If you ever installed a pirated or cracked Romex software product in the past, your machine might have been compromised and you might encounter some unexpected problems including losing activation status after reboot. Even though you have uninstalled the pirated/cracked software, some files might still remain and automatically run in your machine, thus problems still exist.
The following quick reference checklist is intended to assist you in finding these remaining files or settings. Of course, before checking, you should have uninstalled and deleted the
pirated/cracked software from its install folder, including all patches and files.
1. Check if there is a scheduled task created by cracked software.
1) Press the Windows key + R to open the Run dialog.
2) Type taskschd.msc in the box and press Enter to open Windows Task Scheduler.
3) Click the Task Scheduler Library branch, and look for suspicious tasks (e.g., a task named as PrimoLTR) in the right results pane.
2. Check auto-run scripts.
1) Press the Windows key + R to open the Run dialog.
2) Type gpedit.msc
in the box and press Enter to open Windows Group Policy Editor.
3) In the console tree, click Scripts (Startup/Shutdown). The path is Computer Configuration\Windows Settings\Scripts (Startup/Shutdown).
4) In the results pane, double-click Startup, and check if there are any
suspicious
scripts. Perform the same check on Shutdown.
5)
In the console tree,
click Scripts (Logon/Logoff). The path is User Configuration\Windows Settings\Scripts (Logon/Logoff).
6)
In the results pane, double-click
Logon, and check if there are any
suspicious
scripts. Perform the same check on Logoff.
3. Check if cracked applications are still running at background.
1) Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open Windows Task Manager.
2) Look for suspicious processes.
4. Check if there are any hidden files from cracked software in the system partition or the install folder.
Take the following steps to display hidden files in Windows 8/10.
1) Press the Windows key + E to open File Explorer.
2) Select View > Options > Change folder and search options.
3) Select the View tab and, in Advanced settings, select Show hidden files, folders, and drives, and uncheck Hide protected operating system files (Recommended), and then OK.
5. Check if the setup package is official. If not, download the package from the official website and install it.