New folder comes with strange files

Hi! It's good to be back after 4 years. I am facing a problem, a very strange one which I attribute to a possible malware infection.

I am using Windows 10. Every time I create a new folder on my FAT32 thumb drive, strange files and subfolders that will be created inside it. Furthermore, their names are non-ascii characters.

When I try to delete one of the folders using windows explorer, nothing happens.

When I try to delete one of the files using windows explorer, I get the following message:



I tried using command prompt (using administrator privileges) too. But this was what I got:




I also cannot rename any of the files or folders in my thumb drive as there will be a message about an unexpected error.

Here is a screenshot of the mess that my thumb drive is in now:



I attempted to scan the drive using avast and malwarebytes anti-malware. But neither programs unconvered anything.

I still suspect that this anomaly is being caused by a virus. Could someone please help me with this issue? Thank you.

Hello and welcome to GeekPolice.Net My name is Dave. I will be helping you out with your particular problem on your computer. 

1. I will be working on your Malware issues. This may or may not solve other issues you have with your machine.
2. The fixes are specific to your problem and should only be used for this issue on this machine.
3. If you don't know or understand something, please don't hesitate to ask.
4. Please DO NOT run any other tools or scans while I am helping you.
5. It is important that you reply to this thread. Do not start a new topic.
6. Your security programs may give warnings for some of the tools I will ask you to use. Be assured, any links I give are safe.
7. Absence of symptoms does not mean that everything is clear.

If you can't access the internet with your infected computer you will have to download and transfer any programs to the computer you're using now and transfer them to the infected computer with a CD-RW or a USB storage device. I prefer a CD because a storage device can get infected. If you use a storage device hold the shift key down while inserting the USB storage device for about 10 secs. You will also have to transfer the logs you receive back to the good computer using the same method until we can get the computer back on-line.
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Does it do that on all your thumb drives or just one in particular?

Hi. Thanks for the quick reply. It happens to one thumb drive only.

There is something not quite correct with the thumbdrive. Did you try formatting the drive?

Flash Disinfector was designed to remove unwanted files including autorun.inf on removable USB drives, flash drives and memory sticks. Use flash disinfector if you cannot access your USB drives, flash drives and memory stick due to modifications done by autorun Worms.
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Please download Flash_Disinfector from HERE
•First, download it to your desktop.

•Now double click it to run it and it will tell you what to do when you open it.
•It will temporarily kill explorer.exe and your desktop will go blank.

•Let Flash_Disinfector do it's job and it will restart explorer.exe for you.

•It will make a dummy autorun.inf in the root of every drive.

•You can now delete Flash_Disinfector.exe.

When I tried to run Flash_Disinfector, I got a UAC prompt to which I consented. After that, nothing happend (i.e. the program did not run at all). I repeated this several times, including running the program as administrator, but to no avail.

I don't want to reformat my usb drive as there are a lot of important files on it. The problem only started yesterday (I don't know why).

p.s. Do note that I am running Windows 10.

As mentioned in my original post, I am not able to rename any of my files/folders.

Did you try the suggestions in the link I gave you?

Yes. I tried the methods in the link that you suggested. Unfortunately, they did not work. However, I made a strange discovery. I ran a "scan and fix" operation on my thumb drive and the strange files disappeared (i.e. the thumb drive functions normally)! When I ejected and reconnected the thumb drive to my computer, the strange files reappeared (and the cycle continues...). I decided that I had enough and copied all my files out from my thumb drive before formatting it. Now everything is back to normal. Thanks so much for your time!

You're welcome. I'm glad that you were able to retrieve all your files. Sometimes it's better to make a back-up of your back-ups. I will lock this thread. If you need anymore help, please send me a pm.