Black screen when logging into Windows 8.0 or Windows 8.1

Anonymous
2014-08-30T04:45:41+00:00

Earlier this week some of our users reported seeing only a black screen or black screen with a moving cursor when logging into their Windows 8 or Window 8.1 device. The root cause appears to be a known issue with versions 2.16.31.75, 2.17.1.22 and 2.17.0.324 of Search Protect, a product which can be installed on Windows devices as part of a web download made available by ClientConnect Ltd. ClientConnect Ltd has posted a notification on the following website:

http://info.trovi.com/searchprotect/support_center_notifications

Some customers have reported resolving the problem using these steps:  

  1. Boot your device into the Windows Recovery Environment and enter safe mode
  2. Launch control panel and select Uninstall a program
  3. Remove the program with “Search Protect” in the name

If these steps do not help, please contact ClientConnect’s support center using the above link for support as described here.

As Microsoft continues to investigate this issue, updates will be posted here.

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Performance and system failures

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

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  1. Anonymous
    2015-03-18T05:01:27+00:00

    What happens if you create and test with another Windows user rather than your current user?

    Create a user account Windows 8.1

    http://windows.microsoft.com/en-au/windows/create-user-account#create-user-account=windows-8

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  2. Anonymous
    2015-04-22T19:29:21+00:00

    Okay so i updated my driver for wifi/airplane mode and stuff from the dell website. The button didnt work anymore. But yesterday i ran the malwarebytes program and if not only fixed the airplane mode button but also the black screen i was facing when i start my computer. Hope someone benefits from this, its super annoying seeing the black screen everytime.

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  3. Anonymous
    2015-04-22T21:37:47+00:00

                any fix for this problem?

    You need to do some diagnosis first to refine your symptom description.  E.g. one recently discovered cause of this symptom was found to be a third-party program which modifies some very low-level system modules to change the UI.  Such changes break when the modules they are based on change or related ones change their functionality or implementation.  (Actually that's a well-known cause of strange symptoms but it occurs so infrequently that it is not top of mind when trying to guess what a cause might be.)  Then of course all standard diagnosis would be inconclusive until such modifications were removed.

    FYI

    Robert

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  4. Anonymous
    2015-05-13T23:24:40+00:00

    Since Yesterday I am having the same issue on my Dell XPS12 (Ultrabook)

    Booed the laptop in Safe Mode, But unable to find the program 'Search Protect' in my installed Programs.

    Thanks,

    Rajiv Gupta

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  5. Anonymous
    2015-05-14T04:16:15+00:00

    If this is a recent occurrence then try fixing things via System Restore from Safe Mode.

    How to repair the operating system and how to restore the operating system configuration to an earlier point in time in Windows Vista (or 7, or 8).

    http://support.microsoft.com/kb/936212/#appliesto

    See, Control Panel\All Control Panel Items\Recovery\ Open System Restore.

    Use this as a guide as to where to find System Restore if you ever make it to the advanced startup options screen.

    How to access Recovery, Restore and Reset Options in Windows 8.0 and 8.1

    http://www.mytoshiba.com.au/support/items/how-to/776

    How To Access Advanced Startup Options in Windows 8

    http://pcsupport.about.com/od/windows-8/a/open-advanced-startup-options-windows-8.htm

    How to remove Search Protect by Conduit Ltd

    http://lavasoft.com/mylavasoft/company/blog/how-to-remove-search-protect-by-conduit-ltd

    I see lots of recommendations here for programs like -

    Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware

    http://www.malwarebytes.org/products/malwarebytes_free

    SuperAntispyware

    http://superantispyware.com/

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