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Unusual Graphics display after sleep

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  • Last reply by Noel903

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After going to sleep when I click to start an unusual High Definition graphic appears on my screen. It is not part of any of the Windows displays. The most frequent appears to be a Christmas card like display. A second one appears to be a picture of an intricate screen latice. On each of these is a small question in the top right hand as king 'Do you like this" Is this a display by Firefox or is it some attempt to place a virus on my computer? I have not found an access to it's source. Noel

After going to sleep when I click to start an unusual High Definition graphic appears on my screen. It is not part of any of the Windows displays. The most frequent appears to be a Christmas card like display. A second one appears to be a picture of an intricate screen latice. On each of these is a small question in the top right hand as king 'Do you like this" Is this a display by Firefox or is it some attempt to place a virus on my computer? I have not found an access to it's source. Noel

Chosen solution

For me this seems just as a background on the login screen, maybe chosen by Windows automatically after some update - no malicious windows.

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Hi Noel903.

Do you see those graphics/windows in the bottom Windows toolbar? What icon do they have (same as Firefox)?

Anyway, this is definitely not part of Firefox standard behavior. I would suggest to run an antivirus test, including your current antivirus software and maybe some additional, like AdwCleaner or MBAM. And if you thing this is somehow connected to Firefox, I may Refresh Firefox - reset add-ons and settings.

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Hi Michael, No does not appear in the bottom tool bar and yes I have been running all the various tests mentioned. No results. Now about 15 minutes ago I purposely put the computer to sleep and the second screen I described turned up. I immediately did a print screen and opened in Paint. I will try to attach to my reply here but if I do not succeed I will be also posting it in the forum. Would appreciate your impressions. and thanks for your reply above. Noel PS Unable to either insert or paste. Would you try the forum Thanks

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Hi, when sleeping, is Firefox open or closed? If FF is closed, that suggests it's on your PC and not necessarily on FF.

If it's on Firefox, try Safe Mode to see if the problem goes away. Firefox Safe Mode is a troubleshooting mode that temporarily turns off hardware acceleration, resets some settings, and disables add-ons (extensions and themes).

If Firefox is open, you can restart in Firefox Safe Mode from the Help menu:

  • Click the menu button New Fx Menu, click Help Help-29 and select Restart with Add-ons Disabled.

If Firefox is not running, you can start Firefox in Safe Mode as follows:

  • On Windows: Hold the Shift key when you open the Firefox desktop or Start menu shortcut.
  • On Mac: Hold the option key while starting Firefox.
  • On Linux: Quit Firefox, go to your Terminal and run firefox -safe-mode
    (you may need to specify the Firefox installation path e.g. /usr/lib/firefox)

When the Firefox Safe Mode window appears, select "Start in Safe Mode".

SafeMode-Fx35

If the issue is not present in Firefox Safe Mode, your problem is probably caused by an extension, theme, or hardware acceleration. Please follow the steps in the Troubleshoot extensions, themes and hardware acceleration issues to solve common Firefox problems article to find the cause.

To exit Firefox Safe Mode, just close Firefox and wait a few seconds before opening Firefox for normal use again.


If that doesn't help, it does sound like malware, so you can try these free programs to scan for malware, which work with your existing antivirus software:

I know you've run some malware scans, but note that not all removal programs will detect all malware, so you may need to run several or all of them.

Further information can be found in the Troubleshoot Firefox issues caused by malware article.


Did this fix your problems? Please report back to us. Thank you!

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Screenshot from Noel.

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Chosen Solution

For me this seems just as a background on the login screen, maybe chosen by Windows automatically after some update - no malicious windows.

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Hi Make, Thanks much. Noel