Security Alert – Conficker Worm
You have probably been hearing news that malicious code dubbed the Conficker-C Worm, also called Downadup or Kido, has been infecting computers over the last few months. Because this is a worm, anyone running a Windows operating system is vulnerable, and you don’t have to take any actions to download this worm (it is able to search for your computer and infect it without you clicking on anything).
What this worm does isn’t entirely clear. Some speculate that it will be used to create a botnet which will link millions of computers with malicious software to send SPAM, steal credit information, or collect other data. This can be very scary if you have private data on your computer, but don’t worry. There are some easy solutions to fixing this problem.
If you have a Mac, then this isn’t something that you need to worry about. This particular virus only targets computers running Windows. If you are running Windows, then there are some things you should check to see if you infected with Conficker:
- Check to see if Automatic Update has been disabled
- Go to your Control Panel ( should be on the right side of your start menu when you click the Start button).
- Select Security Center
- Select Automatic Updates
- Make sure that Automatic Update has been selected. If it hasn’t, then try to select it. If you are able to select Automatic Update successfully, then you may not be infected
- Make sure your Antivirus scanner is up to date, and run an Antivirus scan. Most of the Antivirus scanners on the market should be able to remove Conficker. If you do not have an Antivirus scanner on your computer, then you should definitely consider getting one. There are many scanners on the market. I recommend Norton Antivirus, McAfee Antivirus, or AVG Free Edition (for personal computers only).
- Try going to a security website such as www.symantec.com (the creators of Norton Anti-Virus)
- If you cannot access www.symantec.com, then you may be infected, if not, then you are probably safe.
If you try these, and you feel that you have reason to believe that you may be infected, then you should try to download the Symantec Conficker Removal Utility which will automatically remove the Conficker-C worm from your computer. Keep in mind, that if you have multiple computers running Windows on your network, and you have found one infected computer, then all the computers running Windows are at risk for being infected, and you will need to complete these steps on each PC.
If you are having problems downloading from the link provided, please let me know, and I will send you either an email containing the utility, or offer an alternate link for the file.
If you are not comfortable performing these actions, then please contact me, and we can set up an appointment for Virus Removal.
More info at www.symantec.com