How dreadful is it to visit a website only to have your computer infected with Anti-Virus Live or another fake or rogue fake antivirus malware program. Anti-Virus Live looks just like an antivirus program but is infact a virus itself. This type of rogueware infects your computer through security holes either in your Windows operating system or more commonly through your Internet browser like Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox. It can be almost impossible to avoid having your computer infected by this scareware even if you close the pop-ups or the window to the website itself.
Simply visiting the website is enough to have the rogueware infect your computer. Not only is this type of fake antivirus an annoyance it is also a security issue because these programs can scan your computer for sensitive information like credit card numbers or passwords. This information is stored and often sold to other criminals online. There are ways to protect yourself from these types of attacks like ensuring that your computer is optimized and up-to-date with Windows Update as well as having the latest patches or updated to your Internet browser but if your computer is already infected by a malware program like Anti-Virus Live there are steps you can take to remove the program from your computer and try to prevent it from happening in the future. Under no circumstances should you ever provide any information like your email address or credit card number to these types of programs. Any attempt by these programs to get your information is fraudulent.
The first thing you should try to do when removing Anti-Virus Live is run MRT as soon as possible after infection. A common feature of these types of malware programs is preventing users from opening any programs like real anti-virus software or Internet browsers as to force users to provide their credit card information to help remove the virus. Note that providing your credit card will not remove the virus. Run MRT (Malicious Removal Tool) by clicking on the “Start” button and typing “MRT” into the search box. Press “Enter” and run MRT as soon as possible.
If a few minutes or hours have passed since the infection has taken place then it may be impossible to open any programs that would help to remove the Anti-Virus Live or other fake antivirus programs. In this case, reboot your computer in “Safe Mode With Networking” and download a free antivirus program like AVG if the Microsoft Malicious Removal Tool (MRT) has not been successful in removing Anti-Virus Live. Besides AVG, MalwareBytes has also been shown to successfully remove Anti-Virus Live from infected computers. After running the security sweeps by these programs restart your computer to ensure that the virus has been successfully removed. To not continue regular computer use until you are certain the virus is removed to prevent the virus from stealing and transmitting your personal information.
How To Protect Yourself From AntiVirus Live Attacks
Microsoft suggests that you turn on Microsoft Firewall or another firewall program and keep it active while browsing the Internet. Also ensure your computer is up to date in regards to Microsoft Update as this will install security patches that Microsoft deems necessary to keep an optimized PC. Additionally, use caution when navigating to unknown websites and be weary of clicking on links that entail you having to download a program or install a brower add-on or widget from an untrusted source. These are common ways that users actively install programs like Anti-Virus Live.