I have norton internet security 2010 which is valid until december 2010. i have used NIC for one year without any problems, but some days ago it did not open automatically as usual, and when i tried to open it manually i only got an message that it could not connect to the norton network. all other programs using the internet (skype, firefox, explorer, VPN client) were also blocked from connecting to the internet.
I tried reinstalling NIC, and when i removed it using norton removal tool the programs had access to the internet again. However, once i started installing it again the internet access was blocked during the prosess, and i could still not open NIC after the installation. i did this 2-3 times with the same results. i also tried rebooting the computer in safety mode, and this time i could open NIC as normal. I did a full system scan, but nothing was found.
as norton wasn't working i tried installing some other antivirus programs, such as AVG, but only got the message:
Local machine: installation failed
Installation:
Error: Action failed for file avgwdsvc.exe: starting service....
other programs either failed to install as avg did (including malwarebytes), or did not open after installation.
the security centre is also deactivated, and even though i try activating it it changes automatically back to being deactivated.
my pc is a HP pavilion dv5000 with windows xp.
i'm out of ideas of what to try next, and would much appreciate some help :)