We always talk about malware prevention, but oftentimes users are asking for help because a virus has already made its way onto their computer. In these cases, the next step is to try to eliminate the malware and counteract its damaging effects, the breadth of which we can often be unaware of at first.
In more serious cases, for example, there can actually be damage done to your operating system and information lost from your hard drive, which requires immediate action to try to recover data before the virus continues to wreak havoc on your machine.
How can malware be eliminated from a computer? What types of steps should you take to try to get rid of it?
1. It’s possible to get rid of malware with antivirus software.
If you don’t have antivirus software installed, you can use one of many free programs to try to eliminate the virus. Just be careful of where you download the software from. Always download from the developer’s official page, and make sure that it truly is the official page before proceeding (some people may try to trick you by using a very similar domain name).
Once the antivirus program is installed, we’ll perform a complete virus scan which will allow us to detect the number of viruses on your hard drive. The next step is to try to eliminate the virus and to clean up the files that may have been affected.
2. What if the antivirus software doesn’t get rid of it?
When your antivirus software isn’t able to wipe out the malware that is affecting your computer, or if there are system files that have been infected, you won’t be able to get rid of the virus without ruining your operating system. In these cases, we have the option of quarantining the infected file, which will allow us to isolate and try to disinfect the file when the antivirus program is updated. There is also the option of installing a more powerful antivirus program that can deal with the virus immediately.
3. What if the virus has affected my computer access?
On occasion, malware can impede normal access to our operating system, and losing access makes us unable to run a virus scan. In these cases, the best thing to do is to start up Windows in safe mode. If we are still having trouble accessing our computer to find out what’s going on, another option is to try to access it remotely in order to perform a System Restore or eliminate the virus if possible.
The negative effects of a virus on your computer can be unpredictable. That’s why it’s always most important to focus on preventative computer maintenance and good security practices, as well as making sure to have a backup system in place that allows you to restore lost information in an up-to-date fashion.
Has a Malware made its way onto your computer? We invite you to get in touch with the professional team at 911-computer.com to solve the problem. Call us and one of our technical specialists in computer repair will visit you in your home.