Need some help and haven't had any luck in the other posts on this issue... I'm pretty much convinced it's the result of malicious events, but I want to make sure before I wrap a heavy chain around it, attach one (1) cinder block, and throw it in Lake Washington (joking, I'll just leave it on Bill's swim float - really joking, I'll re-cycle it)
I receive error 0x80072EFF when attempting to run window update, and I think it's NOT a connection problem, certainly not hardware related, been happening for days. (My other computer has no issues with updates - swapped connection methods; firewalls on/off; wireless vs. LAN; etc... no change)
My System:
DELL Inspirion E1505, Windows Medial Center 2002, Service Pack 3
Normal Security: Trend Micro (up to date, firewall, Anti-Virus)
(yes it's a dinosaur; budget window opens in a month)
Other Symptoms:
IE8 will fail on tab load and "recover" the tab; happens with almost every site
IE8 "hates" microsoft web sites (won't connect to them, can't find them, etc)
IE8 will not download specific key software items (windows update agent)
Fixes tried so far (without luck):
Re-install IE 8
System restore back to a couple of days prior to issues with IE8 tab failures
Running IE8 without add-ons
Multiple scans with Trend Micro (no findings)
Manual install microsoft security updates (MS10-022; MS10-002, MS09-072)
Manual install and scan with MS Malicious Software Removal Tool
Turn off firewall/protection - still no access
The only minor success I've had is downloading and running "Malware Bytes", whic returned the following nasties:
Rogue.DriveCleaner (registry key)
Trojan.FraudPack (registry value)
Rogue.PrivacyCenter (registry value)
Rogue.Multiple (registry value)
Hijack.Shell (registry data)
Even with finding and quarantining the above, I still get exactly the same problems. Subsequent re-scans with Malware Bytes, MS Mal removal, and trend micro find nothing.
Occasionally, I can "fool" it by starting at the microsoft.com and working my way to windows update. My favorite untenable workaround is to ignore the fatal errors ("encountered a problem and needs to shut down") and continue working... Until the fatal error "always on top" pop-ups get too thick and I can't see around them anymore.
Aside from the chain and cinderblock solution (and it's analogs) - Any ideas?
Thanks,
-Jim
