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Published May 26, 2005 | Updated Sep 15, 2017

Worm:Win32/Lovgate.F@mm

Detected by Microsoft Defender Antivirus

Aliases: No associated aliases

Summary

Win32/Lovgate.F@mm is a mass-mailing worm that targets computers running certain versions of Microsoft Windows. The worm sends itself as an e-mail attachment to addresses on the infected computer. The worm can spread to writeable network shares using weak user name and password pairs. The worm opens a backdoor that allows attackers to access and control the computer.
To recover manually from infection by Win32/Lovgate.F@mm, perform the following steps:
  • Disconnect from the Internet.
  • Restart the computer in safe mode.
  • End the worm process.
  • Delete the worm files from your computer.
  • Delete the worm registry entry.
  • Restart the computer. 
  • Take steps to prevent re-infection.

Disconnect from the Internet

To help ensure that your computer is not actively infecting other computers, disconnect it from the Internet before proceeding. Print this Web page or save a copy on your computer; then unplug your network cable and disable your wireless connection. You can reconnect to the Internet after completing these steps.

Restart the computer in safe mode

To start your computer in safe mode
  1. Remove all floppy disks and CDs from your computer, and then restart your computer.
  2. When prompted, press F8. If Windows starts without displaying the Please select the operating system to start menu, restart your computer. Press F8 after the firmware POST process completes, but before Windows displays graphical output.
  3. From the Windows Advanced Options Menu, select a safe mode option.

End the worm process

Ending the worm process will help stop your computer from infecting other computers and resolve the crashing, rebooting, and performance degradation issues caused by the worm.
To end the worm process
  1. Press CTRL+ALT+DEL once and click Task Manager. 
  2. Click Processes and click Image Name to sort the running processes by name.
  3. Select the worm process and click End Process. The worm process may be any of the following:
    syshelp.exe
    WinHelp.exe
    winrpc.exe

Delete the worm files from your computer

To delete the worm files from your computer
  1. Click Start, and click Run.
  2. In the Open field, type <system folder>, for example, C:\Windows\System32
  3. Click OK.
  4. Click Name to sort files by name.
  5. Delete any of the following files that appears in the list:
    syshelp.exe
    WinHelp.exe
    winrpc.exe 
  6. On the Desktop, right-click the Recycle Bin and click Empty Recycle Bin.
  7. Click Yes to confirm the deletion.
If deleting any of these files fails, use the following steps to verify that none of the files is running:
  1. Press CTRL+ALT+DEL once and click Task Manager.
  2. Click Processes and click Image Name to sort the running processes by name.
  3. Confirm that the following files are not in the list:
    syshelp.exe
    WinHelp.exe
    winrpc.exe

Delete the worm registry entry

To delete the worm registry entry
  1. On the Start menu, click Run.
  2. Type regedit and click OK.
  3. In the left pane, navigate to the key:
    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
  4. In the right pane, right-click the following value, if it exists: syshelp
  5. Click Delete and click Yes to delete the value.
  6. Close the Registry Editor.

Restart the computer

To restart your computer
  1. On the Start menu, click Shut Down.
  2. Select Restart from the drop-down list and click OK.

Take steps to prevent re-infection

You should not reconnect your computer to the Internet until the computer is protected from re-infection. See the "Preventing Infection" section for more information.
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