RogueKiller is a tool which
scans the processes running, and kill those who are malicious. I developed this
tool after seeing that some rogues (eg Security Tools) blocked the execution of
disinfection programs, and some programs (eg Rkill) appeared ineffective in
killing the rogue process. So I developed a tool based on speed of execution,
which is to clean up the process and requested clean the registry to make a
sanitizing faster and safer then with the usual tools.
RogueKiller is a free,
anti-malware software designed to analyze, detect, stop and remove various PC
infections: rootkits, rogue software, spyware, adware, junkware, PUPs
(Potentially Unwanted Programs) trojans, worms, hidden processes, malicious
autorun entries and Master Boot Record (MBR), registry hijacks, unload infected
DLLs from processes, hijacked DNS and host entries (HOSTS file) etc. It can
also perform several "restore/repair" functions of your system files
(altered by a rootkit) and files that were hidden by malware (e.g. restore
shortcuts hidden by FakeHDD rogues). Currently, this malware removal tool is
available in more than 12 languages and you can use it on all major Microsoft
Windows versions such as XP, Server 2003, Vista, Server 2008, 7, 8 and 8.1
(including both 32 and 64-bit versions).
RogueKiller Review
Important: If you never used
this program before, I would highly recommend you to check "RogueKiller
Official tutorial" which is written by its developers. Also, if you're
having difficulties in recognizing a malware infection after a scan, please
search or post the scan log on the official forum.
Note: Please note that this
program does not require you to install it, just download the executable file
and run it. If you use Windows 7 or 8, the SmartScreen filter might prevent you
from opening this application. If it does, choose "More Infos" and
then click "Run anyway". If the program is blocked (and you suspect a
malware infection), please try to rename it to "winlogon.exe" or
change the file extension from .exe to .com (e.g. RogueKiller.com). This is a
tip taken from the official tutorial.
Using RogueKiller: As easy
at it gets, the only thing to keep in mind is to "quit all running
programs" before you open RogueKiller. I would like to remind you that it
would be a good idea to read the official RogueKiller tutorial as this is the
short version without any pictures.
Prescan: When you open
RogueKiller, it will start to scan and stop automatically any malicious
services or processes it detects. Besides this, it will also check if you have
the latest version downloaded. If not, you will be prompted to download the
latest version (which is highly recommended). The prescan is an automated
process that you can't disable (for security reasons) and as an additional
note: no changes are being made to your computer at this step.
Scan: After the prescan
ends, you will be able to press the "Scan" button. Obviously, this
process will search your computer for malware infections. When the scan process
will finish, you have two options:
1. Check each section:
"Processes", "Registry", "Tasks",
"Hosts", "Antirootkit", "Files", "MBR",
"Web Browsers".
The red entries are malware
infections, those in orange are probably PUPs (Potentially Unwanted Programs),
gray entries are suspicious while green color means that those files are safe
or "not known as malware". Based on those colors, you can select and
press "Delete" button to remove detected threats. If you're not sure
how to handle the results, skip and move to the next step.
2. Click on
"Report" button and post the scan log on the official forum - do this
if you need additional help.
Conclusion: This is a
"must-have" security tool for any Windows user. The last thing you want
on your computer is a TDSS (also known as TDL) or a ZeroAccess (also known as
Sirefef) rootkit. These are real-threats that infects certain files and the MBR
(Master Boot record). You can use only one antivirus product at a time (so make
sure you choose it wisely) but there is no limit to the number of anti-malware
tools that you can use. Adding RogueKiller on your computer is a smart thing to
do and will help you to remove infections that other (similar) tools might
miss. If you want to show your appreciation and encourage further development
please donate!