Re: I've lost admin privs, and I can't stop what's happening!

Andy Max wrote:
I'm running Windows XP Home edition.

My pc was attacked by a virus. PCTools Spyware Doctor With Antivirus cleared the conglomerate of viruses out, or so it claims, BUT

when it took over, it made a bunch of changes, AND removed my admin privs.

Now:
1) "Settings" on the Start Menu no longer allows me access to Control Panel or to the printers. It shows me only "Taskbar and Start Menu"
2) "My Computer" does not see the CD-Rom/DVD player
3) I have no access to Task Manager. Instead, a box pops up that says "Task Manager has been disabled by your administrator"
4) The computer plays horrible music that I cannot stop.
5) I cannot access the Display Control panel (i.e., when I right-click on the desktop) -- the computer tells me that this has been disabled by the administrator. So I cannot change the desktop or the screen saver - both of which are under the control of the malware. (The desktop now consists of a blue screen and a box in the center that says "Warning! Spyware Detected on your Computer! Install and Antivirus or spyware remover to clean your computer"
6) The time display at the bottom-right corner says "19:42: VIRUS ALERT!" and I cannot change this either, though I can open Time and Date Properties dialog box.
7) There are probably other things I have not discovered yet.

Someone, please help me!

Mordechai Housman


Unless they've plugged this hole with SP3, there's an easy way to do this. Boot up in Safe Mode, and sign on as Administrator. Then you can go to Control Panel->Users and whatever you wish. Give your ID admin privileges, then boot up in normal mode.
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Relevant Pages

  • Re: administrator password
    ... As windows is loading up press F8 repeatedly until the Windows advanced ... Select Administrator and it will log you on as administrator without a ... Spyware Programs links:- ... Kaspersky Labs On-line Virus Checker: ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support)
  • Ive lost admin privs, and I cant stop whats happening!
    ... PCTools Spyware Doctor With Antivirus cleared ... "Settings" on the Start Menu no longer allows me access to Control Panel ... Manager has been disabled by your administrator" ... So I cannot change the desktop or the screen saver - both of ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support)
  • Slow logon
    ... It boots up fine,but takes up to 5 minutes to log on. ... I am an administrator. ... It's not spyware or a virus, i scenned for both many times. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.general)
  • Windows explorer
    ... control panel. ... i ran all these different virus scans, ... spyware scans, etc.In event viewer it says: ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.general)
  • Home Page option
    ... administrator, it sounds like you have a virus or some ... spyware has locked it. ... >I cannot change my home page in internet options. ...
    (microsoft.public.windows.inetexplorer.ie6.browser)