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A virus stole my Windows Activation Key!

Solus

Graduate Poster
S
Joined
Dec 26, 2005
Messages
1,722
I'm wondering if this has happend to anyone else? This is a serious problem for me. For months I've had this issue with an anti-virus program, I knew it had been taken over and the best I could do was delete the EXE. file. No anti-virus programs I used picked up on this.

Now witness today: I'm trying to optimize my computer so I see that old file and try to delete it, but first stupidly I renamed the file thinking I'd be able to delete it that way. Immediately I'm informed my hardware has "changed drasticly" and I'm required to reactivate windows. :covereyes I figured the website I was sent was phoney but I check the Real mircosoft website and it seems it's not BS.

So bottom line is this #%$$#@@%^@ virus deactived my windows. I wouldn't be so angry but I swear. I hope mircosoft will give me another key and help with this problem. I have a recept and of proof purchase. I spent 120$ on XP(Had to) I won't tolerate this nonsense.

I have 3 days to fix this problem. Heh if mircosoft won't help I'll find someway of getting another KEY and furthermore I will NEVER buy another mircosoft product. :mad:

Forgive the rant but I don't need any more nonsense in my life. This such a small thing but I have enough problems, why can't I have a stupid computer work properly!
 
If you knew you had a virus and were still using your PC then I don't think you can reasonably be angry at anyone but the people behind the virus and yourself!

Since you knew you had this virus you have done a complete re-installation of your PC starting from scratch (i.e. fdisk and onwards) haven't you?

Somehow I suspect you haven't...
 
Most of the Major Anti virus providers have free AV scans on their websites.

I know Symantec, Trend, Panda & McAfee do. They are a once only scan & not a permanent solution, but at least they will get rid of any virus's you have.

Each company uses slightly different methods & pattern files to detect virus's. So what one will miss , another will find.

I find Panda's online scanner the best: http://www.pandasoftware.com/products/activescan.htm

Just tell Micro$oft your PC crashed & you had to re-install the OS. They will re-activate you. Ive never been knocked back once.

D2011
 
Solus said:
I have 3 days to fix this problem. Heh if mircosoft won't help I'll find someway of getting another KEY and furthermore I will NEVER buy another mircosoft product.
Click to expand...

Personally, i think it'd be in your best interest to never buy another microsoft product.. XP was the biggest waste of money for me, had nothing but problems, and spent hours downloading those stupid updates (and multiple service packs) every time microsoft finds yet another mistake (or bundles of mistakes).
Microsoft sucks.
 
Solus said:
Immediately I'm informed my hardware has "changed drasticly" and I'm required to reactivate windows. :covereyes I figured the website I was sent was phoney but I check the Real mircosoft website and it seems it's not BS.

So bottom line is this #%$$#@@%^@ virus deactived my windows. I wouldn't be so angry but I swear. I hope mircosoft will give me another key and help with this problem.
Click to expand...

Steady on. First thing is that you should be able to reactivate Windows without having to get another key. I've moved my XP Installation across several major hardware changes which it has noted, but has let me reactivate without complaint.

Incidentally, reactivation is (IIRC) not done by going to a website, it's a process kicked off by Windows itself. It would like to have access to the internet for speed and convenience, but if you don't have internet access on that machine, you can phone a toll-free number and talk to a machine. You spend about ten minutes typing in numbers from your phone keypad, and then listening to numbers back that you enter into Windows. It's a pain - but it works.

But don't do that until you've cleaned the machine. Depending on the virus, you may be better off with a complete reinstall. Some of them infect any executable program that you run, which by this time will be almost all of yours I should think. Some viruses are so tenatious that it's nigh on impossible to dig them out anyway. So if you're uncertain, and especially if your virus scanner is turning up a blank, try Darat's suggestion of nuking it from space.

What is the virus that you have? What is the file that you deleted? If no virus scanner detected it, what were the symptoms that made you think you were infected?

enjoytheview, I thought XP was rather a good product. It is pretty stable and capable. Sure, it has constant updates, but then what OS doesn't? Certainly my Linux systems are always busying themselves downloading new packages.
 
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My disc activation key was tagged with a sticker on the back of my PC when i bought it...

Simple...if you can prove you bought a copy of XP..Microsoft will give you a new activation code...

I know...I rang them...

DB
 
I had done a reformat/reinstall about 6 months ago. Just recently I decided to revisit one of the games that came in the MS package, but it wouldn't let me reactivate because it said it was installed on "too many computers." Well, no, it was just one computer, several times, due to bad hard drives, etc.

I tried the web method and couldn't get it to work (with my original disc in hand -- always insist on getting those!). So I called and in a few minutes got through to a real person and got a new key. I was really rather surprised.
 
Forgive the rant, bad day yesterday. I have bigger problems than computers to worry about, so that was the staw that broke the camel's back for the day.

Now that I'm calm I'm not even sure it was a virus that did it, maybe it was hardware changes. I'll note though there is no way I would reformat my PC. It's much too much trouble. I've collected too much data over the years to have it all wiped out. I'm pretty sure mircosoft will give me a new CD-key. I do of course have the activation key but it didn't work. Too many uses or something that's what the system told me when I tried to reactivate it.

Still it's ridiculous that I have to waste my time calling mircosoft to use an OS I PAID for! Monopolies are terrible for the consumer.
 
I called in and reactiviated windows. I feel sorry for the guys from India who do such a boring job and only get paid maybe 1/5 of an american minimium wage. The guy wouldn't tell me what his salary was but that's my guess.

I'm getting a job at the post office sorting packages and I get 10$ an hour for such easy, and simple work. Life surely isn't fair at all. In India or China same job probably 10$ a day or less.
 
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Solus said:
Now that I'm calm I'm not even sure it was a virus that did it, maybe it was hardware changes. I'll note though there is no way I would reformat my PC. It's much too much trouble. I've collected too much data over the years to have it all wiped out.
Click to expand...
Ummm, you do do routine backups, right?
 
cd/dvd, there are many options. If the data is valuable to you it would be in your best interest to back it up, all it takes is one crashed hard drive and you will wish you did.
 
Solus, if the prospect of losing your data got your shorts in a bunch as noted in the OP, then you MUST begin the practice of doing regular backups. As Skibum noted, use your CD/DVD drive. If you want motivation, just start a thread entitled "Data I Have Lost Because I Was Too Stupid and/or Lazy to do a Backup" and watch the posts roll by. :)
 
SezMe said:
You don't own the software. You own the license to use the software. MS stills owns Windows.
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Fine. Call it a license. I paid for the damn thing. Once I have paid for it the company should not be concerned with what I do with it, whether I like to stick it up my a88 or create the next improvement to Windows.
 
Solus said:
I'm getting a job at the post office sorting packages and I get 10$ an hour for such easy, and simple work.
Click to expand...
Say what??? $10 an hour??? :jaw-dropp

Holy crap, I did some moonlighting about 20 years ago by working night shifts at the main mail processing plant in Ottawa, and was paid $18 an hour. I can only imagine what they'd pay now, but I'm guessing it's $25 or more.

RayG
 
De_Bunk said:
My disc activation key was tagged with a sticker on the back of my PC when i bought it...

Simple...if you can prove you bought a copy of XP..Microsoft will give you a new activation code...

I know...I rang them...

DB
Click to expand...
absolutely correct....I have had numerous keys given to me by microsoft for office machines where the keys have been long lost. I just read them some numbers off the original CD and they email me a new key....excellent service.
 
SezMe said:
Solus, if the prospect of losing your data got your shorts in a bunch as noted in the OP, then you MUST begin the practice of doing regular backups. As Skibum noted, use your CD/DVD drive. If you want motivation, just start a thread entitled "Data I Have Lost Because I Was Too Stupid and/or Lazy to do a Backup" and watch the posts roll by. :)
Click to expand...
Reading this thread yesterday morning reminded me that I'd been too stupid and lazy to back up recently, so I spent the afternoon backing up my two main PCs onto a spare server and also to an external drive. Thanks for the reminder! :)
 
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