W32/ElKern-A

Please follow the instructions for disinfecting PE executables.

Windows NT/2000/XP/2003

In Windows NT/2000/XP/2003 you will also need to edit the following registry entries. The removal of these entries is optional in Windows 95/98/Me. Please read the warning about editing the registry.

At the taskbar, click Start|Run. Type 'Regedit' and press Return. The registry editor opens.

Before you edit the registry, you should make a backup. On the 'Registry' menu, click 'Export Registry File'. In the 'Export range' panel, click 'All', then save your registry as Backup.

Locate the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE entry:

HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\WQK

and delete it if it exists.

Locate the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE entry:

HKLM\Software\Microsoft\WindowsNT\CurrentVersion\
Windows\AppInit_DLLs

and remove any reference to the file Wqk.dll

Close the registry editor.

W32/ElKern-A is an executable file virus that works under Windows 98, Windows Me and Windows 2000. It is capable of infecting file cavities, meaning that it may not change the sizes of files it infects.

Under Windows 98 and Windows Me W32/ElKern-A copies itself to the Windows System directory as the hidden file Wqk.exe, and sets the registry key:

HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\WQK

to point to this file so that the virus runs every time the computer is rebooted.

Under Windows 2000 W32/ElKern-A copies itself to the Windows System directory as the hidden file Wqk.dll, and sets the registry key:

HKLM\Software\Microsoft\WindowsNT\CurrentVersion\
Windows\AppInit_DLLs

to point to this file so that the virus runs every time the computer is booted.

W32/ElKern-A is carried and dropped by the W32/Klez-A worm and its variants. The virus has a destructive payload - on March 13 or September 13 the virus will overwrite files with zeros rather than infect them.