How to Stop a Virus in Windows - Identifying when a problem exists

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While many infections become noticeable right away, a good many others remain undetected because users don't know what to look for.  There are a few basic warning signs that indicate that your computer may be infected. 

• Frequent pop-ups and unwanted advertisements.
• A change in your browser's home page or search pages.
• Poor system performance such as slow starting programs, programs that frequently hang, frequent system crashes, and slow start up and shutdown.
• Frequent hard drive activity or frequently seeing the "hourglass" cursor while the system is idle.
• Unusually slow Internet connection speeds.
• Apparent network traffic while you are not actively browsing the Internet.
• Web pages that are slow to load and then appear all at once.
• Unknown icons or shortcuts appearing in your system tray, desktop, or start menu.
• New buttons or toolbars appearing in your browser.
• The inability to load specific web sites that you know exist.
• The inability to run specific programs, specifically antivirus or anti-spyware programs.
• Frequent unknown error messages suggesting either invalid memory access or that your system has an infection. 

While some of these indicators can have other logical explanations, experiencing two or more of these at the same time is usually a good sign of an infection.

Troubleshooting these symptoms can be a full time job.  There are a number of reasons why you may experience some of these symptoms that aren't directly related to malware or viruses.

If you are unsure, get other opinions.  There are a number of forums on the Internet where experienced users get together and share ideas.  These are usually very productive places to get answers.  The forum on ASP Free's sister site, Dev Hardware, is one such community.

Now that you know the warning signs, let's take a look at how to identify and stop an infection.

Next: Identifying rogue processes >>
 

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