How to Remove a Trojan Virus

Level of difficulty: Easy

A Trojan virus is a program designed to appear as a benign or harmless application but really has malicious functions. This computer threat can easily be downloaded without the knowledge of the user. It can also secretly install without getting user consent. You may unwittingly download a music or video file not knowing that the file contains a virus. It may also arrive in email messages and exploit vulnerabilities in the Web browser or Operating System.

Materials Needed:
- Anti-virus program
- computer mouse
- keyboard
Step 1
The first step that you should take to remove a Trojan virus is to get good anti-virus software. One example is AVG, a free anti-virus program that can easily detect and remove Trojans.
Step 2
Run a scan by clicking on the 'scan' button. Some anti-virus programs have options for a quick scan or a full scan. A full scan is usually scheduled once a week then you can just run a quick scan if you feel the need to check your PC for viruses.
Step 3
After scan completion, the anti-virus will look where the Trojan virus is hiding and what exactly the file name is. Some anti-virus programs like AVG will clean the virus on its own or place it in a 'virus vault'. This is where some viruses are placed in isolation keeping them from causing further damage on the computer.
Step 4
You can also try to look for the file yourself and the delete it. Just highlight the file name, hold the 'Shift' button down then press 'Delete'. This completely removes the file from the computer system and it would not even be found hiding in the recycle bin or any other location.
Step 5
You can also try this free online scanner called Trend Micro Housecall to scan and clean up Trojans. This is a Web-based anti-virus and cannot be corrupted or damage by any harmful program. You can let Housecall run a scan then after completion, it will present you with a list of harmful programs in the PC.
Step 6
You will have to look for the file manually and try to remove it yourself.
Step 7
Write down the malicious files that cannot be removed from the list. The list usually shows the specific location or folder of the Trojan.
Step 8
You can try to manually delete the harmful files though some Trojan viruses cannot be deleted in any way.
Step 9
You may attempt to format the hard drive to make sure all traces of the Trojan are gone. The method is drastic but it is the only way to prevent further damage and breach to security.