Virus changed admin login password..

Hi there,



I think my desktop computer got hit by a virus that somehow changed the administrator login password such that I can't log in on to my desktop anymore.

Before this started happening windows would keep reverting back to the login screen 4 to 5 times a minute before I went to control panel, user accounts, and unchecked fast user switching.



I've googled for answers but I'm not savvy enough to reboot from a thumb drive or use some software to reset the password or any of the suggestions I've read, so I'm guessing I will have to reformat? What are my options? I don't have the original windows xp disk.



Please help! Thanks so much!!

Reply 1 : Virus changed admin login password..

Pretty bad sounding. To bad you lost the Admin account, else you couldve started in safe mode and logged in. If you have no access to the computer to get rid of the virus...................................... It is not that hard to start the computer in Linux off of a flash drive. You will probably want to do this to recover any important documents before you attempt to reformat the computer.

Reply 2 : Virus changed admin login password..

Don't quite understand. How do I get Linux on to a flash drive? Thankfully I only the computer less than 6 months ago and haven't been on it much to create many documents so reformatting is not a big loss.



HACK CRACK RESET WINDOWS 2000 XP VISTA 7 ADMIN PASSWORD on eBay.ca (item 360355435879 end time 01-Apr-11 23:22:44 EDT)



Found this on ebay. Could I use this to reset my password or is it a scam?

Reply 3 : Virus changed admin login password..

Wow. I dont like the looks of that at all. lol.

Besides reseting the password, your computer is bound to have numerous other issues. I also suppose you would want to use windows now?

Reply 4 : Virus changed admin login password..

^^ Yes, because I'm not really familiar with any other softwares...

Reply 5 : Virus changed admin login password..

I think that your first lesson is that setting up an Admin password is a bad idea, at least in most versions of Windows. It doesn't offer you any real security



Second, you most likely would be able to recover your data by booting a lightweight linux distro from a thumbdrive. Google it.



Third, stop using Internet Explorer. Use a Mozilla browser or Chrome.



Fourth, obtain a commercial internet security software suite. Some are better than others. There's always the free Microsoft alternative, although I don't exactly have a lot of confidence in it because, after all, it's from Microsoft.

Reply 6 : Virus changed admin login password..

Quote:

Originally Posted by linuxwanabe I think that your first lesson is that setting up an Admin password is a bad idea, at least in most versions of Windows. It doesn't offer you any real security Second, you most likely would be able to recover your data by booting a lightweight linux distro from a thumbdrive. Google it. Third, stop using Internet Explorer. Use a Mozilla browser or Chrome. Fourth, obtain a commercial internet security software suite. Some are better than others. There's always the free Microsoft alternative, although I don't exactly have a lot of confidence in it because, after all, it's from Microsoft.

Setting the admin password is a bad idea. But, whats worse, using the admin account everyday. Use a limited account everyday. Just do those two things after you are all reinstalled. I am also not sure where you are going to get the XP install, unless the computer is good enough and has drivers to support Windows 7.



Or learn how to use Linux and be safer from viruses.

Reply 7 : Virus changed admin login password..

Quote:

Originally Posted by linuxwanabe I think that your first lesson is that setting up an Admin password is a bad idea, at least in most versions of Windows. It doesn't offer you any real security Second, you most likely would be able to recover your data by booting a lightweight linux distro from a thumbdrive. Google it. Third, stop using Internet Explorer. Use a Mozilla browser or Chrome. Fourth, obtain a commercial internet security software suite. Some are better than others. There's always the free Microsoft alternative, although I don't exactly have a lot of confidence in it because, after all, it's from Microsoft.

I believe I had the free AVG virus protection software installed and I was only using Chrome.

Reply 8 : Virus changed admin login password..

Actually, I have a friend who has a copy of the windows xp install disk. I will just reinstall the entire program... sorry if this is a dumb question, but how do I do this? Is there a "reboot from cd" option somewhere before start up?

Reply 9 : Virus changed admin login password..

Put the CD in, and it should boot from it. You would see a "press any key to boot from CD..." than the XP disc says. If it dosen't, you will have to change some settings for it to work.