UCSD Blink: Removing Storm Worm from a Windows XP Computer

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Removing Storm Worm from a Windows XP Computer

Summary: Follow these instructions to remove the Storm Worm bot/ virus from your computer without the need for reformatting.

Note: UCSD does not take any responsibility for harm to your computer that may result from this patch.

Instructions — short version:

Download the zip file patch developed by ACT.
Extract the zip file and save it to your computer.
Remove prep.bat, remove.bat, sc.exe, and wget.exe from the folder.
Run prep.bat.
Restart your computer in safe mode.
Log in with the username used to download the patch.
Run remove.bat.
If the Open File - Security Warning window comes up, click Run. Otherwise, wait for the computer to finish and then restart your computer normally.
Secure your computer by setting up automatic updates for your antivirus software and Windows XP, and activating your firewall.

Instructions — detailed version:

What to do		How to do it
1	Download the patch.	Download the zip file patch developed by ACT to your computer. Extract the zip file. (Note: If you don't have a 3rd-party zip utility application, right-click on the file and select Extract, and then extract it to a folder.) Open the extracted folder and drag the prep.bat, remove.bat, sc.exe, and wget.exe icons from the folder to your desktop. Click prep.exe to start the application. If a prompt comes up, click Run. Otherwise, wait for the computer to finish on its own.
2	Restart your computer in safe mode.	Restart your computer in safe mode. To log in, click the username you used when you downloaded the patch. A pop-up window will indicate your computer is running in safe mode. Click Yes to continue.
3	Remove the Storm Worm bot/ virus.	Click on the remove.bat icon you extracted earlier to start the application. If the Open File – Security Warning window comes up, click Run. Otherwise, wait for the computer to finish and then restart your computer normally.
4	Secure your computer.	If you haven't already, set up automatic updates on your antivirus software and Windows XP Automatic Updates. Activate your firewall.