Need Help! virus solutions

My computer has been hit by a virus. I've got McAfee and Webroot, but somehow it got through. Now when I try to use those to scan, I get an error message saying a file is corrupted and they're unable to work. Everything I try to do ultimately ends with internet explorer opening and going to a porn site.

I'm not sure where to begin to identify the virus and resolve it. Any suggestions?

 

You can try a program called 'malwarebytes' also, but no guarantee it will clean up everything.

 

I'm gonna second Mr. Linux's opinion. With the way most viruses are written today, by the time you find one, you really have a multitude of issues. Viruses are now smart enough to act like the operating system, doing things like redirecting windows updates and supressing virus programs.

You could try "cleaning" the existing windows installation, but the time and frustration you will spend is just not worth it.

Not to mention, reinstalling windows is a good time to do a software inventory and get rid of some of the less used, dead end software.

 

Put a round thru it and claim it for insurance - get a massivly cool rig.

 

You can get boot cds from most of the major AV companies (I've used kaspersky) that will boot up in linux and scan/clean your system... it has worked for me in the past...

 

Mega insurance co rep> You say it was hit by a meteorite?
Kaos> Yeap
Mega insurance co rep> 9MM or .45 Cal Meteors?

 

Another vote for the full reinstall of Windows to get rid of viruses. There will always be parts of the virus left in your registry that you'll never find.

The full reinstall has other benefits as well; it cleans out your registry of all the other crap that gets stuck in there as your computer goes through normal use and you'll notice a speed improvement as well. I reinstall Windows about every 18 to 24 months just on principle. Make sure you have backups of your data files on an external drive and make sure you have means to reinstall the drivers for all of your components as well.

Personally I use a program called Avast! for my virus protection. It's free, you just have to register every 14 months to get updates. The virus definitions are updated every day, and I've only ever had one issue with it where it detected a good file associated with a USB device as being a virus. The company fixed the issue with an update in about a day. I always steer clear of the big virus protection companies like Norton and McAfee. I don't think they're any better than the free stuff, and they are guaranteed to chew up far too many of your PC's resources providing all kinds of useless services. And if you ever want to remove something like McAfee or Norton from your computer, I'd recommend a reinstall of Windows for that too... sometimes those programs are worse than the viruses.

 

When my old computer kept crashing last week I took the CPU up to the Geeksquad at Bestbuy in Reston. The fixed it will I watched and refused to take my money. Something about computer dinosaurs! I recommend you give them a try but only at the Reston store. The Sterling store is not so good.

Good Luck,
Steve Campot
www.sgcrealestate.com

 

The kids PC has Avast and a massive ransomware invasion got through. It rendered the PC useless.

So, naturally, the kids moved to the laptop to keepm playing their games, which has had similar issues, but not as bad.

Cannot get IE8 to function properly and it will not detect wireless networks.

 

Well kids is a different issue... If you download and install things from the web without really knowing what they are (as kids tend to do), or generally practice unsafe browsing habits (as kids also tend to do) there's no software out there that can stop that.

 

I thought I'd update the results:
I appreciate and respect the advice I received, but I have to admit that I didn't follow it. I'm not great about backing up data, and had several files and pictures that I didn't want to lose. The PC was acting up so badly that I did not feel comfortable pulling data files off. I went with McAfee and they took remote control of the PC and cleared the virus and got the PC back to its previous state. This cost about $90. I spent about 2 hours on the phone with them on hold, and then complaining about the fact that I paid for routine updates yet the virus got through. But once I worked through that, the cleanup process was very quick and professional. I'll probably either replace the PC or reload windows, but now I can do it at a time of my own choosing. I think the McAfee solution worked pretty well for us.