Parents computer is really messed up... help anyone?

• (Sorry I know this is long but it's complicated...) so my parents let my brother use their computer for a while to browse around (whatever) and now it's REALLY messed up. it freezes a lot, it's very hard to get to the internet (they have comcast and windows xp) and when they do get to the internet 4 things tend to happen: the page won't ever finish loading, the page will come up as page not found, some other random page will come up in a new tab or window while the first one does nothing, or some crap with something claiming to be antivirus service comes up. so here's the deal with the latter: a small alert window will come up saying there's a security issue and they need to download Antivirus 2009 to correct it. If u click okay, cancel, or just close out the window, u will be taken to a new page/tab which wants u to sign up for a $40 subscription. the whole thing seems messed up - i think it's like maybe a virus pretending to be antivirus 2009 or something???? maybe??? i don't knwo but they already have McCaffee (which does nothing) and it's part of their subscription to comcast so i dunno i guess they're stuck with it? so anyway i tried to help out today but really couldn't get anywhere b/c the comp kept freezing and the internet wouldn't work for sh!t. i downloaded firefox cause it seems to be better than internet explorer, but that didn't help. after that i couldn't do anything else b/c it wouldn't let me navigate to any other sites. Any ideas, suggestions, help, anything!!!??? I'd super appreciate it!

• Answer:

  You have Spyware or viruses. You may need to take the computer to a competent technician and have it repaired. You can try these steps on your own. You might have to download from another conputer and use a CD or flash drive to get the programs on your computer. Search for and download "Spybot Search and Destroy" and install it. Search for "malwarebytes Antimalware" and download it and install it. Click on "Start" Click on "Run" type in "msconfig". DO NOT USE THE QUOTES Press the ENTER key on the Keyboard A box will pop up Look for the tab along the top of the box that is labeled "Startup" Click on this tab and a box will become visible In the lower right corner of this box, right above the "help" button is a button called "Disable All". Click on the "Disable All Button" Click on the Boot.ini tab. Select Safe mode and also select "network". Click on the "Apply" Button Click on the "OK" Button When the computer asks to be allowed to reboot, tell it OK. The computer will boot into safe mode but you will still be able to get on the Internet. Load Spybot and update it. Download all the updates and wait for spybot to shut down and restart. When spybot restarts and gives you the interface, click on the immunize button to the left. If is tells you to immunize, click on the green plus sign beside the word "immunize". After it immunizes, click on the "Search & Destroy" button in the column on the left. Next, click on the "check for problems" button and start the scan. When the scan finishes, choose the "Fix Selected Problems" and wait for it to finish. What this does is: The scan cleans out a large amount of the common spyware, and is a good first strike. Always scan in safe mode. Immunize sets up Internet Explorer to block known spyware sites from gaining access to your computer. Even if you go to a website that wants to load spyware, your computer will refuse the connection, helping to keep it clean. Unlike some of the posts here say, Spybot gets along with all antivirus software. Leave it on your system and run it once a week. Be sure to immunize each time. Now do the same with Malwarebytes. So much for a first strike, now on to the heavy hitters: Viruses. Forget Norton and Mcafee, they are awful. Go to this page, and fill it out, choose the product "eScan Anti Virus (AV) for Windows" http://www.mwti.com/feedback/form.asp? Load this up (it will load in safe mode), update it, and scan the computer. This program is free for a two week trial, and you can uninstall it when you finish using it. Or buy it for $25, the best computer money you will ever spend. RUN THE E-SCAN OVER AND OVER UNTIL IT RUNS CLEAN 2 TIMES IN A ROW. After you finish go back and choose a normal boot (Start>Run>type in "msconfig" without the quotes, go to Boot.ini. tab and deselect "Safe Boot", then go to the startup and click the "Enable all" button. Let you computer reboot and have at it.