How Do I Get Rid of a Trojan

Recently, Windows Live Messenger users have been the target of a Trojan that installs a bot on the host computer. Windows Live Messenger user will receive a zip file called “pics”. The file is actually an exe (executable) file that will install a bot.

Just Don’t Click

This Trojan will send the bot file to other users in the contacts list of Windows Live Messenger. Normally you can trust a file from a person on your contact list, but no more. By the way, the same goes for email–don’t click attachments unless your are sure of the source.

Trojan: A destructive program that masquerades as a benign application.
source: Webopedia.com

Once the file is clicked, a bot is installed on the host computer. The bot will will turn the host computer into an email spam machine. This bot is hard to detect. In fact, Norton, Spybot, and Ad-aware are not able to detect of delete the bot. You may not notice anything until your ISP sends a notice that there is an unusually high amount of outbound email traffic.

bot: Short for robot, a computer program that runs automatically.
source: Webopedia.com

How to Get Rid of a Trojan

If you have a bot, do a little research on the internet. You may be able to remove the bot fairly easily. Some bots a inbeded deep in the operating system and in the registry and may be difficult to remove.

Note: If you get the Windows Live Messenger Trojan, notify all your contacts that they may be infected.

The best way to delete a Trojan, after running any anti-virus software, or trying to remove the bot, is to wipe the hard drive and reload the system. Reloading the computer is a major job but it is the only way to fully ensure that the Trojan/bot is gone.

When I work on a computer that is infected with a bot, I will:

• Back up the hard drive/data
• Check the back up to ensure it is good
• Wipe the hard drive at least once
• Install the operating system and programs

This method ensures that the bot is completely gone. Take this opportunity to clean the inside of your computer and update the BIOS and update your programs.

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