Malware

Malware

Malware, short for malicious software, is a software designed to secretly access a computer system without the owner's informed consent. The expression is a general term used by computer professionals to mean a variety of forms of hostile, intrusive, or annoying software or program code. Although malware can seem intimidating there are many free programs available to assists computer user's of all ability to take action against malware on their computer.

Useful Anti-Malware Software

Below are the two most common programs used at the ZipSupport center to seek out and remove malware on computers. Click on any link for further information about the specific program as well as a location on where it can be downloaded.

• MalwareBytes
• SUPERAntiSpyware

Steps to Remove Malware

Step One: Safe Mode or Rkill Software

In many cases malware controls the entire computer. This means that it can also prevent anti-malware programs from being installed or ran. Because of this, the first step is to kill the processes controlling the computer. This can be done by either booting the computer into Safe Mode or using the program Rkill.

The first step to removing any malware software is to boot the computer into Safe Mode. For instructions on how to boot the computer into Safe Mode please click the following Link Once you have corrected the problem, then you can reboot and Windows will load normally.

An alternative to Safe Mode is to run the program Rkill. This software will stop processes that are known to be associated with malware so that anti-malware programs can be installed and run. Please click on the Rkill link for further information on this software.

Step Two: Install and Run Anti-Malware Software

Now that the computer is in safe mode, you can install your antimalware software. For instructions on how to download/install or use the suggested anti-malware software please see [[[Useful Anti-Malware Software here]]]. Allow the program to run a complete scan so it can identify and remove any traces of malicious software.

Step Three: Reboot

After removing any potential threats to the computer, it is important to restart the computer and let it boot normally into windows. If the computer boots successfully and there are no signs of malware, continue your regular activities on your computer.

Malware Still Present After Reboot If there are issues caused by a malware programs that still persist after following these steps please contact the ZipSupport Center for further Assistance. Laptops can be brought to our walk-in center in Bierce Library room 52c. Desktops must be brought to the Computer Center building, located on the corner of Carrol Street and Wolf Ledges