How do i delete a virus from my computer

A computer virus is a malicious program—or form of malware—that's designed to disrupt your computer and spread to other devices. It attaches itself to a valid program, alters the code, then replicates itself to infect other files or systems. A virus can destroy data or cause your machine to stop working. Your computer can get a virus in many ways. The most common ones are:. Think your Mac or PC may have a virus? Look for these 10 telltale signs:.

Macs have built-in protections for viruses and malware, so it's uncommon for them to become infected. So uncommon, in fact, that they don't have an option to run a manual virus scan. If you want an extra layer of protection, you can download antivirus software that will allow you to perform a scan. If your software detects a virus, it may give you the option to remove it automatically. If it doesn't, or if you prefer to fix the computer virus on your own, you can follow these steps.

One note before starting: Getting rid of viruses manually requires knowledge of program and process names. Since these processes run in the background, it's normal not to recognize them—but that doesn't mean they're harmful. Before quitting or uninstalling a program, confirm that it is malware and doesn't belong on your machine. If you've tried these steps and still need a little help, we're right around the corner. Keep viruses away from your Mac or PC with these 7 helpful tips:.

Protect the devices your family loves and relies on with one simple plan that covers all your favorite home tech. All rights reserved. A computer virus is a small software program that spreads from one computer to another and interferes with computer operation. A computer virus might corrupt or delete data on a computer, use an email program to spread the virus to other computers, or even delete everything on the hard disk.

Computer viruses are frequently spread by attachments in email messages or by instant messaging messages. Therefore, you must never open an email attachment unless you know who sent the message or you are expecting the email attachment.

Viruses can be disguised as attachments of funny images, greeting cards, or audio and video files. Computer viruses also spread through downloads on the Internet.

They can be hidden in pirated software or in other files or programs that you might download. Tip: For information about the symptoms of a computer virus, go to the Microsoft PC Security website. A worm is computer code that spreads without user interaction. Most worms begin as email attachments that infect a computer when they're opened. The worm scans the infected computer for files, such as address books or temporary webpages, that contain email addresses. The worm uses the addresses to send infected email messages, and frequently mimics or spoofs the "From" addresses in later email messages so that those infected messages seem to be from someone you know.

Worms then spread automatically through email messages, networks, or operating system vulnerabilities, frequently overwhelming those systems before the cause is known. Worms aren't always destructive to computers, but they usually cause computer and network performance and stability problems. A trojan horse is a malicious software program that hides inside other programs.

It enters a computer hidden inside a legitimate program, such as a screen saver. Then it puts code into the operating system that enables a hacker to access the infected computer. Trojan horses do not usually spread by themselves. They are spread by viruses, worms, or downloaded software.

Spyware can install on your computer without your knowledge. Spyware can track Internet search habits and can also redirect your web browser to a different website than you intend to go to. A rogue security software program tries to make you think that your computer is infected by a virus and usually prompts you to download or buy a product that removes the virus.

The names of these products frequently contain words like Antivirus, Shield, Security, Protection, or Fixer. This makes them sound legitimate. They frequently run right after you download them, or the next time that your computer starts. Rogue security software can prevent applications, such as Internet Explorer, from opening. Rogue security software might also display legitimate and important Windows files as infections.

Typical error messages or pop-up messages might contain the following phrases:. Do not click anything inside the dialog box. Are you sure you want to navigate from this page? Your computer is infected! They can cause data lost and file corruption and need to be treated as soon as possible. Return to System Security and download it to secure your PC. Press OK to Continue or Cancel to stay on the current page. For more information see Protect yourself from tech support scams.

Removing a computer virus or spyware can be difficult without the help of malicious software removal tools. Some computer viruses and other unwanted software reinstall themselves after the viruses and spyware are detected and removed.

Fortunately, by updating the computer and by using malicious software removal tools, you can help permanently remove unwanted software. For more information about how to remove a computer virus and spyware, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: - Microsoft resources and guidance for removal of malware and viruses. Note A computer virus may prevent you from accessing the Microsoft Update website to install the latest updates.

We recommend that you set the Automatic Updates service to run automatically so that a computer is not missing any important updates. Microsoft offers a free online tool that scans and helps remove potential threats from your computer. To perform the scan, go to the Microsoft Safety Scanner website. Note the name of the rogue security software. For this example, we'll call it XP Security Agent When you are prompted, use the arrow keys to highlight Safe Mode with Networking , and then press Enter.

Click the Start button and check whether the rogue security software appears on the Start menu. If it's not listed there, click All Programs and scroll to find the rogue security software's name. Right-click the name of the rogue security software program, and then click Properties. In the Properties dialog box, check the path of the rogue security software program that is listed in Target. Note The folder name frequently is a random number.

In the Program Files window, click Program Files in the address bar. Scroll until you find the rogue security software program folder. For example, XP Security Agent Go to the Microsoft Safety Scanner website. If you suspect that your computer is infected with rogue security software that was not detected by using Microsoft security solutions, you can submit samples by using the Microsoft Malware Protection Center submission form.

Microsoft Defender Offline is an anti-malware tool that helps remove difficult to eliminate viruses that start before Windows starts. Starting with Windows 10, Microsoft Defender Offline is built-in.