my wife clicked on a free virus scan and now it pops up every time we surf the net. how do i get rid of it.?

Question

this free scan pops up every time. i've tried to remove it but its still there when i go back on the internet. is there a way to remove it completely from my computer. it is also on all of the other user accounts on my computer.

Answer 1

go to control panel>add/remove program and remove it competely from there!

Answer 2

You got tricked, my friend. This supposed free virus scan was in fact spyware. Get yourself Spybot Search & Destroy from www.download.com. There is no guarantee of getting rid of it, though. Some of this spyware can be really resistant. I am a computer professional who has been trying for months to remove spyware from a particular machine. I am giving up and wiping the hard drive. Somebody probably clicked for a free virus scan.

Good luck!

Answer 3

Never open ads. I'm afraid that was a trojan and ur computer may be ruined. If it is recent its even worse snce there is a virus more deadly than SASA going around. Find the root of it in C:/Downloads (or) C:/ Program Files and kill it at the root. Also try Ctrl Alt Delete- Processes and end process it.

Answer 4

depending on which o called "free scan " you tried ..it may well have put a small programme on your computer which you can delete in the add/remove in windows o/s or my guess is it has installed a spyware/malware on your computer .....run a full virus scan of your computer to try to pick it up ....some virus reside in the memory so

also try scanning in "safe mode " with the system restore turned off .......

Answer 5

It depends on the program, you might have installed a virus... A good program for things like this is McAfee or any CNet.com download. if the program is listed in the computer, it can be deleted by going to add/remove programs under control panel in the start menu (windows)?

Answer 6

Knowing the name of the free virus scan would be a great help.

Beer_farts recommendation is a good one. I recommend you use it following this procedure.

MALWARE REMOVAL (GENERAL).


Malware is a general word for all form of Viruses, Spyware etc. This procedure works for all Malware. Use the appropriate program.

You might be unable to access the Internet after removing the Malware so you will need to run LSPfix or Winsockxpfix (as appropriate). Download one, but do not run until later, if required.

LSPfix: all Windows OS except 95.

http://www.cexx.org/lspfix.htm

Winsock XP Fix: Windows XP only.

http://www.spychecker.com/program/winsockxpfix.html



UPDATE YOUR ANTI-VIRUS OR ANTI-SPYWARE PROGRAM.


Let's get cleaning

Part 1

• Temporarily show hidden files.

For Windows XP:

1.
Click Start, and then click Control Panel.

2.
Click Appearance and Themes, and then click Folder Options.

3.
On the View tab, under Hidden files and folders, click "Show hidden files and folders", and clear(uncheck) the "Hide protected operating system files" check box.



For older systems:

1.
Double-click My Computer, click View, and then click Folder Options.

2.
On the View tab, under "Hidden files and folders", click "Show hidden files and folders", and clear (uncheck) the "Hide protected operating system files" check box.


IMPORTANT: Files are hidden by Windows for a very good reason. It is not wise to experiment with these files. Unfortunately, to successfully remove modern spyware we must turn this protection off temporarily. Please turn the protection back on when you have finished cleaning your system.


Empty your Internet Explorer cache and your other temporary file folders:

1.
On the Internet Explorer Tools menu, click Internet Options.

2.
On the General tab, in the Temporary Internet Files section, click the Delete Files button. This will delete all the files that are currently stored in your cache.

3.
Select the Delete all offline content check box in the confirmation dialogue box that appears, click OK.

4.
Click OK again.

Restart in Safe Mode:

To do this you need to hold down or repeatedly tap the F8 key while the computer is booting (when the computer is displaying a black screen with white text). When the boot menu appears, use your keyboard arrows to select "Safe Mode."

Safe Mode can look quite ugly. The color may look bad, and all of your desktop icons will be very large. This is normal.



START RUNNING YOUR SCANNER.


When the scan and removal are completed REBOOT COMPUTER. This will restart you in normal mode.

If you are unable to access the Internet after removing Malware you will need to run LSPfix or Winsockxpfix (as appropriate).


If you are using Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) and are unable to access the Internet after removing Malware, there is a command that may fix the problem, removing the need to run Winsockxpfix. It works by resetting the winsock catalogue. Click on Start, then Run and type CMD in the dialogue box that appears. Click OK. Type "netsh winsock reset" (no quotes)into the DOS window that appears.


The last steps

If you are running Windows XP or Windows ME, and your computer has been successfully cleaned of Malware, there is one more thing that needs to be done.

Delete any old restore points and then create a new restore one. The old ones may, of course, be infected with the Malware and cannot be used.

First, start and then stop the Restore Service. This is done differently depending on what operating system you are running.

Windows XP:

1.
Click Start, and then click Control Panel.

2.
Click Performance and Maintenance, click System, and then click on the System Restore tab.

3.
Select the Turn Off System Restore check box, click Apply, then restart your computer.

4.
Return to the System Restore Tab and turn System Restore back on.


Windows ME:

1.
Click Start, click Control Panel, click System.

2.
Click Performance, click File System, and then click Troubleshooting.

3.
Enable the option Disable System Restore, click Apply then restart your computer.

4.
Return to the Troubleshooting tab and turn System Restore back on.


To set a manual restore point complete the following steps:

1.
Click the Start button.

2.
Point to Programs, then navigate to Accessories, then System Tools, then click System Restore.

3.
Choose Create a restore point, and then click Next.

4.
In the Restore point description box, type a name for your restore point, and then click Next.

5.
Click OK.


If Ewido and he above procedure didn't remove it, then it might be a SmitFraud variety of Trojan. These two sites specialize in SmitFraud removal.

http://www.internetinspiration.co.uk/roguefix.htm

http://siri.urz.free.fr/Fix/SmitfraudFix_En.php

Answer 7

It was likely some type of malware or adware. Some free programs below are trusted and could possibly remove it.

Spybot Search and Destroy http://www.safer-networking.org/en/download/

Adaware http://www.lavasoftusa.com/

AVG anti-virus http://free.grisoft.com/doc/1



Also you can do an online scan at

http://housecall.trendmicro.com/

Answer 8

it looks u have been infected by some malware. my suggestion is, u have to clear your cookies. even u do that, some malware was integrated or dedicated to windows and will eventually run every time we start windows. try using free spyware check from yahoo itself. if cannot try using system mechanic profesional.... from experience, i've been used that software for a long time, and never get those attacks........

Answer 9

I highly recommend using AdAware to clean out your spyware. It's one of the best programs out there, and best of all it's FREE!

Go to download.com and search for AdAware. It's robust and takes out spyware other programs miss.

Answer 10

what is the name of the virus scan?
Try running this free spyware removal.
http://www.ewido.net/en/onlinescan/