Malwarebytes left me high and dry

I'm damn sorry to report this, but it's the sad truth.

A few weeks ago an incompatibility between my Malwarebytes AV and Windows XP developed suddenly. No idea if because of a WinXP update (obtained with the old POS trick) or of an AV update, however an error message started popping up regularly to tell me that the AV couldn't start - on two independent XP computers simultaneously.

I contacted the customer support. They replied reassuringly that yes don't worry, they are still supporting XP... then after making me running tests for a few days there was a long silence. I eventually asked what the hell, and the answer was "sorry but you'd better upgrade to a newer OS, after all even MS has stopped supporting XP" - great news!

It's a real pity for they look like decent guys and their product is reported to be quite OK, but what should I do with it if it refuses to run on my computers?

Would anyone here recommend me another good AV that works on XP?

 

I had the same problem with comodo antivirus. The feb update KB4074852 was to blame...I think it is a buggy update.. uninstall it ..see if that the prob...it worked for me....

 

Malwarebytes is not an antivirus, it can work alongside of your antivirus.

 

If you have POSReady updates enabled it might be a good idea to monitor this thread:

https://msfn.org/board/topic/171814-posready-2009-updates-ported-to-windows-xp-sp3-enu/

So far in 2018 the problem updates are:

KB 4056615

KB 4074852

 

Thank you j896 and Lex24!
I uninstalled the two shady updates just in case, even if I'm not going to re-install Malwarebytes - not because I just signed off and got full refund, as much as because their customer support's competence has proved to be below the minimum acceptable reliability level.
You bet I would hear again the old refrain "XP is long since obsolete, you should update to something newer" even if the cause of the problem is the power switch.

Elizabeth23: I agree that the word "antivirus" has drifted considerably from its original meaning and today "antimalwaresoftware" would sound more appropriate.
However the subtle differences between two pieces of software that scan my computer and block whatever they regard as malicious (at the cost of quite a share of DRAM, CPU time and HD clatter) are losing interest for me: I'm planning on dispensing with all that stuff, setting up a Raspberry PI for the web (daily backup, daily restore), cutting my other PCs out of the internet and living happily ever after.
The alternative, to become a windows update specialist and a malware geek, doesn't look terribly appealing to me: there are plenty of better uses for my neurons.

 

I do not have posready xp, nor do I plan to hack the registry to use posready. I surf responsibly, clean my pc everyday, and have so far been safe,

I use 360 TSE from qihoo as my antivirus and malwarebytes free as an on demand scan, I had some trouble with MBAE and malwarebytes staff were exceptional in helping me, maybe you just got a crank,

 

Well, also with me they both managed to sound extremely friendly, efficient and professional. But if after one week they tell me to move away from XP because of a problem that in a few hours finds the right answer on a specialized forum, decency would demand at least that they stop claiming they still support XP - or else that they start taking their job seriously.

As far as POSReady goes, you probably made the right choice: as a wise man said, no hacker in his right mind would waste much time on an OS being disowned by its own mother - too few potential victims left, you know...

 

I also had a problem with Malwarebytes 3.3.1.2183 a few weeks ago, as I started getting incessant popups to update to the new version 3.4.5.2467. So about a week ago I finally did....big mistake! For the last week I had been getting incessant popups to update to the new version, but there ain't no new version, and these popups are like every hour. Looked on the Malwarebytes forum, and seems other XP users are getting all sorts of problems lately. Anyway, couple days ago I got sick of dealing with the popups every hour, and uninstalled Malwarebytes 3.4.5.2467 using Iobit Uninstaller, rebooted, then reinstalled my previous version of Malwarebytes, rebooted, and this time dug down into its guts, and disabled anything having to do with updates. So far, peace and quiet.

As for AV, you got plenty of choices. I'm running Avira Free 1.1.68.2326, with BPKiller 0.9.6.0. There are also lots of other options:
http://www.majorgeeks.com/mg/sortname/all_in_one_anti_virus_suites.html
http://www.majorgeeks.com/mg/sortname/all_in_one_malware_removal_suites.html
http://www.softpedia.com/hubs/Free-Antivirus/

 

Thank you for the good idea, Trimis: I'll check at Majorgeeks, an old trusted source of interestingware, and I'm confident I'll find by them the AV I'm looking for.
I'd rather cross off Malwarebytes (even its free version) due to the discouraging incompetence shown by their customer support. Of course there's no certainty that the others will offer a better service but... well, what you don't know won't hurt you, right?

There must be something though to the fact that in the last weeks I've been on line as usual (i.e. 'almost' responsibly) and so far nothing weird happened. None of my carefully set precautions (separate web PC, anonymous skeleton system, VPN, unnecessary drives disconnected, daily backups, etc.) was needed because so far my expendable system was never compromised.
Which inevitably makes one wonder if an AV (and/or an AM) program is really needed - with all the resource consumption it implies - or rather the risk of being attacked while on XP was purposely exaggerated for commercial reasons, or perhaps to scare us stubborn XP-ers into giving up once and for all on our independence and joining the Big Hive of Win10.
Bah, time will tell...

 

Well, Malwarebytes may lack customer support, but at least they have bothered to keep their product marginally functional for XP users. Not so with Emsisoft and their stable of apps, or many other software providers that have intentionally flipped us off. I'll still use the old version of Malwarebytes Free, until I'm sure its useless or until I find a better replacement....and I'm constantly looking. Stuff I'm researching currently are SmadAV, Sygate Personal Firewall Free 5.6.2808, WinSonar, etc.

I do not do 'responsible'. I go anywhere I want, or anywhere the CA control freaks will let me, as their crappy certificate store embedded in XP Pro has me blockaded from about 30% of the internet....for now. Anyway, I think I been using this PC for at least six months, and so far only 3 or 4 PUPs, which Malwarebytes and Adwcleaner quickly dispatched to the pound for some good euthanasia. With every passing week I have less and less doubt that "the risk of being attacked while on XP was purposely exaggerated". Wherever you go on the internet you will find roving hordes of slobbering fanboys ever ready to defend their sacred cow, or attack their chosen scapegoat, and XP has more than its fair share of idiot detractors.

As regards the need for AV or AM, opinions vary. I view dealing with both security and privacy by a layered approach. Never put all your eggs in one basket. The more complicated your defense the less likely you will be compromised, so I use as many layers as possible. The resource consumption is just the cost of doing business.

 

I was on version 3.4.4.2398, so I downloaded 3.4.5.2467 , then ran the mb3 cleanup tool to remove all malwarebytes traces . Then I rebooted and installed the new one.

the first thing I do is go to task manager and end the mbam.exe process
second I go to services and have the service set to not started and manual
third reboot, and check to see if my settings are still in place in services
fourth open malwarebytes from the shortcut and go through settings to turn off all real time activities, since I want this as an on demand type scanner.
fifth go to my 360TSE av and have the malwarebytes directory added to the trust list.
sixth I run a regular scan , it always finds two registry tweaks I made to remove the recycle bin from the desktop and one that lets me delete files automatically. I add them to the malwarebytes trust list.
then that is it. since I have turned off notifications I get no popups. so far, so good.

edit: this is the free version by the way.

 

reply 2:

wrong link for cleanup , sorry, it is below:

https://support.malwarebytes.com/docs/DOC-1112

 

And that is the difference between an experienced user, and one not. I assumed from the incessant original popup that clicking on the 'okay' meant everything would be taken care of...and not that I would have to go looking for tools. Anyway, not a problem, as I'm satisfied with Malwarebytes 3.3.1.2183...now that I have silenced its too chatty shenanigans. I don't recall what all I did while invading its guts, other than give the boot to the paid version trial, and disabling anything I could find on updates, but all seems to have worked. No more whining from Avira about BleachBit or MBAE. No more whining from MBAE about updates, or the paid version. All is quiet.

 

It's over 10 months now since my last post here, and in the meantime due to despicable work and laziness reasons I've been merrily postponing day after day the serious search for a suitable AV/AM to replace Malwarebytes.
You'll find it hard to believe, but so far so good: no PUP was planted into any of my systems, no ransomware encrypted my files, no wild virus deleted them, nothing horrible happened - just a single BSOD, but that was me tampering with the registry .
The constant use of a VPN, not clicking on blatantly fishy links, and regular monthly restores from a healthy backup were the only precautions I took.
In view of this I'm not looking forward anymore to burdening my systems with a resource-hungry software intended to fight virtual ghosts that until now never showed up.

I agree, one single case is way to few for a statistic, nevertheless the above makes it hard to resist the temptation to suspect - at least as far as XP is concerned - that most of the malware story is just the bogeyman behind a huge commercial operation.

 

This has been my suspicion too for sometime now. Somewhere I read an idiot writing "XP is so vulnerable it is not funny any more......blah blah blah". People still using XP bugs them really hard.

 

Alas, idiots' opinions are never in short supply...
When a few years ago on Emsisoft's forum I publicly refused to "upgrade" to Win10, I remember the heartfelt invective of an opinionated young lady ending with "... and if you insist on sticking with XP, at least stay clear of the web for else you will be a threat to us all!".
Freely rephrased, "be reasonable, do it my way!"

 

Yep, the fool in charge of the ramond.cc site (https://forum.raymond.cc/) banned me for refusing to "listen to reason", and ditch XP Pro. The miniminds at bleepingcomputer probably did too...not sure as I never went back after the last anti-XP dogpile. Wherever you go, the MS propaganda machine has successfully brainwashed all the 'talking heads', and turned them into NPC-podpeople, wholly unable to see past 'end of service' and 'end of life'. It's like they were all sent to a commie re-education camp, or abducted by The Moonies!

 

No need for brainwashing, I'm afraid: I think they've ever been there and ever been idiots, just inconspicuous.
You know, there are plenty of nobodies that, unable to build an opinion of their own, strive pitifully to prove that they are somebody by borrowing a ready made one. And quite naturally they go for the safest and most popular one, namely the one of the loudest member of the pack.
Now can you think of someone that can shout louder than Microsoft?

 

What an outlandish suggestion from this cow, to keep you off the internet that you pay for! Did you manage to tell her to go suck 'something' that I can't mention in the forum?

 

Alas no, for once I behaved like a gentleman... but it wasn't easy

P.S.: someone must have uttered the word "robot" in her presence and probably she had read too much SF without understanding it...