Computer Virus

 

  The big question is will I ever get a Computer Virus ? The answer to that question is probably yes. So most people ask okay so how to I prevent my computer from being infected by a Computer Virus. The honest answer is no virus software is going to protect you 100%. Yes that is sad and scarey, but unfortunately true. So what do you do know, well I have heard some people say just don't use the computer. Well that is the most ridiculous response I have ever heard. The funny part is I have heard some technicians say that to a customer. That is a sure fire way to get people to stay away from your business. The truth is the customer is always right and you should go out of your way to help the customer. I think we all need to realize that we are all customers at some point in time and we all require respect. My opinion is if you don't follow that rule of thumb, you don't belong in business.


  Okay so how or what do you do to try to protect your computer from infections. The first thing you should do is make sure you have good up to date virus protection. There are many different antivirus programs that anyone can choose from. You just want to make sure you only have one antivirus program installed on your computer. Now there are other programs that you can have to scan for malware, spyware, adware and viruses. One of my favorites is Free Malwarebytes. I go have links to their website on some of my other posts. These programs are manual programs that you have to update and then scan your computer with. They are generally fairly straightforward to use. Below is a list of my favorite Antivirus Programs.

1. Kaspersky Antivirus
2. Bitdefender Antivirus
3. AVG Internet Security Antivirus
4. Free AVG Antivirus
5. AVAST Antivirus Paid Version
6. Free AVAST Antivirus
7. Various Norton Antivirus Programs
8. Microsoft Security Essentials, which is Free
9. Malwarebytes Paid Version
10. Free Avira Antivirus (good for windows xp)

  Now you will find that there are other pc virus programs that also do a very good job. If you are looking for a very good website for Antivirus Software Reviews check out this link http://www.av-comparatives.org/ . There are other websites that also give very good reviews as well. I would just be aware that some websites may be promoting a particular antivirus program and therefore may rate is higher that others.
  Other ways of protecting your computer and data from becoming infected with a computer virus would be to make sure you are always backing up for system. It can be by using the back up program in windows seven or by using a software program such as Acronis or Nortons Ghost. I would make sure the backup drive is not connected when the back up is done. This can prevent your back up from being infected by a pc virus such as cryptowall or cryptolocker. The way to back up your system and data is by using a cloud type back up such as carbonite. Remember windows 8.1 does not have the back up program like windows 7. It does have a file history back up through the control panel and it has a manual image back up the you the user must run. That is why I would recommend a software program such as acronis or carbonite.
  I would suggest going through the Amazon Store below the posts to search for a desired antivirus program or back up program. 
  Thank You for reading. 

Consumer Reviews

 

 
  This is my view on consumer reviews. I believe that writing a consumer review on any piece of equipment you may have purchase is a good thing. It actually has two parts to it. One it is good for the consumer, because you can see what people say good or bad about some kind of product. For example if you bought a computer and wrote a good review other people could see that and know they are getting a good product. Also the better the review the better it is for the company that produced it. I know when ever I am deciding on purchasing something I look at the reviews. I look at the rating of the product, the number of reviews and I read the reviews. This provides me with an abundance of useful information.
 

  Now the reviews can spell a big problem for the company that produced it. If for example a computer company gets too many bad reviews they will lose business. Hopefully they will recognize this and not try to retaliate against the person who wrote the review. Their better move would be to recognize the problem and correct it within their company by producing a better product for the consumer. I have read some reviews where an individual wrote something and the company took it personal and retaliated against the individual. I would say this is not a good move on their part.
  So is it better to write a review that is negative for something that you may have purchased. No like I stated earlier it is a good thing and does not matter whether it is good or bad. As long as it is honest and that you are not trying to get back at someone you are doing the correct thing. If someone writes something back at you do not write something back as this shows a childish act. So as you can see when someone writes a review it basically has winners all the way around. We the consumer wins and the seller selling the product also wins by looking at their product and making it better.
  Thank You for reading.

Malware Removal

 

Malware and Computer Virus Removal

Malware Removal may not be as difficult as some would think. It all depends on what Malware has infected your computer. Usually you will find that most malicious programs come in with other computer infections. So how can you tell if you have Malware on your computer. The common signs are programs that you did not choose to install. There are times when these malicious programs come in with some kind of free software. A lot of the time there will be a number of programs where you may have the choice to uncheck the program so it does not get installed on your computer. There is also the time when you do not have a choice and this junk malware is on your computer and slows things down and keeps popping up. Usually it will seem to run a number of checks on your system and proceed to tell you that you should buy it to clean up or repair your computer. These types of programs may be legitimate or they may be fake. They also tend to cause more problems then they are worth. 

  Okay so you may be asking what are the best programs to use to remove the malware from your computer. Below I will give the names of the best programs to use. I would also follow the steps that I number them in. This procedure will clean up almost all computer infections.

1.  The first thing I would do if possible is have a back up of your system or back up your data on your system to a second hard drive. This way if the system has further problems you will have all your data. Just remember to scan all saved data before moving it back to the system. There are excellent programs such as Nortons Ghost or Acronis.
2. Download the following programs to a flash drive and install them on your computer in the safe mode with networking. Download Combofix ( does not run yet for windows 8.1), Free Malwarebytes, TDSS KILLER, Free Spybot, Super Anti Spyware, Eset Online Scanner, A-Squared, Adware Cleaner, Adware Removal Tool, Junkware Removal Tool, Rogue Cleaner and Revo Uninstaller.
3. Update and Run each of these programs. Reboot the computer when instructed to.
4. Almost all of these programs can be downloaded from Bleeping Computer at this link http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/ .
5. Start your computer up and keep pressing the F8 Key on the keyboard.
6. Once at the menu choices select safemode with networking.
7. Copy the programs in a folder called virus cleaning to your desktop.
8. You can then type msconfig, Select the Boot Tab, Check Safe Boot and select Network, Click Apply and Restart the Computer. The Computer will now always boot to the safemode with networking so you have internet access.
9. If you are working with windows 8 or 8.1 you may have to enter the normal mode first and follow the procedure in step 5.
10. Two of the most common malicious programs are 24x7 Help and PC Optimizer Pro. There are quite a few different malicious programs out there as well.
11. You can try to remove these malicious programs using the free removal tool called REVO UNINSTALLER. This website is an excellent place to download many free portable apps http://portableapps.com/apps/utilities/revo_uninstaller_portable
12. Always pay attention when installing any program, because it may have other unwanted software such as conduit etc... Make sure to uncheck these extra junk programs.
13.  With Revo click the arrow next to the view button and select details. Then click installation date at the top of the fourth row. Now you can see what programs have been installed especially around the time of the infection. Click on the unwanted malicious program and choose to uninstall it. You can use the default choices or choose advanced. Make sure to select the files found for the junk program and choose delete. Reboot the computer if instructed to.
14. When all Virus Cleaning is done follow step 8 and uncheck safe boot, click apply, click okay and reboot the system.
15. Try running various programs, access your documents, pictures, check windows updates etc... Basically you are testing the system to make sure all is working properly. 
16. You may have to reset all web browsers such as Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome. Infections can and usually change settings as well as home pages.
17. I would also suggest updating programs such as Java, Adobe Reader, Adobe Flash Player Etc...

  If you have no further problems then you should be okay.
  Thank You for reading. 

AVG Antivirus 2015 Virus Removal

 

Be careful who you speak to they may be part of the infection

If you are running AVG Antivirus and you get an infection beware if a phone number comes up for you to call. A friend of mine just had this happen. AVG indicated that his computer was infected. The program then gave him a phone number to call for help. He called the number and a person with a foreign accent proceeded to give him instructions on how to clean the infections off his computer. The person basically had him boot off of his windows 7 home premium disk. They then had him run something. The person then told him the virus was gone. He then noticed that the computer seemed to be stuck in the safe mode. He could not run any of his applications or get on the internet. His computer was basically rendered useless. He gave me a call and I looked at his computer for him.


  Well I booted the computer to the desktop and found that it was not stuck in the safe mode. It was booting to the normal mode. I checked the system and did not see any of his installed programs. I checked internet explorer to make sure there were no proxy settings checked. I also checked the device manager and found a number of system components that had no drivers installed. I took a look at the registry and found only one profile listed, so it was not an infection doing this. I proceeded to look at the root directory and found a file called windows.old . This folder had all of his data from the previous install. Folders were documents, pictures, favorites, desktop etc.... When this happens it is because someone booted off the windows 7 disk and chose to install a fresh load of the windows 7 operating system. It will then save all your data in the windows.old folder.
  I had to download the Ethernet driver so I could access the internet. I then activated the windows 7 software. The next step was to download all the software drivers for the system and install them. I also downloaded all the windows updates and installed them as well. Next I installed the Free AVG antivirus program, free malwarebytes and the current version of spybot. After this I installed what programs he had such as Libre Open Office. I moved all of his data back to the folders they were in before. The system is back up and running properly.
  So the question is was it really someone from AVG he was speaking to ? I myself do not think so, I have a feeling it may have been someone associated with the infection that was on the computer. If it was not, then it was a very poor technician. If that is the kind of help a paid version of AVG Antivirus gets you I would just go with the free version of avg. A good technician would never just suggest to wipe out the computer. There are other steps to take to clear out a virus from the computer. I wish he had contacted me that night when this had happened so I could have not had this happen. If anyone would like to see my methods check out this link to one of my posts

•  http://simpleviruscleaning.blogspot.com/2014/06/help-i-have-pop-ups-and-my-computer-is.html.

•  http://howtocleanviruses.blogspot.com/2014/05/viruses-malware-spyware-and-adwareoh-my.html

•  http://computerrepairetc.blogspot.com/2015/01/virus-removal.html

     These are just a few of my posts from some of my blogs. I hope this information is helpful.
  Thank You for reading.