If you haven’t heard of Antivirus XP 2008, consider yourself one of the lucky ones. The name itself sounds quite familiar. Antivirus is supposed to be a good thing, after all, and most of us are familiar with Windows XP. Unfortunately, this is not an antivirus or a Microsoft Corporation product. This rogue antivirus is another form of malware that is wreaking havoc on computer systems around the world. It can take the name of Antivirus XP 2008, Antivirus XP 2009, System Antivirus 2008, System Antivirus 2009, Antivirus 2008 Pro, XPAntivirus or Vista Antivirus. All of these are Trojan infections that have invaded your computer.
How did I get this?
Most of these infections come from hidden downloads. Visiting untrustworthy websites will exploit security holes in your browser to install these programs without your knowledge. Make sure the websites you visit are trustworthy. Before clicking a link in an email, consider the source. Also, consider if this is the type of message you normally receive from this source. If a website tells you that it requires a certain video player or other app to view media, go directly to the source to download the media player. Open a separate browser window or a new tab and type the name of the website (for example, Adobe.com for flash player). Never install a file from a location you are not sure of.
Signs that you have Antivirus XP 2008 or a variant
1. An antivirus opens every time you start the computer warning of multiple infections and you never installed this antivirus
-After closing the antivirus, it will keep opening repeatedly
-There is no way to remove antivirus from Add/Remove Programs
2. Your desktop wallpaper has been changed
-may appear to be a red hazard alert or a blue background with a yellow alert
-it may look like an open antivirus window, but it’s actually your desktop and it’s not clickable
3. A window that looks like the Windows XP security screen opens in control panel, but it recommends that you download specific antivirus software.
4. A screen saver resembling a blue screen of death appears.
5. The computer is suddenly very slow, tasks take much longer
6. When you try to go to a web address, your browser is being redirected to another website
removal instructions
Antivirus XP 2008 creates files with random names and various registry entries. The best option to remove them is a program called Malwarebytes’ Anti-Malware. Download the program from malwarebytes.org. Next, install the program by double clicking on the executable file that was downloaded. Follow the default instructions during the installation. The program should start automatically at the end of the installation. Choose to perform a quick scan and click the scan button. The scan may take several minutes depending on the number of files on your computer. When the analysis is finished, click the ‘Show Results’ button. A panel will appear with all discovered infected files. Click the ‘Delete Selected’ button to remove the infected files and clean the registry. Your computer should be free of Antivirus XP 2008 after these steps.
