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See also: MalWare
Is your computer a Mac? If so, you are probably not suffering from virus problems but something else. There are hardly any known viruses that affect macs--for more info, see MacOS.
As for PC's...
If you’re not sure whether you’re infected with either a virus or adware, it’s best just to check for both. Please don't be daunted by the length of the twelve steps below, they are long because they are important, detailed, and thorough.
Step 1: Remove unnecessary, pernicious software. If the computer is bootable in normal mode (if not, skip to step ten), go to the Add/Remove Programs control panel and remove any Norton-related programs (When Norton and McAfee are both installed, they conflict with each other and Carleton only supports McAfee) and any Peer-2-Peer software such as Kazaa, Morpheus, or Audiogalaxy. Furthermore, delete McAfee VirusScan. Why? Perhaps it has become compromised by viruses and needs to be reinstalled to be effective.
Step 2: For XP and ME users, go to Start-->Run and type in msconfig. In the Startup tab, disable all checked off items except for SHSTAT and UpdaterUI.
Step 3: Reinstall the necessary software in normal mode. If you do not have a CD or flashdrive with this software and its updates, then go to http://www.carleton.edu/campus/its/resnet/software and download McAfee VirusScan. If your computer is not registered, https://register.res.carleton.edu should allow you to download McAfee from the above resnet link. To determine whether or not your computer is registered, check its IP Address.
If you cannot receive network access, not even to the registration page, come to the SCIC to get these pieces of software.
Step 4: Click on the link provided in the same page which will direct you to a place where you can download AdAware, a spyware removal program. We also have a program called Stinger, which is basically a stripped-down version of McAfee; it does not require installation (all you have to do is download the file and run it), nor does it scan for all viruses, just the most widespread, current ones. The full version of McAfee is always preferable and Stinger should be used only in cases in which you cannot even successfully install McAfee. If a reinstallation of McAfee cannot occur for some reason, try running Stinger in Safe Mode by pressing F5 or F8 as your computer boots up (see step six).
If you cannot receive network access, not even to the registration page, come to the SCIC to get these pieces of software.
Install McAfee, SpyBot, and [Ad-Aware: Double-click the files you’ve downloaded (you should have made sure to watch where they were saved, and if you did not, you can search for them on your computer or download them again), one at a time, and follow the setup instructions (Note: you do not need to change any of the settings in the setup, so it’s mostly just pressing “Next” a bunch of times). If you do not have a recent SuperDAT file, download it from the McAfee website.
Step 5: Disable System Restore: Skip this step if you have Windows 2000. To disable System Restore in Windows ME: 1. Click Start > Settings > Control Panel. 2. Double-click the System icon (Note: If the System icon is not visible, click "View all Control Panel options" to display it). 3. On the Performance tab click File System. 4. Click the Troubleshooting tab, and then check Disable System Restore. 5. Click OK. Click Yes when you are prompted to restart Windows. To disable System Restore in Windows XP: 1. Click Start > Programs > Accessories > Windows Explorer 2. Right-click My Computer and then click Properties. 3. Click the System Restore tab. 4. Check the "Turn off System Restore" or "Turn off System Restore on all drives" check box.
Step 6: Reboot into Safe Mode: The basic method for restarting in Safe Mode on every Windows machine is the same, but it requires a bit of cunning and skill. When your computer restarts (don’t worry, if it finished restarting after step 4, you can just restart again), begin tapping the F5 or F8 key (maybe two taps per second) as soon as you see something on the screen, and continue to tap until you see the Advanced Options menu. It looks slightly different in each version of Windows, but all should give you an option to start in Safe Mode. Select “Safe Mode”, and press enter.
Step 7: At this point it is essential that you disconnect your computer from our network to prevent the further spread of possible Viruses from your machine (yes, some Viruses can jump from machine to machine on our network without you doing anything). Install the SuperDAT to have a fully updated McAfee. McAfee should do this during setup (and automatically from then on) when you install the “SuperDAT” part of the program (don’t worry, this happens automatically).
Step 8: Get rid of all that malware!: We’ll start by running Ad-Aware 6.0. Double-click the program icon on the desktop, and click “Start”. Continue to click “Next” (without changing any options) until the program begins scanning. When it has finished, click “Next” or “Finish”, select ALL the items on the following page (by right-clicking on one and selecting “Select All”), click “Next or “Finish”, and close the program. Next, open the Start Menu, go to Programs (or All Programs), move the cursor over “Network Associates”, and select “On-Demand Scanner”. When the program finishes opening, click “Scan Now”. When it’s finished, delete or clean all the malware it finds.
Step 9: Turn System Restore back on: Skip this step if you’re running Windows 2000. To enable Windows Me System Restore 1. Click Start > Settings > Control Panel. 2. Double-click System. 3. On the Performance tab click File System. 4. On the Troubleshooting tab, uncheck Disable System Restore. 5. Click OK. Click Yes, when you are prompted to restart Windows. To turn on Windows XP System Restore 1. Click Start. 2. Right-click My Computer, and then click Properties. 3. Click the System Restore tab. 4. Uncheck the "Turn off System Restore" or "Turn off System Restore on all drives" check box. 5. Click Apply, and then click OK.
Step 10: Install Ad-Aware and SpyBot updates. In Ad-Aware, open the program (usually from a shortcut on your desktop), and click “Check for updates now” in the lower right. Click “Connect” and then OK to download the update. In SpyBot, in the right hand side, choose check for updates and select all that are available and download them. When updates from both programs are finished downloading, click “Finish” and run them both again.
Step 11: Windows Update: Either directly after you press start, or when you highlight “All Programs” or “Programs”, you should see something called “Windows Update”. Click on the button, and follow the included instructions (press Yes at the security window, if necessary, tell it to scan your computer for updates, and install all critical updates). Whereas virus scanners (like McAfee) remove viruses once they are on your computer, installing these updates helps to prevent viruses from ever getting on your computer and spreading to others. IT IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO INSTALL THESE UPDATES.
Step 12: Download a better browser than Internet Explorer, like Mozilla Firefox.
That’s it: If your computer is still having problems, it’s probably time to bring it into the SCIC, where a student computing specialist will take a look at it for you, and depending on the severity of the problem, will have it back to you within 1-3 days.
How do I check the currency of DAT File?
To find this open Programs -> network associates -> virus scan console. Then go to the help menu and go to about. This should list the date of the current DAT File. If it is up to date, they can just run virus scan and it should find and remove the virus.
If your virus scan has found a virus (or any other piece of malware), but it can't remove it, go into Safe Mode before running virus scan.
See Also: MalWare
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