error:Iexplore caused error in user.exe. Iexplore will now close.

[zechsea]

Suddenly, every single time I try to open my IE (5.5) browser, I get this error about user.exe.(See subject)
I close the error box and that's it - nothing else happens. No browser window opens at all. I use Compuserve to access the Net, so I can still surf the Net as long as I stay in CS, but as soon as I try to open an IE page, I get the error.
I am convinced it is somehow related to this spyware or whatever you want to call it that I removed the other day, since it was only IMMEDIATELY after I did that, that it started happening. I don't remember what it was called, but it somehow ADDED this stupid toolbar to my IE browser, AND changed my startpage to its own website -- ALL WITHOUT MY APPROVAL. I don't even know how it happened or where it came from - it was just there all of a sudden. So I went into add/remove progs and found this unfamiliar program on that list, and removed it. I am sure it was the toolbar intruder thing, because the name was the same as on the bar or their homepage or somewhere -- but I don't even remember what that name was, since I was so annoyed about it being there, and got rid of it as fast as I knew how, so I hardly even looked at the name.
But as SOON as I had removed that thing, I could no longer open my IE browser - and started getting this user.exe error every time.
I searched thru these forums but didn't see this exact error message asked about anywhere, and I looked at that webpage with all the user.exe error messages explained, but didn't see anything about this one.
It's "Iexplore has caused an error in user.exe. Iexplore will now close. If you continue having problems, try restarting your computer."
And obviously, I have restarted it, many times, since this began a week or more ago, and it happens every time.
If I just need to reinstall IE, I can do that. But I wasn't sure. And I am on Windows ME, and mine doesn't have Internet Explorer even listed in the add/remove programs tool, so I don't know how to try doing the repair fix for IE without that.
Thanks if anyone has any help.
Rebecca

 

[BeenThereDoneThat]

zechsea:

The repair tool may be found at Start>Programs>Accessories>System Tools>System Information. When you get there click on Tools and see if it is listed.

 

[Guest_imported]

Well Zechsea, the program you are referring to is Xupiter and this is what has brought me to this forum. I have a client who is running Windows ME (the devil's OS) and "accidently" downloaded the program as well. The error message is EXPLORER caused a general protection fault
in module USER.EXE. I have updated all the windows components, hardware, of course removed Xupiter and all the registry keys associated with it, re-installed IE6 SP1, even reinstalled Windows (over) with no luck. If anyone has a solution to this problem please let me know. I will geatly appreciate it. Thank you.

 

[BeenThereDoneThat]

zechsea:

I didn't realize it was Xupiter you were talking about in your first post. See if this helps.

The manual instructions are as follows:

Open the registry (from the Start menu, click Run and enter regedit) and find the key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run. Delete the 'XupiterStartup' entry in the Right Hand pane.

Also delete the following Registry Keys:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Xupiter
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Code Store Database\Distribution Units\{A27CFCAE-9351-4D74-BFFC-21EB19693D8C}

Reboot, and delete the entire Program Files\Xupiter directory.

You're also likely to have a Xupiter ActiveX object in your Downloaded Program Files folder. Find that one, rightclick it, and choose properties. It has the following ID: {A27CFCAE-9351-4D74-BFFC-21EB19693D8C}

Now rightclick the file, and choose delete.

Finally, in IE, go to Tools>Internet Options>Programs, and hit "Reset Web Settings".

 

[zechsea]

Hi -
well, thanks, all, for responding, but I'm afraid that's not it -- but I suspect it's gonna be something real similar to what you're talking about -- just some other slimeball company instead of this Xupiter you refer to.
As far as I know, I haven't yet been unlucky enough to have stumbled across Xupiter, so they aren't the culprit. I've never heard of Xupiter.
But I looked in my temp files trying to find out what it was exactly that I removed that day, and I found it all. It was something called HUNTBAR, at

http://www.huntbar.com.

I emailed them a nasty letter about their uninvited and unwelcome "modifications" to my browser, and the major problems I now have after trying to undo whatever all they'd done, and I got this back in reply:

>>Dear User,
>Thank you for emailing regarding our software. We >appreciate youremail and are glad to assist you. Our >software may be download at >

http://www.huntbar.com/Toolbar/Toolbar.asp

but before you can >download it, you must accept TERMS OF USE/LICENSE
>AGREEMENT at

http://www.huntbar.com/toolbar/terms.asp

>>If you already downloaded our software, you can easily >remove byreading this:

http://www.huntbar.com/Help/Help.asp

-------------
Q. Why I am nowseeing HuntBar.com as my startpage?
A. most likely because you set us as your startpage by clicking 'Yes' inan opt-in pop-up window.

Q. How do I get my old start page back?
A.tools->InternetOptions,Reset startpage->Apply

Q.How do I uninstall the Search Toolbar and your LinkBar?
A. If you decide our useful Bars isnt right for you,remove it in Add/Remove Programs in Windows control panel.

IMPORTANT:
If you did not use our manual installation program, you can only remove it with our special program. The program to remove the Search Toolbar is downloaded at:

http://www.trafficsyndicate.com/TB/TB_Removal.exe

and to remove the Related Link Toolbar:

http://www.trafficsyndicate.com/tb/TB_Link_Removal.exe

.


If you still have problems uninstalling the software, download

http://www.trafficsyndicate.com/tb/RemoveToolbar.zip.Unzip

file to C:\Program Files\Common Files\MSIETS directory.Launch 'RemoveToolbar.cmd'. It should remove both
bars from browser. Delete folder named
MSIETS.email us at uninstall@huntbar.com with any problems. We respond to all in 24 hours.

Customer Support
>>>info@huntbar.com
[end of quote]

So, in response to my vicious complaining about their having downloaded their software onto my computer without my authorization, etc., they are saying I have to download SOME OTHER program of theirs - to get rid of it??
I didn't think I should download anything from this "company" when all I know about them is that their business plan is to barge into unsuspecting users' computers and deposit their lame, useless junk software, without asking anyone anything who ought to be asked everything.

I don't know what they mean by "if you didn't manually install our software", but I can assure you I didn't, and this they surely know - as I said, it just APPEARED on its own; it installed itself. with no help from me.
And so since I didn't "manually install" it, I'm supposed to get their "special" (!) program to get rid of it now!
Isn't that special...

Does any of this sound particularly familiar to anyone? Is there something specific that you might know about that I do not, that all this may point you to? Or is it pretty much just some general no-name unethical Internet bunch using annoying and really just stupid tactics to... what? -- drum up some business??? Puh-leeze - what could they have been thinking? But don't get me started I suppose....

Help is welcome and needed please!
Thanks some more --
R

 

[zechsea]

Oh, and I forgot to mention this in my previous post: that the error message I get every time I try to open up my IE browser is NOT the one Junior Tech quoted in an earlier post, but rather (surprise!) the very one that I quoted in my first post to start this thread. That is the exact error message. ("Iexplore has caused an error in user.exe. Iexplore will now close. If you continue having problems, try restarting your computer." That's it word for word - same thing each time.) thanks again

 

[BeenThereDoneThat]

zechsea:

There is a free program called Spybot Search and Destroy located at:

http://patrick.kolla.de/software/spybotsd/

You may have to click on the English Flag in the left column to read it. It claims to be able to remove Huntbar. I don't have that on my computer so I can't check it, but I run this program regularly and I think it is great. Once you have downloaded and installed it, the first time you run it you may have to run the update to get the Huntbar.sig file. Just click on the Online button in the bottom of the left pane, click on search for updates, put a check in all boxes and click on download updates. It will close to update. Restart it, in the left pane click on Spybot-S&D and then in the center-bottom click on Check all. You may be suprised when you see what it finds.

 

[AlanSmith64]

Xupiter is a spyware automatically installed by a pop-up ad, possibly for a casino.

Download the free program Ad-aware from

http://www.lavasoft.de

It will remove Xupiter and any other spyware on your computer.

 

[zechsea]

OK, I'm not real sure what I should do here... even though it sounds like you all have just told me exactly what to do. But ... see, I already REMOVED that Huntbar stuff myself, remember? I mean, as far as I can see, there is no evidence of it remaining ANYWHERE on my computer - not that I CAN SEE anyway, which is key, because there are a lot of places I can't see... places I don't go - like the Registry, for example. There may be a lot of evidence of it left there, but I haven't seen it, since I haven't been in there, since I don't know a thing about it.
I kind of figured that when I deleted it from my computer, it took with it or corrupted or whatever some critical files, without which Explorer cannot open.

In fact, I wasn't entirely accurate when I explained the problem in my earlier post, because now I see that it is not just Internet Explorer browser that doesn't open now, but also Windows Explorer itself. If I doubleclick on MY COMPUTER desktop icon, I get the same thing - the error message I quoted above and then nothing. It doesn't let me open it up at all. If I rightclick on it and choose Explore from the rt click menu, same thing. It happens when I try to open up any specific file, like when I'm given the option to BROWSE for a file in order to find it so I can open it. I get the same error message then too.
If I click on VIEW FILES on the Settings tab in Internet Options, it does not do that. It has no problem deleting the Temp Internet files folder and the History Folder, but only if I do that with the one-button click method - there's no way I can do it one by one, if I ever wanted to, because I can't view it - can't get into it - whatever you call it! I always use that button to clear my cache and then delete History there also, but then I always go to SETTINGS then to VIEW FILES after I've cleared the cache, because my cookies are still in there in the Temporary Internet FIles folder, even after I've cleared it out. So I go in and delete specific ones by the dozens or so, since I do an above average amount of websurfing and it fills up so quickly, but I like to keep certain cookies in there for various reasons, so I can't delete them as a whole. But now, since it won't open up Explorer - period - I can't do that anymore. All I can clear out are the temp internet files, not the cookies.
But that's not the problem, of course - that's minor.
It won't open Explorer at all, and I really thought that the error message I am getting, since it specifcally mentions USER.EXE was going to be specific enough to tell anyone what had to be done to fix it. I myself can't use that info for anything - I don't know enough obviously - but I thought that information was going to be the key to the problem and I was glad I had it, word for word.
You mean the fact that it says the error is in USER.EXE doesn't mean a thing ?
I did run Lavasoft's Ad program, by the way. Is it called AdAware? I think. I already had it on this computer, but hadn't run it for a couple weeks. But the only things it found were things I expected it to find (that it always finds), or things I recognized and understood where they came from, etc., nothing new or different that looked unfamiliar. In fact, there wasn't even any Gator crap in there this time, amazingly enough. I've run The Adware program maybe 5 times so far, over several months' time, and I think every time it has found Gator stuff that I didn't know I had and didn't know how it got there -- but not this time, for once.
I think someone needs to sue them.
A bunch of someones actually -
or is that already happening?
thanks again for your help with my problem-
Rebecca

 

[AlanSmith64]

Rebecca,

Sorry about the problem you are having.

Trying to eliminate the spyware manually is difficult if not impossible, and can cause a lot of problems. The obvious files are not the only place the spyware exists. For example Xupiter exists in about 25 places on your system.

The best and easiest solution is to use programs like Ad-aware which clean out the spyware professionally.

The reason that Ad-aware didn't catch Xupiter or Huntbar earlier is because the latest reference file that does that was only released on Sept 24. See announcement below:

"Referencefile update
With this reffile (042-24-09-2002), the detection+removal of Xupiter ToolBar, HuntBar, CnsMin(Chinese Keywords) some new browser Hijackers and some new versions of previous targets have been added to Ad-aware."

I don't know what condition your system is in now and what else you may have to do to it, but Ad-aware will completely clean out anything that's associated with Xupiter or Huntbar from your system.

If you did not manually delete any keys from your registry, you should be in good shape after that. You may have to download and install Internet Explorer, I am not sure.

Let me know how it goes.

Alan