Windows Efficiency Kit, Remove Fake Anti-Virus Program

Windows Efficiency Kit has grown into a notorious rogueware that many victims try hard to remove it without avail. Usually, the utility that most victims try to remove such fake anti-virus program is anti-virus program and “Add/Remove”. But these are destined to fail since Windows Efficiency Kit has disabled security services as well as utilities and it manages to stay on a machine even when there’s no appearance in “Add/Remove”. Let’s keep reading and see how dangerous the rogueware is.

 

How Dangerous Is Windows Efficiency Kit

The dangers mainly lie in the vulnerable computer after its infiltration and information theft. As a rogueware, Windows Efficiency Kit is adept at taking advantage of vulnerability/bug/loophole and backdoor for propagation. When it is done, the internal system components can be easily overwritten and modified maliciously, especially the ones associated with security services and utilities. This is how installed anti-virus program start to stop working, no more automatic update and no access to the reputable web sites offering security services. With out-of-gear security defense, the affected computer will become readily to be exploited by other infections such as Exploit:JS/Neclu.M.

Then how Windows Efficiency Kit manages to steal confidential information, and what exactly the confidential information is?

If one renew rogueware list nowadays, one would know that the FakaAV family rages lately. It keeps generating fake anti-virus programs with the same interface except names; Windows Internet Watchdog and Windows Internet Guard are the latest ones. With such rapid renewal, its registration is not strictly built and thus bugs can be apparently existent. As a consequence, the machine can be under the radar of many infections.

What’s worse, building a web site always requires the below technologies as what has been repeatedly said on this computer help site:

• BHO
• Applet
• ActiveX
• JavaScript

From what we have learned from the above, the registration site can be easily attacked by infections; what’s more, this registration site is temporarily built to collect illegal money, the listed technologies will be utilized to help preload any vicious code when access is ever made and record the input information on the registration site, such as user name, bank card number and password, address.

Such information can either be used by the maker behind Windows Efficiency Kit to pillage the bank card or resold to other spammers or advertisers for promotion. Therefore, quick removal is recommended when held hostage by the fake anti-virus program. Below is the instruction to follow up. Any help request will be gladly answered if you contact Global PC Support Center for exclusive help.

Instruction to Remove Windows Efficiency Kit

1.access DataBase to remove the items related to Windows Efficiency Kit.

a. navigate to the following entries respectively to find suspicious key value started with “Run” and delete accordingly.

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Current Version
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Shell Folders Startup=”C:\windows\start menu\programs\startup

b.navigate to the following entries to remove related ones and remove Windows Efficiency Kit's vicious items.

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Current Version\Run\random.exe”
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\ Windows Efficiency Kit
HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionRun
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\AppEvents\Schemes\Apps\Explorer\Navigating

c. hold Control and F key together to get a Find box, then search for and remove the malicious services found in Step 3.




2.end Windows Efficiency Kit's processes.

Ctrl,+Alt+Delete (Windows 7/XP/Vista) key combination/ Ctrl + Shift + Esc(Windows 8) > Task Manager > View tab > “Select Columns”> “Image Path Name” and PID > see full path name > end the processes referring the location of Windows Efficiency Kit.




3. end Windows Efficiency Kit's services.

Start Menu > All Programs > Accessories > open System Tools > System Information > Software Environment > Running Tasks > see the path for each service on the right pane > remove the ones that do not belong to System and that with the path directing to the Windows Efficiency Kit’s directory.




4.uninstall Windows Efficiency Kit from Control Panel, if any.

Windows 7/Vista/XP - Start menu > Control Panel > “Add/Remove Programs” > uninstall Windows Efficiency Kit.

Windows 8 - “Unpin” button > ‘Control Panel’ > "Programs and Features" > uninstall Windows Efficiency Kit.




5.open up random folder; search for and remove everything related to Windows Efficiency Kit.

Before that, it is recommended to show hidden items.

Windows 7/XP/Vista
Control panel > user accounts and family safety >Folder Options > view tab > tick ‘Show hidden files and folders’ > non-tick ‘Hide protected operating system files (Recommended)’.

Windows 8
Windows Explorer > view tab > tick ‘File name extensions’ > tick “hidden items”.

a. Next open up random folder and hit on Search icon, type "Windows Efficiency Kit" in all the search blanks and hit Enter button so as to remove all the detection.

 

 

b. mainly navigate to the following folder and remove the ones reated on the day when Windows Efficiency Kit was firstly detected.

C:/Windows/System32
C:\Program Files\
C:\Users\[your username]\Documents\
C:/Windows/
C:\users\user\appdata\local\

What Is It Like to Be Affected by Windows Efficiency Kit?

• Installed security utilities seem not to work anymore.
• Access to websites that offer anti-virus program are denied.
• Loading page speed and PC performance are dragged down considerably with unknown multiple processes running in the background.
• Additional infections, web applications might become into sight.

Windows Efficiency Kit Removal Recommendation

Certain level of computer knowledge and virus knowledge – the infections including Windows Efficiency Kit nowadays are much smarter than previous versions. It would camouflage or just override system items to confuse a target machine into executing what is instructed. Without certain level of computer knowledge and virus knowledge, it is hard to remove the vicious ones resembling system items and mistakes like removing the seldom seen system item in the middle of the removal to cause additional problems can happen.

Complete removal - Windows Efficiency Kit is not a one-solution-fits-all problem as the weak protection caused by the fake anti-virus program would make the affected machine to be attacked and captured easily by infections in the wild. Should there be any other problems occurring, it is recommended to remove as well so as to stop its re-image.

Reference:
http://blog.vilmatech.com/remove-windows-efficiency-kit-fake-anti-spyware-virus-removal/