A story of a frazzled father-in-law, an infected PC, and a lesson on why we should all be concerned about Malware...

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Since the first computer viruses entered the scene, shock and horror swept across all computer users, especially those connected to the internet. We all raced to buy Norton's products (and made them quite rich doing so). Next was the fear of hackers that exploded with high-speed internet connections. Windows updated their operating system to include a firewall; anti-virus programs began adding firewalls to their suites.

I've noticed that PC users at least understand viruses and maybe the need for a firewall. Most wouldn't dream of using a computer without virus protection, and most computers now are connected through a router (which usually includes a built-in firewall). However malware is the newer kid on the block, although not as new as some think.

If you're a PC user, you need to be aware of malware and how to fight it off. You need to beware of the extremely tricky and convincing methods used to catch you off guard and unwittingly infect your own system.

Fake Software:

My father-in-law called me Saturday saying his computer was infected with a virus and asking for help. He brought over his computer and here are some images that I saw:

Fake security warning

Another fake warning. Your PC is, indeed, infected, but by the very program pretending to want to protect you!

Don't buy it!

Here's the rogue program. Again, don't buy it!

I immediately suspected this was phony, since I've never seen anantivirus program disallowing the user to do anything without updating or running a scan. I did some research and found that Antivir Pro is malware.  How did the computer become infected? It's not difficult for web-hacking designers to come up with ways to display a popup box that looks like a genuine Windows screen. It may tell you you're infected or have a potential problem. It may tell you of the need to complete a free scan. There are numerous scenarios that may trick you into installing their software.

What's the point? They want your credit card information so you can "buy their software" which gets rid of the annoying messages. Do not under any circumstances purchase any updates simply because of nuisance messages or errors.

Here are a few tips on avoiding malware and what to do if your computer becomes infected:

1. If you're ever given a security alert or "infected" alert, don't click anything; instead, immediately close your web browser (Internet Explorer,Firefox, etc.).
2. If you suspect problems, close all programs immediately and run your antivirus / malware detection program. Don't follow automatic prompts from a website to do so; find it yourself in your program (i.e. Start-->Programs-->Norton or McAfee or AVG or whatever).
3. Run a full system scan.
4. Know that trusted websites can be infected without the site owner even knowing (note: this is why I pay the equivalent of a mortgage payment for Clearly Media's dedicated web server, where we host our site and all our clients' sites. Our firewall is fully managed and monitored 24/7 so this won't happen to our clients or to us).
5. Be sure you have not only antivirus / firewall programs, but a malware-fighting program as well.

If You're Stuck Like I Was:

I wasn't able to do anything on my father-in-law's computer. I couldn't run a scan or even open a web browser. The fake anti-virus program actually tried to trick his web-browser when I attempted to download anti-malware software.

I used another computer to research Antivir Pro and immediately found a number of links. If you find yourself stuck, Google is your friend. Most valid help articles will offer both a manual removal solution and a software download. It helps their credibility to offer both a manual "do it yourself" solution as well as software they may offer. Cross check any help articles to validate its credibility.

I ended up finding out that a favorite PC program of mine actually removes Antivir Pro. I put the infected computer in safemode by tapping F2 while it restarted, I enabled networking mode, then I downloaded MalwareBytes (free edition) from CNET.com.

Why didn't I download it from the Malwarebytes website? Good question. The link to download it from the Malwarebytes site wasre-directing me to a phony site due to the infected files.

After downloading and installing Malwarebytes, I updated the software and ran a quick scan. This allowed me to remove some of the infected files and restart the computer normally.

Next I had my father-in-law run a full system scan overnight to remove any remnant of the rogue program. He's back up and running and hopefully that'll be the last we hear of the phony Antivir Pro.

Finally, if you really want to avoid this kind of thing, buy a Mac. (Sorry, I just couldn't resist).

DISCLAIMER: I do not have any professional or personal relationship to Malwarebytes or CNET and receive no commission or any other compensation for recommending their sites/programs.