URGENT! Someone removed my admin rights and has full control over the pc I own

[cj65]

I logged into my pc today to find out that I no longer have admin rights and I no longer have permission to any of my files. How do I fix this? I'd prefer not to reset my pc and just keep everything where it is. I use the computer a lot and I can't do much when I don't have access to it.

 

[Regedit32]

In the first instance I'd be disconnecting your computer from Internet access - just in case its been compromised by a Virus or Malware.

With it disconnected from the internet I'd attempt to run the built-in Windows Defender Offline scan:

• Press your Winkey + I together to open the Settings [ or right-click on Start and select Settings cog ]
• Left-click on Update & Security
• Left-click on Windows Security
• Left-click on Virus & threat protection
• Left-click on Scan Options
• Select the radio button next to Microsoft Defender Offline Scan then click the Scan Now button
  
  You'll see a prompt to save your work. You'll need to click the Scan button on that prompt too when ready.
  
  This will restart your computer and scan it as it boots up.

Once that's done, you could also type mrt into your searchbar and press enter to run the Microsoft Malicious Removal Tool which scans for malicious malware and can remove it, where other security applications fail.

Let us know how you go with all that - then we can begin to attempt to restore your privileges.

Oh and if you can confirm please whether you are the only person using this affected computer, or is it shared with others whom have their own User accounts.

Regards,

Regedit32

 

[Snuffy]

This is how I've been doing it since XP:

Open the Local Group Policy Editor gpedit.msc in run command

Go to Computer Configuration -> Windows Settings -> Security Settings -> Local Policies -> Security Options. Find Accounts: Administrator account status policy and edit it by checking Enable.

Reboot into your new administrator account.
-----------------------------
1) Tap on the Windows-key. This should open the start menu or bring you to the Start Screen interface depending on how Windows 10 is configured on the system.
2) Type cmd and wait for the results to be displayed.
3) Right-click no the Command Prompt result and select "run as administrator" from the context menu.Run the command net user to display a list of all user accounts on the system.
4) To activate the inactive administrator account, run the command net user administrator /active:yes
5) If you want to enable the guest account as well run the command net user guest /active:yes
--------------------------
'This PC' on the desktop and select 'Manage' from the context menu or by [Winkey]+[R] - type lusrmgr.msc. in the box and hit [Enter]

It may be interesting to log on as the built-in Administrator account from time to time, and to enable that you can do this in lusrmgr.msc (The Administrator account is also shown under 'Local Users and Groups' -? 'Users' after selecting 'Manage', just not in control-panel). Right-clicking the Administrator's account and choosing 'Properties' from the context menu will give you the opportunity to activate it.

You can also open an administrative command prompt and type the following command at the terminal:

net user administrator /active:yes

 

[davehc]

I doubt the fault was with Windows, rather with a problem the user created.
But as the problem was some months ago, and the op did not respond, I would guess he solved the problem.

 

[davehc]

We certainly own the computer in most cases. Unfortunately, we do not own the OS. Personally, I have not experienced any major problems with Windows 10 since day one.
Reading through your posts, so far, it is very apparent that you are not satisfied with Microsoft/Windows 10, or, it seems with this forum. I would politely suggest that you investigate the potentials of a linux distribution?

 

[Snuffy]

This is how I've been doing it since XP:

Open the Local Group Policy Editor gpedit.msc in run command

Go to Computer Configuration -> Windows Settings -> Security Settings -> Local Policies -> Security Options. Find Accounts: Administrator account status policy and edit it by checking Enable.

Reboot into your new administrator account.
-----------------------------
1) Tap on the Windows-key. This should open the start menu or bring you to the Start Screen interface depending on how Windows 10 is configured on the system.
2) Type cmd and wait for the results to be displayed.
3) Right-click no the Command Prompt result and select "run as administrator" from the context menu.Run the command net user to display a list of all user accounts on the system.
4) To activate the inactive administrator account, run the command net user administrator /active:yes
5) If you want to enable the guest account as well run the command net user guest /active:yes
--------------------------
'This PC' on the desktop and select 'Manage' from the context menu or by [Winkey]+[R] - type lusrmgr.msc. in the box and hit [Enter]

It may be interesting to log on as the built-in Administrator account from time to time, and to enable that you can do this in lusrmgr.msc (The Administrator account is also shown under 'Local Users and Groups' -? 'Users' after selecting 'Manage', just not in control-panel). Right-clicking the Administrator's account and choosing 'Properties' from the context menu will give you the opportunity to activate it.

You can also open an administrative command prompt and type the following command at the terminal:

net user administrator /active:yes

and to deactivate it when not needed:

net user administrator /active:no