SOS! How do I remove spyware from my PC?

I have always used both AVG Anti-Virus and Spyware software of all the software I have used it is the best by far and its free. The latest free version 8 combined Anti-Virus and Spyware program. It can be down loaded free from this site using thi link.

Computeractive - Thank you page

You will be what this program will find and remove on your computer. Plus it runs in the background all the time giving you constant alround protection.

Nothing to lose only gain, which is something to be said in this day and age.

Cheers

Smartalk

I prefer Ad-Aware - it removes 10-15 attacks a day from my laptop.

Good luck. Hope you get rid of those nasty viruses.. man do i know about them frickin things.. recently lost all the data on my computer..yes everything.. had to reinstall the whole sistem again..whata pain.......

Awe man...they got you good. I found out years ago that those sites offering free scans did only that....free scans. If you're a comcast user they provide anti-spyware software (McAfee) but some other companies like AOL and verizon do too...i believe. If not the best thing for you to do is dowload windows defender. Its from microsoft (a reliable name) and did my computers good. Scanned and removed the spyware with great results and the best part is that its free. Ussually if there is a spyware problem with my computers I have the factory cds to my desktop and laptop so I just pop em in and restore my computer to its factory settings (aka like it was when you first bought it). It ereases everything that didn't come with it like Microsoft office (for me) but I still have the cd. If you're like me it either comes from a filesharing program like limewire or morpheus or comes from dowloading spyware infested porn. Anyway, here's the link to windows defender:


Download details: Windows® Defender


Good luck!

oh, i meant to tell you....if you can identify what programs are creating the problem you can just go to the control panel and click the add or remove programs button and scroll down till you see the one that is causing the problem. Click delete and it should be gone but I must warn.....some do require a reboot.

All excellent suggestions above. I didn't know about the freeware. I used to use ZoneAlarm on my older machines.

I now use something called StopZilla (not free) that often catches stuff that my McAfee and Windows Defender miss.

Go to Download.com look for AVG 8.0. Its free. Its simply the best out there. Its spyware and anti- virus in one. You wont be sorry. Run it every day and watch the spyware it removes. Just do a search for Download.com and search for AVG 8.0 If you have trogans it will get them. Its easy to use. AVG is free for as long as you want it. Norton and the other high priced ones are simply garbage compared to this.

I see you beat me to it. The new AVG is simply amazing. I run it every day.

Stace- this is a hint I learned only recently from a computer tech friend of mine- watch out for free scan download; some of them can have a virus hidden inside them to do more damage. they're literally a wolf in sheep's clothing.
My best suggestion would be to consult a computer store like comp USA and/or a office supply co like STAPLES or OFFICE DEPOT for some spyware removal programs

You might find something here for free.


FileHippo.com - Download Free Software

You might as well save your data files and simply reformat and reinstall Windows. Only this time dual boot your computer or run VMware with Linux and forbid Windows to use the internet period. Linux can do that for free and you won't have to go pay Apple for anything.

BTW, the virus-scan website you were hijacked to in the first place is the virus/worm that has infected Windows. The virus you have can't be removed without a major ordeal and you'll be lucky to get the registry items that it has infected. The truth about that one is that it morphs and changes every time you reboot Windows. The day I got that one just over 2 years ago was the day I started using Linux exclusively at home. I use Windows locally and it is strictly prohibited from any internet activity outside of going to Microsoft for whatever updates they have every month. That is a manual process I have implemented too. I haven't regretted that policy to this day.

Here's an example of how bad Windows really is and even these "swear by virus and trojan softwares":

Remove Worm.Netsky (or Netsky Virus) (Removal Instructions) 411-Spyware.com

You wind up needing to buy one product to detect the virus/worm, These product(s) don't automatically remove it and what other methods are tedious to implement if they even work at all. So you spend even more time and money trying to find one that's really worth a shit, only to find the rest are no better than the one's you bought in hopes of getting rid of something that is terminal ! So what is the only solution, use Linux to surf the internet ! That guy seems to swear by SpyHunter, but even he indicates it's limitations:

"I’m a big fan of SpyHunter. Here’s why: SpyHunter offers live support on the phone, and if SpyHunter doesn’t automatically remove Worm.Netsky (or Netsky Virus), you can get a custom fix for your computer."

Yeah, he says SpyHunter won't automatically remove it, then he throws this 1/2 assed assurance for a custom fix for a software that is massed produced/installed like Windows is ? And as you can see on that website, there's your confusing custom solution ! I'm skeptical, so I'd rather eliminate the problem altogether, Microsoft on the internet ! Outlook and Outlook Express too, not just Internet Explorer ! There's only so much FireFox can do on a Windows system too !

Linux and Novell Evolution are more secure. Apple's stuff is relatively secure just the same, but that entails hardware and software changes that aren't cost effective. For the time it takes to download Linux, burn it to a cdrom and install it, you'll be out the time of a download and cost and time of burning a cdr, maybe even the time it takes to learn how to install it. In the end you may realize that your employer can deal with Windows, but for home/personal use, you'll never have to buy software ever again ? If you can use Windows or OS X, Linux isn't much different or any more difficult.

This post is the product of Ubuntu Studio 8.04 using Firefox 3.

the best thing i've found is to download windows again on your computor-you will lose all of your saved data though

Try the free version of AVIRA:

Download anti virus for Linux and Windows, anti spam, recovery software tools

The definitions are updated daily, I don't know of any other free product that actually updates daily like that.

thank you soooooooooooooooo much everyone for all your help and input. i've downloaded a few of the programs, but i think i've hit a road block here the AVG scanner thingie detects some stuff, but it mostly says my computer database is "outdated" (whatever the hell that means). and when i try to run the spybot program it disappears. i can't find it on my PC, even if i search for it under the start menu i tried rommette's idea of going into the control panel and removing the programs, but nothing is in there that needs to be removed (very clever idea btw gril!). so... next question... what should i do next? at this point i'm really frustrated and i might just end up rebooting the whole XP software

You need to update the AVG database at least once a week - just click on check for updates (third option if I'm not mistaken). AVG will handle vira and some spyware. But I still think you need something like Ad-Aware as well to get rid of adware and some spyware.

You can't remove spyware (or the like) via the control panel (it's not like they advertise loudly that they have infested your pc). You should just keep AVG and something like Ad-Aware updated on a weekly basis and then run it once a week or when you have been at an untrusted site. Then the programs will handle just about any threat.