 Uploads: 0	You don't need to replace the hard drive. Repartition it instead. There are a few security threats out there that can write to "sector 0" of the partition. By deleting the partitiions on the HD and recreating them, (preferably with a slightly different size - even 1kb difference) - you rewrite the tables, eradicating any "leftovers". Also - when you formatted the HD - did you do a "quick" format? If so, you didn't rewrite the data on the drive - you simply deleted the file system location table. Always do a "full" or "unconditional" format. This forcibly rewrites all the data on the drive with 0's. A couple of other security hints concerning rebuilding a machine. Whenever possible - preperation is always the best course. If you have the ability - download (from an uninfected machine) the latest virus definitions, updates, etc for your system beforehand. Put them on something that you can move them to the newly rebuilt machine. For things like service packs for the OS - download the "redistributable" or the version for IT folks. This is the full package, not just the "web install" that is usually used. Secondly - rebuild the machine and apply the updates you have BEFORE you connect to the internet. The security holes that exist in freshly installed versions of windows NEED to be plugged before you expose the machine to the outside world. Not all attacks are "passive" - waiting on you to access a web site or whatnot. Many are active - port scanning on known vulnerabilities on new machines. Good luck Skybird! __________________ Good Hunting! Captain Haplo