This article aims to help you by displaying more information about how to remove the Microsoft Windows Product Key tech support scam virus.
A new Trojan Horse type of malware has been detected by researchers to display a lockscreen message, pretending to be a legitimate Microsoft Windows screen. The end goal of the virus is to convince victims that they must enter their product key and click OK. The virus also has a customer support number embedded in it, which is 1-888-970-4294. If you have been infected by the Windows Product Key virus, it is strongly advisable not to enter any type of information where it asks you for your product key, because the virus may steal the key from you. Instead, we advise you to read this article thoroughly and learn how to remove this virus completely from your computer system.
Threat Summary
| Name | Windows Product Key Virus |
| Type | Trojan Horse of Tech Support Scam Type |
| Short Description | Infects your computer, after which modifies the computer settings to lock you out of your computer and ask you to call a suspicious tech support number. |
| Symptoms | A Windows-like lockscreen appears on the computers of the victims, claiming it is the original one. |
| Distribution Method | Via bundled installers, fake setups or via other unwanted software that has already been installed on your PC. |
| Detection Tool |
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User Experience | Join Our Forum to Discuss Windows Product Key Virus. |
How Did I Get the Windows Product Key Trojan
The Windows Product Key virus is of a scamming nature, but this does not change the fact that it is malware. Like any malware, it can be spread either via files or other objects, such as JavaScripts or web links. Researchers are convinced that the main method by which you can become a victim of this virus is if you download a setup of a free program online and the virus is embedded as one of the files installed on your computer along with the program you downloaded. This strategy has been used by cyber-criminals for many years and it simply works. Since the virus can be detected if uploaded on legitimate and well known sites, scammers usually upload the setup as a torrent program, fake game installer or program installation wizard on various suspicious websites that are not confirmed.
Other methods, even though less likely could be if the virus arrives on your computer via a shared web link somewhere online that executes a drive-by download and infects your PC after clicking on it.
Windows Product Key Virus – More Information
As soon as this Trojan infects your computer it may drop and execute it’s payload which begins modifying your Windows Registry Editor heavily. One of the registry entries which may be modified is the Screensaver entry. The virus may add the lockscreen as a modified screensaver which is interactive in order to display the Windows Product Key virus message. Once there, it may lock you out of your Windows Desktop and even a system restart may not help you with it. The lockscreen looks like the following:
Message from the screen:
“Microsoft Windows
Product KeyWindows defender prevented an unrecognized and malicious software on your computer. Please enter your Windows Product Key. The Product Key should be label on the card inside the box that Windows Disk came in or in the confirmation email you received after buying it. If you have upgraded Windows 10, you have digital license instead of a Key. A Product Key is a 25 character code used to active Windows. it looks like this:
PRODUCT KEY: XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXXCUSTOMER SUPPORT: 1-888-970-4294”
In addition to this, since this is a Trojan Horse, it may also be configured to perform multiple other activities, such as:
- Install other malware on your computer.
- Delete different system files from your PC.
- Extract different information from your computer.
Luckily for victims, this virus is solvable and it can be easily unlocked as researchers have established.
How to Unlock Your Computer and Remove Windows Product Key Virus
Before actually being able to remove this virus, you will have to unlock it. Here are the instructions, provided by security experts that can help you unlock the Microsoft Windows Product Key Lockscreen:
Step 1: On “Product Key”, enter the following key: B2563-51757-EDC62-429B8-F56AD and press “OK”.
Step 2: A pop-up window will appear, named “Support Override”. Click “OK” once more.
Step 3: A pop-up with a field to type in will also appear. In it, enter the 13764675 code and click “OK” once more and the lockscreen should disappear, allowing you to proceed with the removal.
Since the Windows Product Key lockscreen is a Trojan horse type of malware, it is recommended that you follow the removal instructions down below. They are specifically created to help you remove this virus either manually or automatically. Be advised that experts often advise for automatic removal, since this malware may create multiple different objects on your computer that may make manual removal tricky. The best method to automatically remove the Windows Product Key virus is to download an advanced anti-malware software which will detect all the files and objects that cause harm to your computer and remove them.
Ventsislav Krastev
Ventsislav is a cybersecurity expert at SensorsTechForum since 2015. He has been researching, covering, helping victims with the latest malware infections plus testing and reviewing software and the newest tech developments. Having graduated Marketing as well, Ventsislav also has passion for learning new shifts and innovations in cybersecurity that become game changers. After studying Value Chain Management, Network Administration and Computer Administration of System Applications, he found his true calling within the cybersecrurity industry and is a strong believer in the education of every user towards online safety and security.
Follow Me:
- Guide 1: How to Remove Windows Product Key Virus from Windows.
- Guide 2: Get rid of Windows Product Key Virus on Mac OS X.
- Guide 3: Remove Windows Product Key Virus in Google Chrome.
- Guide 4: Erase Windows Product Key Virus from Mozilla Firefox.
- Guide 5: Uninstall Windows Product Key Virus from Microsoft Edge.
- Guide 6: Remove Windows Product Key Virus from Safari.
- Guide 7: Eliminate Windows Product Key Virus from Internet Explorer.
- Guide 8: Disable Windows Product Key Virus Push Notifications in Your Browsers.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
About the Windows Product Key Virus Research
The content we publish on SensorsTechForum.com, this Windows Product Key Virus how-to removal guide included, is the outcome of extensive research, hard work and our team’s devotion to help you remove the specific, adware-related problem, and restore your browser and computer system.
How did we conduct the research on Windows Product Key Virus?
Please note that our research is based on independent investigation. We are in contact with independent security researchers, thanks to which we receive daily updates on the latest malware, adware, and browser hijacker definitions.
Furthermore, the research behind the Windows Product Key Virus threat is backed with VirusTotal https://www.virustotal.com/gui/home/upload.
To better understand this online threat, please refer to the following articles which provide knowledgeable details.
References
1.Browser Redirect – What Is It?
2.Adware Is Malicious, and It Uses Advanced Techniques to Infect
3.The Thin Red Line Between Potentially Unwanted Programs and Malware
4.The Pay-Per-Install Affiliate Business – Making Millions out of Adware
5.Malicious Firefox Extensions Installed by 455,000 Users Blocked Updates
How to Remove Windows Product Key Virus from Windows.
Step 1: Boot Your PC In Safe Mode to isolate and remove Windows Product Key Virus
Step 2: Uninstall Windows Product Key Virus and related software from Windows
Here is a method in few easy steps that should be able to uninstall most programs. No matter if you are using Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista or XP, those steps will get the job done. Dragging the program or its folder to the recycle bin can be a very bad decision. If you do that, bits and pieces of the program are left behind, and that can lead to unstable work of your PC, errors with the file type associations and other unpleasant activities. The proper way to get a program off your computer is to Uninstall it. To do that:
Follow the instructions above and you will successfully uninstall most programs.
Step 3: Clean any registries, created by Windows Product Key Virus on your computer.
The usually targeted registries of Windows machines are the following:
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
You can access them by opening the Windows registry editor and deleting any values, created by Windows Product Key Virus there. This can happen by following the steps underneath:
1. Open the Run Window again, type "regedit" and click OK.
2. When you open it, you can freely navigate to the Run and RunOnce keys, whose locations are shown above.
3. You can remove the value of the virus by right-clicking on it and removing it.
Tip: To find a virus-created value, you can right-click on it and click "Modify" to see which file it is set to run. If this is the virus file location, remove the value.
Before starting "Step 4", please boot back into Normal mode, in case you are currently in Safe Mode.
This will enable you to install and use SpyHunter 5 successfully.
Step 4: Scan for Windows Product Key Virus with SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool
1. Click on the "Download" button to proceed to SpyHunter's download page.
2. After you have installed SpyHunter, wait for it to update automatically.
3. After the update process has finished, click on the 'Malware/PC Scan' tab. A new window will appear. Click on 'Start Scan'.
4. After SpyHunter has finished scanning your PC for any files of the associated threat and found them, you can try to get them removed automatically and permanently by clicking on the 'Next' button.
Video Removal Guide for Windows Product Key Virus (Windows).
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
Get rid of Windows Product Key Virus from Mac OS X.
Step 1: Uninstall Windows Product Key Virus and remove related files and objects
1.Hit the ⇧+⌘+U keys to open Utilities. Another way is to click on “Go” and then click “Utilities”, like the image below shows:
2. Find Activity Monitor and double-click it:
3.In the Activity Monitor look for any suspicious processes, belonging or related to Windows Product Key Virus:
4.Click on the "Go" button again, but this time select Applications. Another way is with the ⇧+⌘+A buttons.
5.In the Applications menu, look for any suspicious app or an app with a name, similar or identical to Windows Product Key Virus. If you find it, right-click on the app and select “Move to Trash”.
6: Select Accounts, after which click on the Login Items preference.
Your Mac will then show you a list of items that start automatically when you log in. Look for any suspicious apps identical or similar to Windows Product Key Virus. Check the app you want to stop from running automatically and then select on the Minus (“-“) icon to hide it.
7: Remove any left-over files that might be related to this threat manually by following the sub-steps below:
- Go to Finder.
- In the search bar type the name of the app that you want to remove.
- Above the search bar change the two drop down menus to “System Files” and “Are Included” so that you can see all of the files associated with the application you want to remove. Bear in mind that some of the files may not be related to the app so be very careful which files you delete.
- If all of the files are related, hold the ⌘+A buttons to select them and then drive them to “Trash”.
In case you cannot remove Windows Product Key Virus via Step 1 above:
In case you cannot find the virus files and objects in your Applications or other places we have shown above, you can manually look for them in the Libraries of your Mac. But before doing this, please read the disclaimer below:
1: Click on "Go" and Then "Go to Folder" as shown underneath:
2: Type in "/Library/LauchAgents/" and click Ok:
3: Delete all of the virus files that have similar or the same name as Windows Product Key Virus. If you believe there is no such file, do not delete anything.
You can repeat the same procedure with the following other Library directories:
→ ~/Library/LaunchAgents
/Library/LaunchDaemons
Tip: ~ is there on purpose, because it leads to more LaunchAgents.
Step 2: Scan for and remove Windows Product Key Virus files from your Mac
When you are facing problems on your Mac as a result of unwanted scripts and programs such as Windows Product Key Virus, the recommended way of eliminating the threat is by using an anti-malware program. SpyHunter for Mac offers advanced security features along with other modules that will improve your Mac’s security and protect it in the future.
Video Removal Guide for Windows Product Key Virus (Mac)
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
Remove Windows Product Key Virus from Google Chrome.
Step 1: Start Google Chrome and open the drop menu
Step 2:Move the cursor over "Tools" and then from the extended menu choose "Extensions"
Step 3: From the opened "Extensions" menu locate the unwanted extension and click on its "Remove" button.
Step 4: After the extension is removed, restart Google Chrome by closing it from the red "X" button at the top right corner and start it again.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
Erase Windows Product Key Virus from Mozilla Firefox.
Step 1: Start Mozilla Firefox. Open the menu window
Step 2: Select the "Add-ons" icon from the menu.
Step 3: Select the unwanted extension and click "Remove"
Step 4: After the extension is removed, restart Mozilla Firefox by closing it from the red "X" button at the top right corner and start it again.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
Uninstall Windows Product Key Virus from Microsoft Edge.
Step 1: Start Edge browser.
Step 2: Open the drop menu by clicking on the icon at the top right corner.
Step 3: From the drop menu select "Extensions".
Step 4: Choose the suspected malicious extension you want to remove and then click on the gear icon.
Step 5: Remove the malicious extension by scrolling down and then clicking on Uninstall.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
Remove Windows Product Key Virus from Safari.
Step 1: Start the Safari app.
Step 2: After hovering your mouse cursor to the top of the screen, click on the Safari text to open its drop down menu.
Step 3: From the menu, click on "Preferences".
Step 4: After that, select the 'Extensions' Tab.
Step 5: Click once on the extension you want to remove.
Step 6: Click 'Uninstall'.
A pop-up window will appear asking for confirmation to uninstall the extension. Select 'Uninstall' again, and the Windows Product Key Virus will be removed.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
Eliminate Windows Product Key Virus from Internet Explorer.
Step 1: Start Internet Explorer.
Step 2: Click on the gear icon labeled 'Tools' to open the drop menu and select 'Manage Add-ons'
Step 3: In the 'Manage Add-ons' window.
Step 4: Select the extension you want to remove and then click 'Disable'. A pop-up window will appear to inform you that you are about to disable the selected extension, and some more add-ons might be disabled as well. Leave all the boxes checked, and click 'Disable'.
Step 5: After the unwanted extension has been removed, restart Internet Explorer by closing it from the red 'X' button located at the top right corner and start it again.
Remove Push Notifications caused by Windows Product Key Virus from Your Browsers.
Turn Off Push Notifications from Google Chrome
To disable any Push Notices from Google Chrome browser, please follow the steps below:
Step 1: Go to Settings in Chrome.
Step 2: In Settings, select “Advanced Settings”:
Step 3: Click “Content Settings”:
Step 4: Open “Notifications”:
Step 5: Click the three dots and choose Block, Edit or Remove options:
Remove Push Notifications on Firefox
Step 1: Go to Firefox Options.
Step 2: Go to “Settings”, type “notifications” in the search bar and click "Settings":
Step 3: Click “Remove” on any site you wish notifications gone and click “Save Changes”
Stop Push Notifications on Opera
Step 1: In Opera, press ALT+P to go to Settings.
Step 2: In Setting search, type “Content” to go to Content Settings.
Step 3: Open Notifications:
Step 4: Do the same as you did with Google Chrome (explained below):
Eliminate Push Notifications on Safari
Step 1: Open Safari Preferences.
Step 2: Choose the domain from where you like push pop-ups gone and change to "Deny" from "Allow".
Windows Product Key Virus FAQ
What is Windows Product Key Virus?
The Windows Product Key Virus threat is adware or browser redirect virus. It may slow your computer down siginficantly and display advertisements. The main idea is for your information to likely get stolen or more ads to appear on your device.
The creators of such unwanted apps work with pay-per-click schemes to get your computer to visit risky or different types of websites that may generate them funds. This is why they do not even care what types of websites show up on the ads. This makes their unwanted software indirectly risky for your OS.
What are the symptoms of Windows Product Key Virus?
There are several symptoms to look for when this particular threat and also unwanted apps in general are active:
Symptom #1: Your computer may become slow and has poor performance in general.
Symtpom #2: You have toolbars, add-ons or extensions on your web browsers that you don't remember adding.
Symptom #3: You see all types of ads, like ad-supported search results, pop-ups and redirects to randomly appear.
Symptom #4: You see installed apps on your Mac running automatically and you do not remember installing them.
Symptom #5: You see suspicious processes running in your Task Manager.
If you see one or more of those symptoms, then security experts reccomend that you check your computer for viruses.
What types of Unwanted Programs are there?
According to most malware researchers and cyber-security experts, the threats that can currently affect your Mac can be the following types:
- Rogue Antivirus programs.
- Adware.
- Browser hijackers.
- Clickers.
- Fake optimizers.
What to do if I have a "virus" like Windows Product Key Virus?
Do not panic! You can easily get rid of most adware or unwanted program threats by firstly isolating them and then removing them from your browser and computer. One reccomended way to do that is by using a reputable malware removal software that can take care of the removal automatically for you. There are many anti-malware apps out there that you can choose from. SpyHunter is one of the reccomended anti-malware apps, that can scan your computer for free and detect any viruses, tracking cookies and unwanted adware apps and eliminate them quickly. This saves time when compared to doing the removal manually.
How to secure my passwords and other data from Windows Product Key Virus?
With few simple actions. First and foremost, it is imperative that you follow these steps:
Step 1: Find a safe computer and connect it to another network, not the one that your Mac was infected in.
Step 2: Change all of your passwords, starting from your e-mail passwords.
Step 3: Enable two-factor authentication for protection of your important accounts.
Step 4: Call your bank to change your credit card details (secret code, etc.) if you have saved your credit card for online shopping or have done online activiites with your card.
Step 5: Make sure to call your ISP (Internet provider or carrier) and ask them to change your IP address.
Step 6: Change your Wi-Fi password.
Step 7: (Optional): Make sure to scan all of the devices connected to your network for viruses and repeat these steps for them if they are affected.
Step 8: Install anti-malware software with real-time protection on every device you have.
Step 9: Try not to download software from sites you know nothing about and stay away from low-reputation websites in general.
If you follow these reccomendations, your network and all devices will become significantly more secure against any threats or information invasive software and be virus free and protected in the future too.
More tips you can find on our website, where you can also ask any questions and comment underneath the articles about your computer problems. We will try to respond as fast as possible.