12 Tips for removing those extra stubborn viruses
01 April 2011 | Blog | 0 Comment
Last year I wrote a guide on how to remove viruses from your home PC. Here’s what to do if you still can’t get rid of them!
1 – Turn off “System Restore” – Sometimes viruses hide themselves in system restore and can come back after being deleted.
2 – Boot it into safe mode - Always the best place to start, reboot computer and press that F8 button on start up, then start the removal process.
3 – Run System Configuration Utility – Run “msconfig” via the start menu and disable any start up programs that look suspicious, be careful. CCleaner might also help and Spybot also has tool called RunAlyzer.
4 – Rename anti spyware applications – If you’re having problems installing your favourite anti-spyware program because of the virus then try renaming them.
5 – McAfee Stinger – McAfee release a free program (Stinger) for removing certain viruses.
6 – Clean the disk – Sometimes running disk cleaner can to speed up the time AV and Spyware scan times.
7 – Spyware Apps & Tools - Try MalwareBytes, SuperAntiSpyware, HijackThis, SpyBot, antimalware and SpywareBlaster
8 – Anti Virus Apps – Microsoft Security Essentials, AVG Free and Avira – remember not all at once!
9 – Create a bootable CD or USB Key – AVG provide a free bootable linux distro or you can try BartPE boot disk and remove infected files and folders.
10 – Command prompt virus scanner – Download VIPRE, install and boot into safe mode (F8) and select “Networking with command prompt”. Then run scanner via the command prompt.
11 – What’s running on your computer – HijackThis generates an in depth report of registry and file settings from your computer for the real expert.
12 – Rootkits – Try these rootkits F-Secure BlackLight, Prexv, Sophos Anti-Rootkit