subject: How To Fix A Computer With A Trojan [print this page] A Trojan is a type of harmful viruses, or programs, that may affect your laptop in a number of negative ways, causing trouble for your system and perhaps put your personal information at jeopardy. Trojans get onto your system hidden as or packaged with apparently benign applications, like screensavers and photograph managers, that invade your laptop at installment. You'll be able to get a trojan by opening a file or running a program that has one. Trojans could cause anything from bothersome popups, browser hijaking, to backdoors being installed in your firewall.
Virus Software - You pc most likely already has some kind of security suite set up, if that's the case run it and delete just about any suspicious files. For those who do not have one, download one and then run it. It is important to delete the files, not just quarantine them, due to the fact trojan viruses can re-install themselves in different parts of your drive. It isn't hard to find anti-malware software that is both effective and free. Comodo, N Cleanler and MalwareBytes are free, easy to install and can be very helpful both in preventing and removing trojans. In the event you want the ability to have more control over your computer security or scans, there are a variety of security services you may buy as well. HouseCall and Trend Micro are also two programs you might want to look at that are specifically aimed at trojan removal. They both operate from a web browser instead of your system, so it is considerably harder for trojans to hide from them.
Do It By Hand - If your anti-virus freezes or is unable to remove the trojans you will need to go at it manually. You can look at the anti-virus log to see if it found any suspicious files . It's a good idea to check the program add/remove function found in your system's control panel to see if there are any programs you've never seen before. Pressing CTL ALT DEL you can watch the processes that are running on your system to see if anything sticks out. . If anything stands out it's alright to stop the process , or at least investigate it online.
Find The Infection Point - Often times the key to removing a trojan is knowing exactly which one it is, and often in order to do this you will need to figure how it got on your system. Usually there are a lot of people effected by the same trojan and will post about it online. Search for the trojan by name, by symptom or by the file it came hidden in. Often you can find message boards full of comments, questions and hopefully answers concerning the same virus.
Community boards - Occasionally you'll be able to find technical support message boards which can help, although frequently frustrating as well if any of the members are trolls. Most of the boards have a search function so you are able to look for information, or will usually have a special thread for malware. Word to the wise, don't be the first to try the fix. Wait until someone a lot more experienced has confirmed that it works to avoid causing undue damage to your own computer. If a handful of people have tried it you are probably good to go.
Remember that because trojans are classified not for the things they're doing, or how they hide on your system but by how they get on your laptop, not every suggestion you find is going to be relevant to your situation.
OS Reinstall - Only ever consider this once you've exhausted each and every different avenue of help. It is pretty serious. It's is incredibly effective but you will have to reinstall any and all programs you have loaded onto your computer since you got it. By no means do anything whatsoever to your Operating-system without backing up your essential data first. Even though your recover program says it can go through the process and keep all your files, this really is one time where being safe never hurts and being sorry always does. Reinstalling your operating system can take hours, but your computer will run as smoothly as it did when you first got it, so at least you have that to look forward to.
If at any point or at any step in this process you have any questions or doubts about what you are doing you need to speak to a specialist in virus removal.
