suddenly while chatting with friend, i was shut down and upon restart, i get error message and no access to windows at all. 0xC004D401 i clicked validate at this link http://www.microsoft.com/genuine/validate/?OSV=6.0.6001.2.00010300.1.0.000.09.1033&RFM=2&LegitCheckError=C004D401 and it interrupts during validation and demands i give them $109 to continue with windows. i have a VALID product code., how do i stop them from ripping me off?

Please visit the Virus & Malware Removal Web Site for expert assistance. It appears your computer is infected with ransomware.Carey Frisch

Please visit the Virus & Malware Removal Web Site for expert assistance. It appears your computer is infected with ransomware.Carey Frisch

Hi, What’s the meaning of “demands i give them $109 to continue with windows”? Could you please help capture a screenshot? How to capture a screenshot ====================== 1. If there is any error received, please press the Print Screen key (PrtScn) on your keyboard. 2. Click the "Start" Button, type "mspaint" in the Search Bar and Press Enter. 3. In the Paint program, click the "Edit" menu, click "Paste". Then click the "File" menu, and click "Save". 4. The "Save As" dialogue box will appear. Type a file name in the "File name:" box, for example: "screenshot". 5. Make sure "JPEG (*.JPG;*.JPEG;*.JPE;*.JFIF)" is selected in the "Save as type" box, click "Desktop" on the left pane and then click "Save". If you are encountered the Windows Genuine Advantage issue, please check if you have activated the system. If not, please refer to the following link to activate it: How to activate Windows Vista If you have activated the system, please let me know if you have visited the MGA Diagnostic webpage located at the address below and click on the “Start Diagnostics” button and follow the instructions: http://www.microsoft.com/genuine/diag/ On the above website, we can test some system settings and confirm that there are no Internet Explorer (IE) settings or other factors blocking the validation process. If it was successful all results should display “Passed”, if any of them failed please follow the directions to attempt repair. Please let us know which test failed and the results of the troubleshooting performed as suggested by the web site. If you have accessed the site but the validation issue persists, I suggest we try the following steps to test this issue: Step 1: Test the issue in Clean Boot. After that, please restart the computer and validate the system again to check if the issue still persists. Step 2: Run the MGA Diagnostic Tool to troubleshoot this issue =============================================== 1. Please open Internet Explorer and visit the following link to download the MGA Diagnostic Tool: http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?linkid=52012 2. Save the "MGADiag.exe" file to the "Desktop", and then double click on the file to run the tool. 3. Click the “Continue” button. 4. Under the “Windows” tab, click the "Resolve" button if it is highlighted. 5. Restart the computer and visit the following website to validate Windows again. http://www.microsoft.com/genuine/default.aspx?displaylang=en Additionally, you may contact our Windows Genuine Advantage support via the following link, which is free of charge: https://support.microsoft.com/oas/default.aspx?gprid=9860&st=1&wfxredirect=1&sd=gn Regards, Sabrina This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties or guarantees, and confers no rights. |Please remember to click Mark as Answer on the post that helps you, and to click Unmark as Answer if a marked post does not actually answer your question. This can be beneficial to other community members reading the thread.