*.Exe launching other apps

  • Thread starter Thread starter Anne-SOphie
  • Start date Start date
A

Anne-SOphie

Hello,
here is my issue, on which i heard it was happening to
others, but I couldn't find a clue :
my young brother performed an "open with Winamp" on a
smthg.mp3.exe file, and since he did that, all .exe have
tried to open via Winamp (or another application we choose
that way), even word.exe for instance. I couldn't
disactivate this via any function of Folder Options in
Windows Explorer.
Thanks for sending me any clue,
Anne-Sophie
 
Anne-SOphie said:
Hello,
here is my issue, on which i heard it was happening to
others, but I couldn't find a clue :
my young brother performed an "open with Winamp" on a
smthg.mp3.exe file, and since he did that, all .exe have
tried to open via Winamp (or another application we choose
that way), even word.exe for instance. I couldn't
disactivate this via any function of Folder Options in
Windows Explorer.
Thanks for sending me any clue,
Anne-Sophie
Click to expand...

I can't say for sure, but downloading a file like that, with two
extensions, i.e. mp3 and exe, sounds like you might have caught a virus
in addition to having XP setup Winamp to run EXE files.

Virus writers count on people to "hide" the extension (which is Windows
default, as I recall) so that when you see it in Explorer it looks like
smthg.mp3. You innocently double-click on it, thinking it will launch
Winamp (or other mp3 player), and instead it launches the executable
doing whatever it wants.

At minimum, use a virus scanner to scan your machine to ensure no
viruses have been deposited.

Also, can look in Explorer, Menu: Tools/folder Options, Tab: File types
and remove the file association for EXE files which I presume is now set
for Winamp. Read about file associates in "help".

But .. check for viruses first.
 
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