Over the past few weeks, I've noticed my system getting systematically slower and I've also been running into "not enough memory" problems when using certain programs. While I only have 4 Gigs in my machine, it has served me fine for the past few years and I never ran into these issues with the very same programs that are giving me the error messages now. I've been pretty vigilant in running Malwarebytes, Spybot, and Microsoft Security Essentials regularly, as well as scanning every program I am about to install in advance. I'm also relatively computer savvy and can spot schemes to try and get me to install malware/adware beforehand. So I finally started to do a deep dive on my system to find out what in the heck was slowing it down, since all of these scans weren't finding anything. Turns out I did in fact have some sort of malware - two separate instances of it running as a matter of fact. It was a really persistent and difficult to remove piece of crap called "PCReg". It's not particularly slealthy - you can see it running under your tasks monitor. There will also be a folder for it under your Program Files directory on your hard drive. However it is very very stubborn with removal. Your best bet is to do some searches online for all the steps to remove it, since it involves a lot of manual edits to your registry. But this is really annoying that all these leading anti-malware apps did nothing to protect me from this.
It's pretty simple ohiotom, the people who create these malware are also smart. They'll find ways to exploit any and all loopholes they can find. And if it's relatively new then identifying the malware gets even harder. And with all this craze about bitcoin mining going on, we'll me of these malware created to run in the background without raising the red flag.
The best mitigation is making sure these sort of things don't get in at the first instance but when they do, oh boy - they can be a right pain in the butt to properly remove as the reason they got in is usually because your usual antivirus failed to detect them in the first place. The time to investigate and fix the problem may take longer than a fresh reinstall where you know exactly what you need to get the computer back to working properly. May seem a little drastic but I find a complete wipe and fresh reinstall of everything helps in getting a computer back in tiptop condition. Just make sure you have everything important backed up if you do this (ie. in particular, documents and browser settings)
The worst malware I have ever gotten was when I once accidentally clicked on one of those "free computer scan!!!" things. I knew it was malware but clicked it and BOY was my computer ruined. The worst part was finding my CD and key..and then months later my sister was playing team fortress on my computer and infected it AGAIN by clicking on the same banner...
I don't think PCReg is virus/malware. It looks more like it's adware to me, which might explain why it slipped past your security. Those things tend to be a real hassle to remove though indeed, and your post just reminded me that my PC has been a bit slower as of recently as well, so I'll check that out too (thanks!). But with that being said, if we presume this really is adware, it shouldn't slip past your AV either, so that's a minus towards malwarebytes and MSE for me. :/
I have protection on my computer and I still got wiped out. A virus on my XP and now the windows will not install. Very frustrating. trying to recreate all of the items on the other computer to a older smaller computer.
Yeah sometimes the viruses can go past the antivirus software. That's why if I really want to be sure I'm clean sometimes I will uninstall Avast after scanning with it and install Avira. Once Avira gets it all out only then I go back to Avast. I also have malware and spyware protection to go along with the antivirus.
After using Spybot and Malwarebytes the final tool you should be aware of for malware removal is called RogueKiller. The last piece of Malware I got infected with was a bitcoin miner which was almost causing my laptop to overheat. Sometimes it is faster to reinstall then remove these beasts however with the 3 tools I mentioned I seemed to get back up and running quite quickly. I'm wondering if by using Windows 8.1 you can avoid a lot of these Malware attacks.
Anti-Virus Has anybody tried the Norton antivirus? Sooner or later even the Mac can get a virus. Why not try more than one killer. Why not try the Norton iAntivirus in addition to the Microsoft Security Essentials? I hate that McAfee. When I used to run it, everything I downloaded would take forever.
Norton is in the same category as McAfee for me. I had it for this computer. I'm not renewing it. It's terrible at picking up things.
I don't think that it is possible for antivirus software to catch everything. Just like our immune system, it takes time to come up with a solution to some new type of infection. The best thing we can do to protect ourselves is to make sure our antivirus software is up to date. A new virus can pop up and it will take a day or two for it to be identified and built in (patched) to our software. If you are unlucky enough to become infected shortly after the release of a virus, no protection will have worked. Being careful about the websites we visit is also advised. If you click through to something sketchy, leave immediately by closing down your browser and run a full scan. It may be too late but it might help. If you think you may have been infected, do not log into your bank or other sensitive sites until you are virus free once more.
I have never had any issues with viruses on my way on my computer since installing Microsoft security essentials. I believe and trust that it is one of the best antivirus is out there. A lot of people once they get Microsoft security essentials on the computer, they tend to stop scanning their computer. I usually scan my computer is Once every two weeks. I usually go for the full scan and that generally gives me some results every once in a while and I catch malicious viruses that are in my computer. I would recommend regular scanning for anyone.
Even though you don't have many important documents on your computer, it's still important to have an anti-virus program installed. A free program such as AVG, or Malwarebytes Anti-Malware is the minimum requirements, but you may experience some infections, like the ones you mentioned.. You still get viruses from browsing the web and there's no telling what they could do to your machine or other computers/devices connected to your network. Purchasing a good Anti-virus also saves you money in the long run because you won't have to pay somebody 30 dollars each time something happens to your computer. Certain viruses screw up your computer so much that you're better off wiping the hard drive and reinstalling Windows, and that will cost you more than 30 dollars. Think about it, if you buy an anti-virus program such as McAfee, Norton or Kaspersky with a 1-year subscription for 60 to 70 dollars, that's around the same amount you'd pay to get your computer repaired twice, yet you'll be getting an entire year of protection. But, I've been using AVG and Malwarebytes Anti-Malware for several years and I haven't run into any issues. I am also considering purchasing a good antivirus now.
Why on earth did you click on something which you knew to be malwayre? However, more often than not this is the issue surrounding malwayre and viruses getting past the things set in place to prevent them. All the firewalls and programs in the world mean nothing against simple human error. In other words, you can have all the best security in the world, but if you, or someone using your computer actively goes out of their way to circumvent this security because, "but they said I'll win an iPad!" then don't complain when your security fails.
