task manager

bazzer55 · #1 05-09-2004, 09:06 AM

hi folks! friend of mine has xp home and dial-up connection to the net on his laptop. whilst performing a couple of servicing tasks i noticed that the task manager option on context menu is greyed out and ctrl+alt+del. does not bring up task manager either. i have looked for possible causes but found nothing pertinent on google. group polices don't apply and a reg hack i found for altering settings doesn't apply because all the reg options are not present. i am suspecting that he has been got at by malevolent forces :-). anyone had similar experience?
any suggestions appreciated
thanks

ESALADUANE · #2 05-09-2004, 09:16 AM

Does he have a good firewall and anti-virus program? Run some scans and see if he has something on his machine that doesn't belong there.

TrendMicro free on-line virus scan
http://housecall.trendmicro.com/

Ad-aware (download, update and scan for adware/spyware)
http://www.lavasoftusa.com/

Free On-line Trojan Scanner
http://www.trojanscan.com/

bazzer55 · #3 05-09-2004, 11:11 AM

thanks to ESALADUANE for input; did not have time to pursue checking options on that occasion. see that you are suspicious of the possibilities too. it's just that i've never come across that particular annoyance before. loss of the ability of closing multiple sites with DM is quite a cunning stunt!
i shall follow usual proceeding and see what i can find
regards