Overview
Summary:
FreeScratchAndWin is an IE spyware Browser Helper Object dressed up as a web 'scratchcards' game. (What exactly is available to be won, and whether anybody has ever won it, remains unclear.)
It also hijacks your home- and search-page settings to point to xzoomy.com, and complains if you try to change them back.
Alias:
Category:
Browser Helper Object: (BHO). A component that Internet Explorer will load whenever it starts, shares IE's memory context, can perform any action on the available windows and modules. A BHO can detect events, create windows to display additional information on a viewed page, monitor messages and actions. Microsoft calls it "a spy we send to infiltrate the browser's land." BHOs are not stopped by personal firewalls, because they are seen by the firewall as your browser itself. Some exploits of this technology search all pages you view in IE and replace banner advertisements with other ads. Some monitor and report on your actions. Some change your home page.
Downloader: A program designed to retrieve and install additional files, when run. Most will be configured to retrieve from a designated web or FTP site.
Hijacker: Any software that resets your browser's settings to point to other sites. Hijacks may reroute your info and address requests through an unseen site, capturing that info. In such hijacks, your browser may behave normally, but be slower.
Similar Pests:
Origins
Group:
Vendor:
URL:
Date of Origin:
Distribution
Distribution:
There is an official distribution site, listing terms of use that accurately describe what the software does. However judging by the number of complaints from users who did not install it deliberately, and the fact that it has been found coming from other servers, it is assumed this is not the primary distribution method.
Prevalence:
Clot Factor:
The "Clot Factor" is a measure of how much a pest "gums up" a machine by adding registry entries, files, and directories. As more objects are placed in a machine, manual removal becomes more difficult and more error-prone.
Growth:
Operation
Advertising:
Storage Required:
Browser Performance:
Risks
Privacy Issues:
Security Issues:
Stability Issues:
Detection and Removal
Automatic Removal:
PestPatrol detects this.
PestPatrol removes this.
Manual Removal:
There is an uninstaller available from the manufacturer.
Open the registry (Start, Run, regedit) and delete the following keys:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\FSW
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Shutdown\SetupProgramRan
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{20A03A4C-9FAF-45D5-A5C2-B6C49774E03C}
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{99B0B113-6F25-49C9-8ECF-2FDDD3EDFF6A}
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\FSW_beta1.Application
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\FSW.Application
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Fswinst.Application
Reboot Windows and delete the 'FSW' folder inside 'Program
Files'. Finally, go to Internet Options and reset your
home page and search settings (Options->Programs->Reset
Web Settings).
Kill these running processes with Task Manager:
Unregister these DLLs with Regsvr32, then reboot:
Remove these registry items (if present) with RegEdit:
Remove these files (if present) with Windows Explorer:
Remove these directories (if present) with Windows Explorer:
After following the instructions above, you will still need to restore your original settings and prevent this from happening again.
Research
File Analyses:
- FreeScratchAndWin: xcxrseiq.dll · xtzdjknl.exe · xtzdjknl.exe-02245d13.pf · xujykafs.exe · xujykafs.exe-16eea6a1.pf · xustmryz.exe · xustmryz.exe-2e3821a3.pf