Repeatedly being infected and getting BSOD - possibly related

Hello, first time poster but I will try to be as descriptive as I can with my problem.

I'm having two issues with my work pc and I'm not sure if they are related to one another but after various tests I believe they are. First, I am repeatedly getting an F4 blue screen error on my Windows 7 x64 pc. The blue screen seems to occur randomly, meaning there's never any one thing I'm doing when it happens. It's happened when no programs were open, and also when quite a few programs are open. After doing some research, most users have formatted their hard drives and reloaded Windows to fix this problem. However that method has not worked for me. I have formatted and reloaded Windows probably a dozen times since this problem started and the blue screen continues to occur.

The second item I need to note is after I get a blue screen, I almost always get infected with some type of virus. I've had multiple types of infections occur including malicious executables appearing in my startup folder which cause Internet Explorer windows to pop up upon logging in, and I've had malicious executables show up in my System32 folder, and I've also had windows processes like taskmgr.exe become infected.

A few things that I should note:

Since this problem occurs repeatedly even after formatting and loading Windows 7, I have already tried using a completely different pc and the blue screen/infection still occurs. At my work place, we use roaming profiles on our network so our first thought was since I tried different pc's and the problems still occur that maybe my profile was infected. We then deleted my profile and created a new one yet the problem remains. I also seem to be the only person having these issues so it's not widespread, it's only me.

Whenever I get the F4 blue screen, programs installed on my pc stop working correctly. Specifically, Microsoft Outlook will no longer open and it always prompts me to re-enter my product key when I already did so. Other strange errors like this occur and I believe it's from the F4 blue screen.

We use ESET as our anti-virus program and it never detects infections on my pc. I've tried Malwarebytes and that will usually pick up malicious executables but it never prevents new ones from getting onto my pc.

Since my last Windows reload, my pc hasn't blue screened so I don't have a recent minidump to share but I am definitely infected. Right now it is off the network and sitting idle.

I personally have two theories on what is happening. Either a virus is continuously infecting my pc and causing the blue screens, or something else is bringing about the blue screen and causing me to become more susceptible to viruses.

I know this is a lot to take in but any help is very much appreciated!

Strictly from the BSOD perspective...


We do need the DMP file as it contains the only record of the sequence of events leading up to the crash, what drivers were loaded, and what was responsible.

If you are overclocking STOP

You may be able to get the DMP files without crashing by booting into safe mode (F8) with networking.

To enable us to assist you with your computer's BSOD symptoms, upload the contents of your "\Windows\Minidump" folder.

The procedure:

* Copy the contents of \Windows\Minidump to another (temporary) location somewhere on your machine.
* Zip up the copy.
* Attach the ZIP archive to your post using the "paperclip" (file attachments) button.
*If the files are too large please upload them to a file sharing service like "Rapidshare" and put a link to them in your reply.

To ensure minidumps are enabled:

* Go to Start, in the Search Box type: sysdm.cpl, press Enter.
* Under the Advanced tab, click on the Startup and Recovery Settings... button.
* Ensure that Automatically restart is unchecked.
* Under the Write Debugging Information header select Small memory dump (256 kB) in the dropdown box (the 256kb varies).
* Ensure that the Small Dump Directory is listed as %systemroot%\Minidump.
* OK your way out.
* Reboot if changes have been made.

Thank you for the response. I have made the change to my pc regarding creating a small minidump file and I verified the location of the minidumps is set to %systemroot%\Minidump. I will only be around the pc for a few more minutes so I will try to retrieve a file on Tuesday when I return.

Ok.
We will wait for the DMP.

Hello. I booted into safe mode but I could not find any recent minidump files since my last reload. And actually I haven't had any blue screens in awhile. Are there any other logs I could gather that would help?

Use your computer as per normal.
Upload any new DMP's.

It is much easier to find patterns, etc, when there are more than one crash.
We prefer you wait until you have at least two so that if one is corrupt the other probably wont be.

Ok I will do that. Hopefully I'll get something. This is probably the longest amount of time I've gone without getting a BSOD but I will post anything new.

Good luck.

Hello. I just wanted to let you know that you can close this thread. My blue screens have seemed to stop but I am having problems with a virus so I'm going to create a new thread on that. Thank you JMH for responding.