2012-07-30

First you must learn to differentiate between an infection and just general computer slowness.

Symptoms of Infection
There are a number of symptoms which indicate that your computer has been infected. If you notice "strange things" happening to your computer, namely:

unexpected messages or images are suddenly displayed

unusual sounds or music played at random

your CD-ROM drive mysteriously opens and closes

programs suddenly start on your computer

you receive notification from your firewall that some applications have attempted to connect to the Internet, although you did not initiate this, then it is very likely that your computer has been infected by a virus.

Additionally, there are some typical symptoms which indicate that your computer has been infected via email:

your friends mention that they have received messages from your address which you know you did not send

your mailbox contains a lot of messages without a sender's e-mail address or message header.

These problems, however, may not be caused by viruses. For example, infected messages that are supposedly coming from your address can actually be sent from a different computer.

There is a range of secondary symptoms which indicate that your computer may be infected:

your computer freezes frequently or encounters errors

your computer slows down when programs are started

the operating system is unable to load

files and folders have been deleted or their content has changed

your hard drive is accessed too often (the light on your main unit flashes rapidly)

Microsoft Internet Explorer freezes or functions erratically e.g. you cannot close the application window

Reference: http://www.viruslist.com/en/viruses/ency...=153280800

NOTE: Paranoia is not a symptom of infection!

What to do if your Computer is Running Slow

Content taken and edited from malwareremoval.com

Computers need regular maintenance, I know this comes as a shock to some of you, but it's true nonetheless.

It's best if we break things down into two sections, the first are those that should be done regularly, the next are those that only need to be done once, or very infrequently.

1. Tasks that need to be carried out regularly.

Clean out Temp files

During the normal operation of your computer, Windows and your other programmes create an awful lot of temporary files. For the most part they are just that, temporary. But for any number of reasons, when they're no longer needed they don't get removed by the programme that created them. So over time their number builds up, and unless you clear them out they can slow down your computer noticeably.

In the case of your Browser, the problem can be worse. All browsers cache the web pages you visit. The original reason was to make loading pages faster. When everyone was on dial-up this was quite a good idea, but with modern fast connections it's mostly unecessary now. However browsers still cache webpages, and unless cleaned out regularly they build up to a position where they can have some pretty dramatic effects on how your browser works. Any number of wierd browser problems are caused by nothing more than an overfull cache.

So once a month, or once a week if you're a heavy user, it's a good idea to clean out your Temporary files.

To clean out temp files:

A good program to run regularly is CCleaner. 

Download CCleaner from here

Double click on ccsetupXXX_slim.exe to start the installation of CCleaner. (XXX is the version number)

Click OK

Click Next

Click I agree

Click Next

Click Install

Once the installation has finished, click Finish

Open CCleaner if it's not already running.

Select Cleaner Settings.
Check Internet Explorer, Windows Explorer, and System so that all items are checked. Then under Internet Explorer, Uncheck "History". In the Advanced section, have a check only on Old PreFetch Data.

Click on the Options block on the left. Select Advanced.
Check Only delete files in Windows Temp folders older than 48 hours.

Set CCleaner to Run When Computer Starts. Click on the Options block on the left, then choose Settings. Check Run CCleaner when computer starts.

Defrag your Hard Drive

Every time you write a file to your Hard Drive, the drive controller has to find space on your drive. It will often break files into fragments, so that it can use the available disk space efficiently. However over time files can become very fragmented because of this, and your drive controller has to work harder to find all the fragments and re-combine them so that a programme can use it. This slows things down, depending on the amount of fragmentation of your files, it can slow things down a lot.

So once a month (for heavy users), or once every 3 or 4 months (for light users), it's a good idea to defragment your hard drive.

This will re-arrange the fragments on your drive so they form contiguous entities which are much easier for your drive controller to deal with.

It's a time consuming operation, usually taking several hours, so best to do what I do, and start it going before you go to bed.

To defrag your hard drive:

Click Start

Run

Type: Dfrg.msc and click ok.

Select your main Drive or "Volume" (usually C)

Click Defragment

This may take a while so as said previously, best to leave running over night. Once it has completed, repeat the procedure on any other drives you have on-board.

2. Tasks that don't need to be carried out so often.

Reduce the number of Start Up programs.

Pretty much every programme you install these days is set to auto start when you boot up. The programme manufacturers tell you it's for your benefit, but the truth is for most of them it's just not necessary that they do so. Lots of auto starting programmes will severely slow down your startup time, and having lots of unecessary programmes running in memory will slow down the running speed of your computer as well.

Luckily it's not hard to prevent unecessary programmes from auto starting. Doing so does not mean you can't use the programmes, you start them by double clicking on their icons, just as you always have, it just means they won't be running when you're not using them.

Of course programmes like your Firewall and Anti-Virus need to auto run, so we won't be touching them at all.

To remove programs from startup:

Download StartupLite by Rubberducky to your Desktop.

Doubleclick StartupLite.exe to launch the programme.

Ensure the Disable box is checked.

Click Continue.

A pop up message will tell you the unecessary startup items in your list have been disabled and ask you to restart your computer.

Re-start your computer.

Check the amount of free space you have on your Hard Drive.

Windows (XP and Vista) needs a certain amount of "overhead" (free disk space) if it's to operate efficiently. If it doesn't have that space, your processor has to "page out", which will slow everything down considerably.

Ideally you need at least 15-20% of your disk to be empty, if you don't have 15% then it's time to start freeing up some disk space.

To check your free disk space:

For users of XP

Click Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Defragmenter

Look in the last column (top right) under % Free Space

Exit Disk Defragmenter

For users of Vista

Click Start > Computer

A window will open

Information for your Hard disk drive(s), including the exact amount of free space available, will be displayed in the uppermost portion of the window.

Presuming you don't have enough free disk space, here's a couple of suggestions for freeing some up

Remove unecessary programmes.

OK, time to be honest with youself, are you really using all those programmes you've got installed, or are there some that you haven't used in a lifetime. If there are, then why not get rid of them and free up some disk space. Your hard drive will thank you for your efforts.

To remove unwanted/unused programs:

For users of XP

Click Start > Control Panel > Add or Remove Programs

Click on the programme you want to remove to highlight it.

Click the Change/Remove button and follow any instructions given.

Repeat for all programmes you wish to remove.

For users of Vista

For Control Panel Home view - Click Start > Control Panel > Programs > Programs and Features

For Classic View - Click Start > Control Panel > Programs and Features

For either option, to uninstall a program, select it from the list and then click Uninstall.

Reduce your System Restore Points.

Windows creates System Restore points on a regular basis (every 24 hours), they take up a great deal of space on your hard drive (upto 12% for XP, 15% for Vista). If your computer has been running without problems (other than the slowness) for some time, then you can free up a lot of space by reducing the number of System Restore points to one (the latest).

Windows will continue creating more RPs, but it'll take some time before you need to thin them out again.

To reduce the number of System Restore points:

For users of XP

Click Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Cleanup

This will bring up the Disk Cleanup window.

Click the More Options tab.

In the System Restore field, click Clean up

You will be prompted if you want to remove all but the most recent Restore Point.

Click Yes.

Click OK.

When prompted whether you're sure you want to do this click Yes.

For users of Vista

Click Start > All Programs > System Tools > Disk Cleanup

Select Files from all users on this computer

Click on Continue

Select the appropriate drive letter (usually C:)

When the Disk Cleanup window opens, select the More Options tab

Under System Restore and Shadow Copies click on the Clean up button

All but the latest restore point will be removed

Note: In some editions of Windows Vista, the disc might include file shadow copies and older Windows Complete PC Backup images as part of restore points. This information will also be deleted.

What to do if your Computer is Infected

Start by searching the Self Help guides HERE.

011 Self Help Guides

Removal instructions for Windows Stability Center

Removal instructions for Windows Oversight Center

Removal instructions for PrivacyKey

Removal instructions for SelfPrivacy

Removal instructions for PrivacyView

Removal instructions for Security Shield

Removal instructions for Antivirus Protection Trial

Removal instructions for PC-Safe

Removal instructions for XP Total Security 2011 (and its clones)

Removal instructions for Antivirus Clean 2011

Removal instructions for VaccineCore

Removal instructions for WindowsFixDisk

Removal instructions for Boan119

Removal instructions for WindowsRestore

Removal instructions for MS Removal Tool

Removal instructions for BoanSupport

Removal instructions for HomeClean

Removal instructions for Windows Passport Utility

Removal instructions for AdStop

Removal instructions for Windows Recovery

Removal instructions for Windows Lowlevel Solution

Removal instructions for VaccineScan

Removal instructions for Windows Emergency System

Removal instructions for Windows Efficiency Magnifier

Removal instructions for AntiGuard

Removal instructions for Windows Troubles Remover

Removal instructions for ProPrivacy

Removal instructions for AntiVirus AntiSpyware 2011

Removal instructions for Windows DebugSystem

Removal instructions for ZeroVaccine

Removal instructions for Windows Troubles Analyzer

Removal instructions for PcVaccine

Removal instructions for System Tool

Removal instructions for Windows Shield Center

Removal instructions for SpecialGuard

Removal instructions for Windows Risks Eliminator

Removal instructions for Safecare

Removal instructions for Windows Utility Tool

Removal instructions for Windows Optimal Solution

Removal instructions for PrivacyHidden

Removal instructions for SmartScan

Removal instructions for "Nice picture" Backdoor.Agent

Removal instructions for HomeVaccine

Removal instructions for Windows Health Center

Removal instructions for MyPCcheck

Removal instructions for WindowsDisk

Removal instructions for Spyware Protection

Removal instructions for LiveBoan

Removal instructions for MemoryOptimizer

Removal instructions for Windows Optimization & Security

Removal instructions for HDDLow

Removal instructions for VaccineClean

Removal instructions for SmartHDD

Removal instructions for MyDisk

Removal instructions for EasyVaccine

Removal instructions for PCoptimizer

Removal instructions for PrivacyRight

Removal instructions for WiseVaccine

2010 Self Help Guides

Removal instructions for WinDefrag

Removal instructions for PrivacyGuard 2010

Removal instructions for Vaccine2010

Removal instructions for NewVaccine

Removal instructions for HDDTools

Removal instructions for Ddosclean

Removal instructions for VaccineProgram

Removal instructions for SpyCare

Removal instructions for WinHDD

Removal instructions for PCclear

Removal instructions for CleanV

Removal instructions for UserVaccine

Removal instructions for PowerCare

Removal instructions for ProtectOne

Removal instructions for UltraDefragger

Removal instructions for Qscan

Removal instructions for Security Inspector 2010

Removal instructions for ScanZero

Removal instructions for SearchGuard

Removal instructions for Security Essentials 2011

Removal instructions for SafetyBoan

Removal instructions for BestBoan

Removal instructions for DataProtect

Removal instructions for AntiPrivacy

Removal instructions for AdSafer

Removal instructions for HDDDefragmenter

Removal instructions for AntiProtect

Removal instructions for CleanScan

Removal instructions for NewClean

Removal instructions for IDboan

Removal instructions for Scan119

Removal instructions for InfoDoctor

Removal instructions for VaccineKiller

Removal instructions for InfoSecret

Removal instructions for Smart Engine

Removal instructions for AntiVirus Studio 2010

Removal instructions for VaccineLab

Removal instructions for RegistryClever

Removal instructions for Malware Destructor 2011

Removal instructions for VaccineData

Removal instructions for SuperVaccine

Removal instructions for InfoHold

Removal instructions for InternetVaccine

Removal instructions for SP Center

Removal instructions for KeyCop

Removal instructions for KSecurity

Removal instructions for Advanced Security Tool 2010

Removal instructions for eClean

Removal instructions for fake Microsoft Security Essentials alert

Removal instructions for RealVaccine

Removal instructions for Security119

Removal instructions for Privacy Center

Removal instructions for Privacy Info

Removal instructions for MegaVaccine

Removal instructions for WebVaccine

Removal instructions for MedicCop

Removal instructions for DiskClean

Removal instructions for AdCare

Removal instructions for VaccineTree

Removal instructions for My Security Shield

Removal instructions for VirusCure

Removal instructions for GreenVaccine

Removal instructions for EzPrivacy

Removal instructions for Wireshark Antivirus

Removal instructions for MyInfoGuard

Removal instructions for PCPrivacy

Removal instructions for ResetInfo

Removal instructions for Antivirus 2010

Removal instructions for Net Protector AntiVirus 2010

Removal instructions for Anticare

Removal instructions for Antivir Solution Pro

Removal instructions for PrivacyCare

Removal instructions for CleanVirus

Removal instructions for ByeClean

Removal instructions for NeoProtect

Removal instructions for Live Security Suite

Removal instructions for DoctorV

Removal instructions for Inprivacy

Removal instructions for VDoctor

Removal instructions for SafetyPC

Removal instructions for ProtectInfo

Removal instructions for Trojan Ransom.NoExe

Removal instructions for XJR Antivirus

Removal instructions for Defense Center

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