Nine Signs that Your Computer is Infected With a Virus

It spies on you in secret, pumps your computer's resources, destroys your files, or bombards you with advertisements: the computer virus installs itself without your knowledge and sometimes lurks for years before being discovered ... However, certain signs can put you off flea in the ear.

1. Your Computer is Idling

A computer that suddenly becomes particularly slow may have been infected with a virus. But this is not sufficient proof. “Today, many applications are very resource-intensive,” says Thomas Roccia, IT security expert at McAfee. Internet browsers or… antiviruses are therefore among the most consuming programs. An overly full hard drive or an out of date system will also cause slowdowns.

2. Your Screen is Invaded By “pop-up” Windows When You Surf the Internet

If you are bombarded with adware popping up on your screen (pop-up), you are probably the victim of adware, adware abusive. “This type of malware is activated when you click on a link containing a piece of code,” explains Thomas Roccia. Subsequently, Internet browsing is transformed into a veritable firework display of pop-up advertising. More insidious, some adware sometimes automatically redirects normal internet pages like Google.fr to merchant sites.

3. The Mouse Moves On the Screen By Itself

If the little arrow is moving on the screen when you have not touched the mouse, it is a very bad sign: "It means that a hacker has infiltrated the computer and has taken control", warns Thomas Roccia. Usually, however, the hacker will make the infiltration more covert, by grabbing the webcam, listening through the microphone, or recording anything you type on the keyboard. "In this case, only an IT protection solution will be able to detect the suspicious file where this information is stored", explains Thomas Roccia.

4. Applications Close Unexpectedly

Do your apps crash for no reason or the screen freezes blue while watching a video? It may be the work of malware (malicious software). However, these malfunctions are also often linked to a technical problem, if for example, you have accidentally deleted from your computer a register allowing the program to run correctly, or if the application update is no longer compatible with your computer. operating system.

5. Your Friends Receive Emails From You that You Never Sent

If your friends are receiving messages sent from your email address or social media messages from your profile, your email has been hacked. In this case, you are strongly advised to change the password for your e-mail and all the services to which the e-mail address concerned is associated.

6. You Cannot Edit or Save a File

An error message such as "Cannot save the document because it has been modified or moved" appears when you want to close it. Variant: a message indicates that you do not have the necessary authorization to access your file. In either case, malware likely accessed the file without your knowledge. To check it, you just have to right-click on the file, go to > Read information and check when it was last modified or opened.

7. The Computer is Overheating

You should be worried about a computer with a fan running 24 hours a day and starting to heat up abnormally. First of all, because it damages components, which are very sensitive to heat, but also because it is often a sign that malware is draining all the resources of your computer. "In this case, it is sometimes hackers who mobilize computing resources from outside to undermine cryptocurrency for their benefit," warns Thomas Roccia.

8. Unknown Extensions Have Been Added To The Internet Browser

Some malware unwittingly installs web extensions that will collect your data to resell it for targeting advertising or disrupt your internet browsing. As a precaution, uninstall any applications that are not from a trusted software vendor.

9. A Recurring Error Message Tells You That Your Antivirus is Disabled

It's a shame: some malware is able to disable antivirus software so that it can no longer detect its activity. Recently, we discovered ransomware (software that ransomed you) called Snatch, which places a key in the registry of the operating system of PCs: this causes Windows to start in safe mode, that is to say - say without protection. A slightly more basic variant is all the rage right now: a message appears on the screen warning you that your computer is infected with a virus. You are then invited to call a hotline to get rid of it. "These are recurring scams in which the scammer(scammer) makes believe that your computer is infected and asks for a sum in exchange for its repair ”, describes Thomas Roccia.

The Best Antivirus is you!

Are you infected with a virus? Don't panic: antivirus is getting better and better at detecting and erasing malware.

“It is of course essential to use anti-malware software and to carry out periodic scans, but we must above all use common sense to ensure that we do not find an unusable computer,” emphasizes Thomas Roccia. Do not click on suspicious links, open unidentified email attachments, or download software from an unknown publisher