How to scan and clean an infected computer
This in-depth guide details a highly effective method for cleaning infected computers.
Viruses and Other Malware
Malware is a catch-all term used to describe any invasive or malicious software that threatens your computer's security or data. Viruses, spyware, worms, trojans, root kits, and other unwanted software can all be classified as malware.
What are the effects of malware?
When a computer is infected with malware, it may run slower than normal, suffer from Windows startup or shutdown issues, or pop-up windows might continually reappear. Some websites may fail to load, especially sites that could help you remove malware from your computer. The more malware on your computer, the worse these problems will become.
Clean Your Computer: Malware Removal
To clean your computer and remove the viruses, spyware, and other malware that are infecting your system, you should use a combination of spyware and virus scanners.
The University Computer Help Desk recommends running the following scanners to clean your computer:
- CCleaner
- TDSSKiller
- MalwareBytes Anti-Malware
- Spybot Search & Destroy
- SmitFraudFix
- McAfee VirusScan
The key to successfully removing malware is to prevent the malware from running when your computer starts up. Once malware has been disabled from startup, the updated malware scanners should be able to clean the infections.
Run These Scans in Order
We recommend running these scans in the following order. This is the process used by the University Computer Help Desk and TechZone Service Center to clean infected computers.
It is typically unnecessary to run all of these scans. After each scan finishes, you should evaluate the computer to determine whether or not you should proceed with additional scans. Is the behavior that led you to scanning for malware and viruses still occurring? If not, then you may have successfully cleaned the computer.
Step 1 - Begin the cleaning process...
First, remove unwanted programs from your computer. Some malware programs, like Bonzi Buddy, can be easily removed from your computer.
Step 2 - Scan with CCleaner
CCleaner scans temporary folders and the registry for unwanted items. It can also prevent unwanted programs from running when Windows starts up.
Step 3 - Scan with TDSSKiller
TDSSKiller scans and removes rootkit type malware that prevent other malware scanners (i.e. MalwareBytes and Spybot) from running.
Step 4 - Scan with MalwareBytes
Use Malwarebytes Anti-Malware to scan your computer for spyware, malware, and viruses, which are a common cause of poor computer performance.
Step 5 - Scan with Spybot
Use Spybot Search & Destroy to detect and remove spyware.
Step 6 - Scan with SmitFraudFix
Use SmitFraudFix to protect against desktop hijack malware.
Step 7 - Scan with McAfee VirusScan
Use McAfee VirusScan to scan your computer for viruses and other malware.