How to Get Rid of a Computer Virus

Level of difficulty: Intermediate

A computer virus is a program that enters a computer without your knowledge. Some of these are able to spread to other computers. Computer viruses can cause your computer to slow down or perform activities without your permission. Some of these are also able to corrupt data stored inside the computer. Computer viruses can be obtained when you download infected files from the Internet or access malicious websites.

Materials Needed:
- Computer
- Anti-virus software
- Internet connection
Step 1
If you suspect that you have a virus, launch your anti-virus software and perform a scan of your entire system. If you do not have an anti-virus software application installed on your computer, download one from the Internet. Search for an anti-virus software application with a good reputation. Some anti-virus software applications are bogus and can add viruses to your computer.
Step 2
Wait for the full scan to be completed. Once it has been completed, check to see if it has detected any viruses. If there are viruses, click on the 'delete' button on the interface. Sometimes, the virus detected on your computer cannot be deleted by the anti-virus software. When this happens, you have to manually remove the virus from your computer.
Step 3
Take note of the name of the virus detected on your computer. Open a Web browser window and type the name of the virus on the search engine.
Step 4
Read several sources and get information on how to remove the virus. Make sure that you read instructions carefully as manual removal can be tricky. If you do not follow the instructions, you might delete or change some crucial files on your computer.
Step 5
Once you have manually removed the virus from the computer, launch your anti-virus program again and do another scan of the entire system.
Step 6
Wait for the full system scan to finish. Check if you have successfully removed the virus from your computer.
Step 7
If you have not successfully removed the virus from the computer, check the processes running on your computer. You can do this by typing Ctrl+Alt+Del on your keyboard. A window will appear. Click on the 'Processes' tab. Scan the list for processes that seem malicious.
Step 8
Search the Internet for the processes and the virus associated with it. Manually remove the virus and perform another system scan.