Virus/Worm Notes & Information

Also see our Virus/Worm Help Page for specific problem information.

PC Protection (on-line scanner links are below)

With the constant virus/worm activity in the PC world it is imperative that computer users everywhere protect themselves from the threat of viruses, trojans, worms, etc..  When you protect your computer you are also helping to protect many other computer users and especially those people that you keep in your email address book.

The first step in protection is an educated computer user.  Make it a rule to NEVER open an email from someone you do not know or an email with an unusual subject line from someone you do know.  If, by chance, you open an email and realize that it may be a problem NEVER click or open an attachment from one of these emails.  As a side note you should know that major technology companies (like Microsoft) will NEVER send you or anyone else an email with an attached file.  To be extra careful we recommend that you do not use the "preview pane" for incoming email.

The most obvious and simple way to stay safe is to have virus protection and to keep that virus protection current.  All too often a computer will have virus software that originally came with it  and the virus definition files have never been updated.  As fast as new problems are being created virus definitions are outdated very quickly.  We recommend that you update your virus definitions at least once per week.  If you use a Microsoft operating system you should also make sure you have all current security patches.  Windows XP can be set to automatically receive these patches and load them for you or at least notify you.  You should ALWAYS accept and install security patches from Microsoft as they are released (NOTE THAT THESE WILL NOT COME IN AN EMAIL).  Other versions of Windows may require you to got to Microsoft to get the updates.  Open Internet Explorer and click on Tools>Windows Update.  Click on the link to scan your system and select to download all "critical updates".

Popular virus packages include F-Prot, Norton, McAfee, AVG and Computer Associates.  While this list is only a sample of software available it represents the software we are most familiar with.  All of these packages offer automatic updates by annual subscription and one is even free (see "Free Products" on the main "Articles" page).

Even the best virus protection can be beaten and many of the newer pests coming into PCs today make their way inside of video, images or sound files that are being downloaded and when the payload is delivered they turn off the virus detection and often prohibit internet access.

Another level of security is a firewall.  A firewall is either a hardware or software product that sits between your computer and the internet to protect mischievous automated and manual attacks from the internet.  If you use Windows XP you have a software firewall built-in but make sure that it is activated.  In addition to many of the virus manufacturers listed above other vendors to consider for firewalls include the ever popular ZoneAlarm, CheckPoint and Sygate.  If you are not real comfortable with your computer you should get a professional to install and configure a firewall product for you.

If you think you have a virus or trojan you may want to try an on-line scanner.  If you do have a problem, on-line scanners may be more effective than your PC based virus software because the on-line scanner will be up to date and not be impacted by the possible virus/trojan on your hard drive.  Sometimes the problem is so bad that the on-line scanner will not load due to the problem being loaded as an active process on your PC.  If this is the case download HiJackThis and post the results at the Computer Cops website forum (you will have to complete the free registration at Computer Cops before you can post your problem and HiJackThis results file but the free help is more than worth it).

Other very good free tools to help remove some trojans, worms and other pain-in-the-ass problems include (click to download then extract/run):

CWShredder    HuntBar Remover (WtoolsX.exe)   Stinger

Keep in mind that if you are infected and use Windows ME or XP and a "DLL" file is infected you should disable system restore in order to stop Windows from re-installing the problem each time you re-boot.  You can also consider using system restore to restore your system to a point in time prior to your infection (if you can determine when you got tagged).  System restore will not remove your data files but only files related to installed programs and the  operating system.  So if you invoke system restore you may have to re-install any application programs you added since the restore date you are rolling back to.

To try an on-line scanner click on one or more of the links below:

PandaSoft

PCPitStop