Can't open IE plus other problems-help!

EverDecreasingCircles

I can't open IE on my desktop this morning. I also can't get the Settings icon to work on the side bar and the icons on my desktop are showing as blanks.

I've tried checking for updates and it's all up to date. I ran a scan using Avast this morning and that hasn't picked anything up.

Chrome is working fine so I have a browser but want IE as I prefer that.

Can anyone help please? I'm not that savvy when it comes to computer techie stuff so please feel free to speak to me like I'm stupid!
TIA

AndyPix

Im a bit concerned about the icons on your desktop showing as blanks !!

Anyway, go into the control panel, choose internet options, click on the advanced tab

then click the reset button at the bottom of the resulting form.
restart your machine and see if it works then

Andy

Le_Kirk

How do you normally open IE? What happens when you do that? What settings are you trying to access, what sidebar do you mean? Have you downloaded and installed any new programmes recently? Have you tried RESTORE?

EverDecreasingCircles

Thanks for the replies.

Le_kirk... I open IE a using the e icon at the bottom left of the screen. The side bar is what appears on the right of the screen when I move the mouse to the right hand corner. It's how I turn the pc off too, by going to Settings.

AndyPix... I've tried resetting but I'm getting a box opening saying Resetting a internet Explorer but then nothing happens.

AndyPix

use chrome to download malwarebytes and run this on your computer
get it from w w w . malwarebytes.org

(iv had to put spaces in as im not allowed to post links yet)

Be sure to UNTICK the option of free trial to malwarebytes PRO when installing.
Let it update and then click SCAN

I suspect malware on the machine, especially with the desktop icons thing.

Do the above, and post back how you get on

Strider590

One popular practical joke that now gets incorporated into malware is they take a screenshot of your desktop, set it to be the background image and then hide the icons in the settings. So you see the icons, but what your actually seeing is a picture of the icons.

I'm assuming this is what you mean? You can see icons but they do nothing?


We used to pull this trick in college, it was highly amusing

EverDecreasingCircles

I've somehow got it working again. I tried doing a restore back to before an update yesterday and although I got a message saying that had failed, IE is now working.


I've run Malwarebytes and it didn't find anything.


The icons are all there again too. They kept coming and going but are all back to normal now.


Is there anything else you think I should be doing?


Thanks again guys

AndyPix

It deffo sounds like a malwary type problem.

Viruses sometimes screw with file associations too and that can make all your icons look like the default icon picture.

If its all ok now .. and you have run malwarebytes and you say you have run a virus scan .. I wouldn't worry too much.

Andy

EverDecreasingCircles

Thanks Andy, really appreciate your help this morning.

Le_Kirk

EverDecreasingCircles wrote: »

Is there anything else you think I should be doing?

Maybe a back up of all your data!! Well done on getting it going.

EverDecreasingCircles

Le_Kirk wrote: »

Maybe a back up of all your data!! Well done on getting it going.

Thank you for the advice, I'll make sure I do that.