MS Recovery Tool
MS Recovery Tool is a computer Trojan that came from the same family as MS Removal Tool. This type of threat is in the group of rogue anti-virus program because it will promote itself as a real security product, in fact, it is a program that displays fake alerts and warning messages to deceive its victims. Additionally, MS Recovery Tool will run a virus scan once it is installed on the target computer. It has the capability to modify system settings and add an entry to Windows registry that will make itself to load on start-up. Dropped files are hardly detectable because it will contain random characters and are usually placed on random folders.
Usually, MS Recovery Tool spreads through Trojan infection. The Trojan will act as a browser hijacker that will point victim’s Internet search to malicious web sites. These sites will run an online scan on visitor’s computer and declare that the system is infected. A prompt to remove threats will appear and when executed, MS Recovery Tool will be downloaded into the computer and execute itself. Once inside the computer, continuous pop-up alerts are displayed. Some of these messages are:
MS Removal Tool Warning
Intercepting programs that may compromise your privacy and harm your system have been detected on your PC.
Click here to remove them immediately with MS Removal Tool.
MS Removal Tool Warning
Your PC is infected with dangerous viruses. Activate antivirus protection to prevent data loss and avoid the theft of your credit card details.
Click here to activate protection.
Since this rogue program will provide nothing but annoyances on victim’s computer, it is advice to remove MS Recovery Tool with the help of real anti-malware programs. A scan by legitimate anti-virus application can also help remove system files created by this malicious application.
| Type | Rogue |
| Sub-Type | FakeAV |
| OS Affected | Windows XP, Windows Vista |
What are the Symptoms of MS Recovery Tool Infection?
It will modify Windows Registry and add the following entries:
KEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce “(random)”
The threat will drop the following malicious files:
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\(random)\
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\(random)\(random)
c:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\(random)\(random).exe
Follow these Procedures to Remove MS Recovery Tool
Procedure 1: Manual Removal
For users with technical skills in dealing with computer problems, executing this manual removal is enough to stop the malware. However, we highly recommend running anti-malware scan to remove other hidden files. For users who are not tech-savvy, you must skip this step. Start on Procedure 2 and proceed onwards. Automatic removal takes longer to accomplish but is less difficult to execute.
1. Restart your computer in Safe Mode with Networking
- After turning On the power of the computer, just before Windows start, press F8.
- From the selections, choose Safe Mode with Networking. Please use keyboard's arrow up/down to navigate between selections and press Enter to proceed.
2. Remove Registry entries that the threat added. You MUST BACKUP YOUR REGISTRY FIRST. See how.
- Click Start > Run. You can also press [Windows Key]+[R] on keyboard to run 'Open' command.
- Type in the field, regedit.
- Navigate and look for the registry entries mentioned above and delete if present.
3. Delete malicious files that the threat added:
- Base on the given location above, browse and delete the file.
- If no location is given, click Start>Search> and search for the files.
- If cannot be deleted, press Ctrl+Alt+Del to access Task Manager, see if the file is running in the process. If it is, select the file and click End Process. Perform file delete again.
4. Scan computer with Antivirus Program
- Update antivirus program.
- Scan computer and delete all detected threats.
Procedure 2: Scan and remove MS Recovery Tool files with MalwareBytes Anti-Malware
To remove MS Recovery Tool, download Malwarebytes Anti-Malware by clicking on the button below. This tool is effective in getting rid of Trojans, viruses and malware.
1. After downloading, please install the program using the default settings.
2. At the end of the installation, please make sure that it will download necessary updates.
3. Once update has completed. The tool will launch.
4. Thoroughly scan the computer and remove all threats detected by this anti-malware program.
Procedure 3: Run TrendMicro's Fake Antivirus Remover (ATTK) to check and delete any remnants of MS Recovery Tool.
As an added help to remove MS Recovery Tool, you can scan the computer with Fake Antivirus Removal Tool. This software is provided and distributed by TrendMicro. Follow this procedure to run a scan with this tool.
1. Download the package by clicking on the button below. This will launch a new browser window that contains further details about the tool.
2. Save the file to a location on your hard drive.
3. Browse for the location of the file and double-click to run. If you are using Windows Vista or Windows 7, right-click on extracted file attk_far_gui.exe and click on Run as Administrator.
4. When program launch, it will run a command prompt to initialize, prepare components, and update the program.
5. Next it will open the graphical user interface (GUI) of Anti-Threat Toolkit.
6. Click on Scan Now. This operation will scan all MS Recovery Tool files and processes in your computer and display a list of result for possible Fake Antivirus program and malware that needs to be removed.
7. Tick all items that are detected by the program, and then click Clean. The tool will start removing MS Recovery Tool components from the computer.
8. If it asked you to restart Windows, please do so.
Protect your PC from MS Recovery Tool or Similar Attack
Turn On Safe Browsing Features
Internet Explorer - Activate SmartScreen Filter
Internet Explorer versions 8 and 9 has this feature called SmartScreen Filter. It helps detect phishing web sites and protect you from downloading malicious files online. To turn on SmartScreen Filter, follow these steps:
1. Please open Internet Explorer.
2. On top menu, select Tools (IE 9). For IE 8, please look for Safety menu.
3. Select SmartScreen Filter from the drop-down list and click on Turn on SmartScreen Filter.
4. Please restart Internet Explorer.
Google Chrome's Enable Phishing and Malware Protection
With Google Chrome's Phishing and Malware Detection feature, you will have lesser risks browsing the web. It will display a warning when the site you are trying to visit is suspicious. To enable Phishing and Malware Protection, please do these steps:
1. Open Google Chrome.
2. Click on the Customize and control Google Chrome (3-Bars Icon) located on top right corner of the browser.
3. Select Settings from the drop-down list.
4. Once on the settings page, click on Show advanced settings... at the bottom of the page to see the rest of the Chrome setup.
5. Locate Privacy section and mark 'Enable phishing and malware protection'.
6. Please restart Google Chrome. New settings keep your browser safe while surfing the web.
Mozilla Firefox - Block Attack Sites and Web Forgeries
Phishing and Malware Protection is a built-in feature on Firefox version 3 or later. It warns you when a page you are trying to visit contains phishing content or an attack site designed to drop threats on the computer. To help you keep safe while browsing the Internet using Firefox, please follow this guide:
1. Open Mozilla Firefox browser.
2. On top menu, click on Tools. Then select Options from the list.
3. Select Security and put a check mark on the following items:
- Warn me when sites try to install add-ons
- Block reported attack sites
- Block reported web forgeries
Remove MS Recovery Tool & Protect Your Computer Now!
