Removing spyware & viruses — as requested
I have started this post several times, and then allowed myself to get caught up in the minutiae of different complications that arise during this procedure only to have my post derailed by a long tangent. So, for the sake of both brevity and getting things done, here is the basic procedure. This is the simplified version which will hopefully go smoothly.
This works most of the time. Windows being Windows, you will sometimes run into complications. Email or call me if you do. I will help you. My number is on the right.
My advice: Print this out. Add it to Evernote. Put it into Notes on your iPhone/iPad/Android/whatever smartphone you use. Just make sure you have access to these instructions when your computer goes out. You will thank me later. Also, if you are reading this before disaster strikes, take the time to grab the two tools listed here in advance. It’s easier to just update and then run them when infected than to
Symptoms: On a Windows computer—you Mac users just keep on being awesome, this doesn’t apply to you, natch—you are getting numerous (seemingly authentic) alerts indicating your computer is infected with a Virus/Trojan/Spyware, and prompts asking you to “Activate Protection” or “Run Scan.” You can’t go anywhere online except to a website which demands you purchase a program to scan your computer. You may be getting tons of popup ads which you can’t close. Your desktop icons may have dissappeared. You can’t run any antispyware software; your computer is basically completely out of your control. Surprisingly, your $50 per year “Antivirus” software has done nothing to stop this.
Problem: Your computer is infected with a combination spyware program/virus.
TO FIX:
- Immediately shut down the computer. If you can click Start > Shutdown and have it shut down, great. If you get an error, press the power button. If that still doesn’t work, hold down the power button (this will work on both laptops and desktops) until the computer shuts completely off; this may take up to 10 seconds but will definitely work, so just keep holding down the button until it turns off.
- Reboot into Safe Mode with Networking. Press the power button, and start tapping the F8 key once per second (count 1 mississippi, 2 mississippi, 3 mississippi, etc, tapping the F8 key once on each number count) until you get a black screen with white writing asking you what Windows should do. Choose “Safe Mode with Networking.” This will start your computer with only the essential processes running, NOT the spyware or any other programs, and you should still have Internet access. NOTE: If you see the normal Windows loading screen (i.e. the Windows XP screen with the little bar scrolling to the right), you have missed your chance to enter Safe Mode and need to reboot and try again. Press the power button before Windows finishes loading to shut the computer off—hold it if you need to—and then turn it back on, counting and tapping faster this time. Repeat until you get the black screen with white writing. Welcome to the hidden world of the Windows technician.
- Download your tools: Malwarebytes Anti-Malware (Google: malwarebytes) and Spybot Search-and-Destroy (Google: spybot). These two free programs are your new best friends.
- Run Malwarebytes: Install Malwarebytes first. Update the definitions (after you open the software, click the third tab from the left then click “Check for updates”). Go back to the first tab (“Scanner”), change the scan type to “Complete”, and hit the Scan button. Once the scan starts, go get yourself a drink, read something, or do whatever you prefer to do when you are not on the computer. This scan will take from 10 minutes (on an almost new, empty computer) to 2 hours (on an old computer with a full hard drive). Once it finishes, click “Show Results”. Then click “Remove Selected”. Good work. You have just squashed the bug running amok on your computer. Now to clean up the leftover mess…
- Run SpyBot S&D: Install Spybot. Start it up. You can use the wizard that runs the first time you install it, or just “Next” your way through it until you get to the actual program (where it says “Start using the program”). Note 2: There are two programs packaged with Spybot that are optionally installed during setup: TeaTimer, which is a little program that runs all the time and keeps any unauthorized changes from being made on your computer (I like it, but you need to pay attention to it and learn a little about it to use it correctly) and Secure Shredder which I never install.Again, run the updater first—it should run on startup anyway—and then start the scan by clicking “Check for problems”. Let the scan run all the way through—it will take around the same amount of time as the first—and when it finishes and displays a list of items in a red font, click “Fix Selected Problems” finish the process. It may tell you it’s necessary to reboot the computer to finish the cleaning process. It also may run a scan after rebooting before going into your desktop—which can last as long as the original scan—but if it does, just let it finish.
If everything has gone smoothly, once the computer has restarted, you’re good.
Good work. You just saved yourself a ton of time on the phone with an inexpert tech suppport rep, somewhere between $50 and $300 worth of a professional’s time, and avoided the sketchy possibility of having your personal data scoured by an untrustworthy Geek Squad employee. It’s also a pretty good feeling the first time (OK, the first 10 times) you do it.
Finishing up: If you want to avoid this scenario ever happening again, consider paying the $25 to purchase the “real-time protection” Malwarebytes offers with its paid version. That is a much more effective means of keeping viruses off of your computer than running McAfee or Norton, in my experience, and will not slow down your computer, either. Also, consider making a donation to the makers of SpyBot. I do, yearly. You should too, considering how much it just helped you out. Click here if you’re feeling generous.
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