Viruses have become a direct route to quick/easy money by hackers and thieves alike. By confusing end-users into thinking that they are more infected than they actually are, viruses manage to extract money from innocent computer users that they most likely will never see again. That being said, in this article I would like to provide some basic information about these threats in order to build awareness in general computer users.
First, if a message or pop-up on your computer asks for money, you should always do research before doing anything. In fact, a safe habit would be to never send money online unless you're on a trusted website that you know is legitimate from experience. This should be in the back of your mind as you approach the rest of the information in this article.
To provide a brief overview, viruses can affect all sorts of levels of functionality on a computer. The viruses I am addressing in this article inform the end-user that their computer is infected with viruses that are not actually present (other than the virus itself!) in order to cause panic. The end-user is offered a solution for some amount of money, which will provide them with nothing in the long-run except for a continuation of the virus they already have. This is not a virus cleaning
If a virus is named for a specific function, it is more than likely fake. Viruses are not usually named by the specific thing that they target, so if a pop-up informs you that an "identity.theft.virus" has infected your computer, it is most likely fake. Some of these virus names are very comical, so approach them with a sense of humor for the best results.
"Many viruses now falsely tell users that their hard drive is dying or another hardware problem is present," said a representative from a Southfield computer repair shop. In my years of experience, I've very rarely, if ever, experienced an accurate assessment of hardware condition from within the operating system. If the errors are very specific, it's probably a fraud. Even further, if something has misspellings or just plain doesn't look right, it's also probably illegitimate.
While there are plenty of other ways that viruses affect computers today, this is probably the most common way that I've witnessed in my line of work. The most important thing is to be careful whenever something unfamiliar pops up on your computer. If you get infected, do not panic and immediately shut off your computer and take it to a trusted computer repair store. You risk losing money and time if you attempt to fix something you're not comfortable with. In future articles, I'll address safe-surfing habits to avoid viruses altogether.
I have been a technician for over 10 years, focusing on efficient, easy-to-understand computer repair. I strive for people to have at least a minor conceptual grasp of how their computers work in order to permit the best possible computing experience. I currently perform computer repair for a company in the Metro Detroit area.