subject: What To Do When You Can't Search Google Because Of A Virus [print this page] Are you a cautious PC user? Many people surf the Internet unaware of the different ways that computer scammers can try to cheat them. One recent scam involves what is called a Google redirect virus. This virus, once it is on your computer, prevents you from being able to search Google correctly.
Instead, when you go to Google and type in a search term or phrase, you are given a page of results that are irrelevant to your search. You may click on a link because you are curious but this is a bad idea. The links on the results page are actually sites where more malware can infect your computer.
You can get this virus via illegal downloads. You may have it on your computer if you are seeing strange results on Google, and have recently downloaded music, video, software, or screensavers. Your computer has likely also slowed down recently and you're getting popups that try to talk you into buying more software (also malware, by the way).
Not all computers are affected by this virus in the same way. It's really hard to identify and remove, because it can create different filenames. Here are the steps that are most likely to help you restore your computer's functionality and ability to search on Google:
1. Your Windows host file has been altered. This is the basis for the redirect. You will need to set it back to where it was before you were infected. To do this go to "My Computer" and open the folder called "etc."
2. Next, find the file that is named "hosts." Use Notepad to open this file.
3. Delete all of the lines that you find in this file except one "127.0.0.1localhost." Any other items in this file are malware websites, and this is how you have been redirected. Now, save the file and close it.
Next, you need to consider getting some up-to-date spyware and virus protection for your computer. You want a program that can delete problem files in the future before they can be downloaded and installed on your computer and cause you further trouble.
