Problem (second part)

Well, yesterday and today have sure been fun: I spent most of yesterday trying to fix the virus and today re-installing the software on my computer

A couple of days ago, I noticed that whenever I did a Google search and clicked on a result, I would get re-directed to some other site (normally spam sites, but occasionally legitimate sites too). I dismissed it as a bug at first (completely the wrong thing to do!), but when the problem persisted the next day, followed by all sorts of other errors, I became worried.

I asked Dad for help (he works in engineering, and to say he is "very good" with computers is an understatement), and we found out that my computer had been infected with something called the "Google Redirect Virus". Essentially, it is a piece of malware that gets onto the system, and as its name implies it hijacks parts of the system to redirect Google search results to random sites (although it does affect other search engines as well). It is mainly an annoyance, but over time it also causes the computer to slow down.

We downloaded several piece of software including tools specifically designed to combat this specific piece of malware; however, nothing we used worked to remove it. Despite reading comments from people who claimed that these programs did the trick, we found them all to be a waste of time. Ultimately, I decided to go with a plan that would remove the malware: wipe the C:\ drive and re-install the software. I ensured that all my important files were backed up.

Dad and I wiped the entire hard drive this morning, not just the C:\ partition. By lunchtime Windows 7 plus the anti-virus/anti-malware systems had all been re-installed and upgraded, and I spent the rest of the afternoon re-installing the software on my computer. Not everything is back on the computer yet, but everything important has been restored. As a consequence of wiping the hard drive and re-installing the operating system, the malware has been removed.

I can think of better ways to have spent the weekend, but it is my own fault: I had not updated my computer's anti-virus for quite some time. My brother had told me that the protections were out of date, but I did not do anything about it. Not to worry: I certainly will not be making that mistake again!