Remove Trojan Infections From Your Computer With a Few Easy Steps

Remove Trojan Infections From Your Computer With a Few Easy Steps
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What Is a Trojan?

Successful removal of a Trojan requires several things. You will need to have an idea of the type of Trojan it is, how it got on your computer and the method of removal. However, you should also be aware of exactly what a Trojan is before you even start.

Understanding that these are infections that appear to be something they are not (such as “fakeware”, where an application purporting to perform a particular task is actually doing something malicious) is a step in the right direction; understanding why this type of malware is named after a Greek myth is also useful.

Dealing with Trojans: Manual vs. Automated Removal

There are different ways of dealing with Trojans, usually via an anti-virus or anti-malware utility. These tools are designed to detect and remove malware of this kind. It’s a good idea to have one ready, after all a Trojan on your system could be leaking personal data across the Internet to individuals or automated systems designed to farm usernames and passwords from your computer.

Understanding the principles of Trojan removal will prepare you for the rather time-intensive task of removing the infection from your computer, although you may just want to quarantine the malware. It depends on your situation.

Trojan Removal with Windows Security Tools

If you’re a Windows user (and let’s face it, the majority of Trojans are targeted at Windows computers) you should be aware of the various ways in which tools provided by Microsoft can be used to overcome Trojan infections.

For instance, you might have Windows Defender or Windows Live Scanner installed, and these tools can be used to detect and remove some Trojans. However your best bet – assuming the malware in the Trojan’s payload hasn’t disabled the facility – is to use the system recovery tool.

Top Removal Tools

If you’re not keen on the idea of manual removal (and this isn’t something for the faint-hearted) then you will probably be interested in finding and downloading a malware removal tool that can be used to get rid of a Trojan.

There are so many ways in which you can do this, mainly using tools such as Spyware Doctor or Malwarebytes’ Anti-Malware, although be aware that not all automatic removal tools are up to the task of removing all Trojans. For instance, HijackThis is designed to assist you in the removal of malicious software rather than perform the task itself.

Trojans Disguised as Cool Stuff

As you now know, Trojans are spread by appearing to be something they are not. The Trojan horse in Greek mythology looked like a gift but housed a squad of soldiers. These modern day Trojans resemble great stuff that we would like to have on our computers, such as free security suites, Facebook features and so on, but instead carry a sting in their tails.

Basic Trojan Removal

There are so many common Trojans that listing them all would take up pages and pages of space. All you need to know really is that they are all dangerous, providing a threat to the safety of your data and potentially your finances.

How you remove a Trojan depends on the software that you have access to, and the type of infection. You may find that your security software is prevented from working correctly by some Trojans, for instance. Often the removal of Trojans becomes a manual task…

Removal of Common Trojan Threats

Finding out that you have a Trojan that delivers an infection, such as Bat Virus or Boxed A, is extremely disappointing. Removing the infection from your computer at the earliest opportunity, however, is absolutely vital.

You might have the Win32 FlyStudio infection or the Trojan.Alwayup, or you might have a more generic malware presence on your computer, but the speed with which you deal with this will determine the damage that you have to suffer.

Get That Trojan Off My Computer!

Expedient removal of a Trojan can save your data, but it can also save time. For the best results you will need to have an Internet-connected phone, tablet or laptop at hand that you can use to access the web. Many Trojans carry Internet-breaking malware, or add entries to the hosts file preventing you from accessing search engines or websites that can provide a solution.

For manual (and in some cases automatic) removal you may find that you need to boot into Safe Mode for the clean-up to effectively remove the Trojan and its dangerous payload…

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