W32.HLLW.Qaz.A - Removal

The best way to remove this virus is to use the W32.HLLW.QAZ.A Fix tool.
If you cannot obtain the tool, see the following manual removal instructions.

Manual removal instructions
To manually remove this virus, you need to:

• Delete the virus's program files.
• Remove the startIE and bymer.scanner registry entries.
• Restore the original Notepad.exe file.

Detailed instructions follow. If you are on a network, then you must perform these steps for each computer connected to the network.

Note: Some components of this virus are distributed, at least in part, using an illegally altered version of a legitimate program. For additional information on distributed.net, which is the legitimate program that has been illegally altered to do this, see the document What is Distributed.net?

To delete the virus's program files

1. Run a full system scan, and delete any infected files.
2. Boot to MS-DOS mode, and then delete the virus-infected Notepad.exe and Note.com files, and in some cases, an infected copy of the Wininit.exe file.
3. Follow these steps to do this:
   
   Note: These instructions inform you about deleting the files in MS-DOS mode, because you must be disconnected from the network when deleting these files. If you are sure that you can restart the computer without connecting to the network, then you can delete the files in Windows using Windows Explorer.

1. After running LiveUpdate to make sure that you have the most recent virus definitions, run a full system scan, making sure that Norton AntiVirus is set to Scan All Files as previously described.
2. Delete any files that Norton AntiVirus finds that this virus has infected.
3. Click Start > Shut Down.
4. Click Restart in MS-DOS mode, and then click OK. The computer restarts in DOS mode, at the C:\Windows prompt.
   
   NOTE: This feature has been removed from Windows Me. If you are using Windows Me, you will have to use a Windows Me startup disk to boot to DOS. See your Windows Me documentation for information on how to do this.
   
   
5. Type the following, pressing Enter after each line:
   
   del notepad.exe
   ren note.com notepad.exe
   
   
6. Type the following:
   
   cd system
   
   and then press Enter. The prompt should now look similar to the following:
   
   C:\Windows\System>
   
   Important: In the next step you will delete a file. This file may not be found on all the systems infected with this virus. It is extremely important that you make sure that you are at the \Windows\System prompt and not at the \Windows prompt. A core Windows file with this file name is in the \Windows folder. If you delete the wrong copy, then you may not be able to restart Windows.
   
   
7. Type the following:
   
   del wininit.exe
   
   and then press Enter.
   
   
8. Restart the computer. Click OK if you see any error messages.

To remove the startIE and bymer.scanner registry entries
There is one, and in some cases, two registry entries that you must remove. Follow these steps to do this:

Important: We strongly recommend that you back up the system registry before making any changes. Incorrect changes to the registry could result in permanent data loss or damaged files. Make sure that you modify the specified keys only. See the document How to back up the Windows registry before proceeding.

1. Click Start > Run.
2. Type regedit
   
   and then click OK.
   
   
3. Navigate to and select the following key:
   
   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
   
   
4. In the right pane, look for the following Name and Data:
   
   startIE "notepad qazwsx.hsq"
   
   Notes:
   • In most cases, the text in the Data column points to Notepad. A few cases have been reported in which it pointed to a different file. In either case, this entry points to the virus and must be deleted.
   • In some cases, this entry does not exist. If it does not exist, then skip to step 6.
     
     
5. Delete the startIE value. Click Yes to confirm.
6. In the right pane, look for the following value:
   
   bymer.scanner
   
   
7. If the value exists, select it, press Delete, and then click Yes to confirm.
8. Exit the Registry Editor.

Perform another full system scan when you have finished.

Technical Details