Zonealarm just asked if I want to let PIFTS.EXE access the internet. How should I know? First time I ever saw this particular file come up.
Search of C: drive finds only several temp internet files having something to do with Experts Exchange, and this:
PIFTS.EXE-17D8F90E.pf in C:\WINDOWS\Prefetch
I see it was created about 1/2 hour ago.
Is this a threat? A new system file?
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Hello,
Not a new system file. this file is blocked to access Internet by Norton av
I googled about it but nothing useful.
http://community.norton.co
the best thing to do is to submit this file to norton (or any antivirus Inc.) for analysis and you will be informed about it.
Regards,
Saed Salman
Also, scan with Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware (http://www.malwarebytes.o
I contacted Noton about this. I also found PIFTS.EXE in the prefech file after ZoneAlarm blocked it from accessing the internet. After a long wait followed by the standard useless questions from the first tech he claimed it was a Live Update file then transfer me to "Tech Support". The second "Tech" claimed the following:
Sreenath>
Pifts.exe are some temporary files that do not harm your computer as they are low risk cookies
Sreenath>
As you have deleted that from the prefetch you need not to worry.
He further stated that they've been getting reports about this over the last few hours.
Spybot found nothing, same for Norton Antivirus.
I hope he's right. Hope this helps.
Can you see the file in C: (probably c:\windows\system32 if I had to guess......)
If you can find it, take it here for an analysis.......
Virustotal is a service that analyzes suspicious files and facilitates the quick detection of viruses, worms, trojans, and all kinds of malware detected by antivirus engines
http://www.virustotal.com/
There seems to be something more insidious than just a cookie. The moderators of the Norton community forum have been deleting whole threads full of questions about PIFTS.exe all day. And not nasty or obscene questions, just questions from people like me who want to know what it is and if it is safe. I added my question to two threads and now they have completely blocked me from posting. At first I just wanted to know if it was safe, but now I want to know why the coverup?
I suspect Norton is trying to hide something. ZoneAlarm log shows that PIFTS.EXE was in a Live Update file (c:\documents and settings\all users\application data\symantec\liveupdate\d
FileMon for Windows v7.04
http://www.microsoft.com/t
Set the filter at the top to Include "pifts.exe", to highlight, and then just wait to see what files are accessing it. might give you some indication as to what it belongs to....
Or even use the new and improved utility form Sysinternals, that contains them both Filemon and Regmon. a little tricker to get the Filters right....
Process Monitor v1.22
http://www.microsoft.com/t
http://www.bleepingcompute
Normally not a fan of thier site, but the guy there did a good analysis of it.....Right on the main page....
Thanks for answers that identify what the file in question is, without my having to spend a lot of time finding analytic applications and learning to use them, which is a little beyond my job description. The only thing needed to complete this episode is for someone to tell me (and everyone) what, if anything, to do about the presence of pifts.exe when it is found. A class action suit against Norton has been suggested. I have been wishing for that for a long time, in response to the world's worst tech support. Incompetent, not really English speaking, and occasionally harmful, as I found out the hard way by following their instructions trying to fix a minor problem which they turned into a corrupted operating system.
It would have saved me a lot time if Norton had just said "We're sorry for the problem, It's one our files and it's safe". If they had posted that in the forums instead of deleting them the issue would have been over in a few hours. Nobody would have had to waste hours tracking what PIFTS.EXE was. I suspect someone at Norton is trying to cover their rump.
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by: wantabe2Posted on 2009-03-09 at 18:38:56ID: 23842903
Does this computer use online storage running something in the system tray?