online virus scan?

[tali122]

a general question- if you suspect something nasty on your pc - what is your first port of call?- i would assume it is an online virus scan?- and if it shows all clear, is it the gospel truth- can you put your feet up and safely relax?
thanks

[boobesque]

pretty safe to assume all is clear as long as it is a respectable anti virus company (norton/mcafee). relying on these though is a bad idea. if you had picked up a virus what then? most, if not all, anti virus software protects your computer from becoming infected in the first place. AVG is a free anti-virus programme which is very respectable indeed. here is the link..

http://www.grisoft.com/doc/40/lng/us/tpl/tpl01

please for your own good install and use this software

[BillyNoMates]

Hijackthis is a utility which is always my first port of call.

Followed by some decent anti-virus, Spyware and Adware tools. Suggest AVG or Avast, Spywareblaster and Spybot and Adaware for the above. Clean the machine, ensure there's a decent firewall and that everything is kept up to date.

[dodgyshirt]

In other words, if you are depending upon reactive rather than proactive solutions, ther is no way you can 'put your feet up and relax'.