If your computer starts running slow – I mean reeeeeeal slow – all of a sudden that means your computer has a virus infection, right?

Not necessarily.

Twice in the past week I’ve checked out client computers and identified exactly why their computer was running slower than an old car on a freezing winter morning; they had two different antivirus products installed. A customer this morning had three different internet security products installed.

When I uninstalled the extra antivirus programs and left the computer with just one internet security product, the computer sped right up. Instantly.

With antispyware protection and antivirus products more is not better. Not at all. Less is more. And none at all is bad.

So the next time you notice your computer is running slow check and make sure the parking brake is released; that is to say make sure you’re computer has just one antivirus product installed.

With Thanksgiving upon us let’s all reflect on everything we have to be thankful for.

Let’s count our sanity as one of the most important things.

How do you keep your sanity? Keep track of your passwords.

Every single day – without exception – I encounter at least one user who is forced to scramble for their password to login to a website and they end up stuck. Sometimes permanently. More often than not they are forced to do a password reset which fails roughly half the time because the user doesn’t remember the answer to their security question, doesn’t have access to an older email address, etc.

When that happens it’s game over. No access to email. Or online banking. Or their favorite online game. It’s game over.

All of this wastes time and builds frustration — needlessly!

The answer? Simple? Keep track of your passwords. Doing this is so fast and so easy it’ll amaze you.

Just create a Word file, Excel spreadsheet or just a plain notepad document and save it to your desktop. In this file you’ll put your various website login usernames and passwords. The end result? The next time you need to look up any given website login, you’ll have that information in just a few seconds with a couple of mouse click.

I’m breaking the magician’s code here by showing you exactly how to remove spyware or clean up virus infections from your computer all by yourself.

That’s right friends and neighbors I’m revealing my very best tactics for cleaning up malware and removing pop up infections on your own.

I’m giving away – for free – the precise methods I have used hundreds of times and have charged hundreds of dollars for.

These are the same methods every “computer guy” uses to remove spyware from your computer and charges you good money for.

Why am I doing this? Call me a philanthropist. If you want to say thanks and show your appreciation, go ahead and click on any of the PC Tools Internet Security banners on this page or the Spyware Doctor links below. I get a tiny commission on every copy sold.

And now – On With the Show!

Spyware Removal and Malware Cleanup – A DIY Guide

The Accompaniment to Our Do-It-Yourself Instructional Video

Remember – Your infected computer is the battleground. Winning the war to liberate your PC from malware infections is achieved only with patience AND persistence.

Pre-Strike Preparations

Step 1 – Change the Rules of the Game

Before we begin the all-out assault on the malware infecting your computer the very first thing we need to do is start your computer in Safe Mode with Networking.

What is Safe Mode? Simply stated Safe Mode with Networking is Windows in “lockdown” – only the most essential Windows components are loaded — basic video (which explains why your screen may look EXTRA LARGE), no audio, no printers, and most importantly – NO INFECTIONS (usually)! That’s because the spyware infections plaguing your computer ordinarily don’t load either! And that’s how we change the rules of the game — the infections are designed to run interference to your efforts to remove them. Booting into safe mode with networking does an end-run move and turn things around – in your favor!

With most – if not all infections – now dormant on your machine, you will encounter very little active resistance to your malware removal activities.

Windows plays it “safe” and loads just enough system modules to provide rudimentary functionality. Safe Mode was designed for situations like yours where diagnostics, troubleshooting and system repairs need to be made.

So how do we boot into safe mode? To do this reboot or turn on your computer.

When you see the “opening” screen – that is to say the first screen you see when your computer first starts, start tapping the F8 key every second. The F8 key is located on the very top row of keys on your keyboard which are numbered F1-F12.

You are going to tap the F8 repeatedly – once per second – until you see a screen that looks like this:

Tap the down arrow key until Safe Mode with Networking is selected then hit ENTER.

Your computer screen may look a little crazy with lots of fast-moving text but don’t worry – that’s a normal part of booting a computer in safe mode.

PLEASE NOTE — Trying to remove spyware and virus infections without being in safe mode is almost always a waste of your time.

That’s because the infections plaguing your computer are ‘active’ and thus are much, much more difficult – usually impossible – to remove.

Step 2 – Narrow the Geography of Your “Search and Destroy” Mission

Since we will be performing full system scans of your computer to seek out and slaughter every single instance of infection on your computer it’s going to be a huge time saver to first clean out old, temporary files as well as system files that are longer needed. Cleaning out these files first could save an hour of your time with each full system scan you may need to do.

To do that we’ll download and install CCleaner

Go ahead and run the “Clean” option to remove hundreds and thousands of files your computer just doesn’t need. Bonus? We could very well flush some of your infections along with the clean up making our job that much easier.

By the way — cleaning your computer like this is the first half of a comprehensive PC Tune-Up. At the end of your spyware removal session we’ll perform the other half of the PC Tune-Up to insure your computer is running optimally.

Your Arsenal

The Nuclear Option – PC Tools Spyware Doctor with AntiVirus (Their Internet Security product is also excellent and provides comprehensive PC protection)

Deploying PC Tools’ Spyware Doctor with Antivirus is the shortcut to success. After years of experience I can confidently say that PC Tools Internet Security or Spyware Doctor with Antivirus will cure almost any infection or at least contain brand new infections until a cure is discovered. On top of that, prevents most infections from happening in the first place.

At $39.95 it’s a very modest investment that will save you a lot of time and anguish now and in the future.

After downloading, installing and registering Spyware Doctor with AntiVirus run Smart Update then install all updates. If prompted for a reboot after updating go ahead and do so – and reboot into safe mode and run a Full System Scan. At the end of the scan Click on “Fix Checked” and Spyware Doctor will remove all infections for you.

Hit-and-Run Virus Removal Tactics

If you decide not to invest in Spyware Doctor or for very stubborn infections that even Spyware Doctor can’t remove here’s a list of tools you should run. All of them are free but be warned — the free versions, while effective in removing infections, don’t contain all of the features you’ll find a premium product. Such features include automatic updates, regularly scheduled automatic scans, etc. That means your job of removing infections will be more involved and time consuming on an ongoing basis.

In general – it’s best to use each of the tools below – in order of appearance – one at a time then see if all of your infections have been eliminated by rebooting your computer and see if it’s acting normally.
After using the first tool listed and rebooting your computer you notice there are still infections present, proceed to tool #2 then reboot and check again, then go with #3, and so on until the war is won.

1) Malware Bytes

This is an incredible free tool that will remove 99% of all infections after one full scan. Downside? Nothing is automatic so you need to run scans, check for updates, etc. on your own.

2) Super AntiSpyware

Upside – SuperAntiSpyware does a very good job of removing most spyware infections.

Downside – It’s sometimes impossible to install on an infected system. That’s why Malware Bytes should be used first. Malware Bytes will ‘soften things up’ a bit making it more likely you’ll be able to install Super AntiSpyware.

After Super AntiSpyware is installed, allow it to check for the latest updates then do a full system scan. Go ahead and have it remove any and all infections found.

3) Trend Micro System Cleaner

Note – you should already have completed step 4 and be in Safe Mode with Networking so naturally that step should be skipped.

Trend Micro’s free system cleaner works well on almost every type of infection out there.

Downside? It never truly “installs” on your computer therefore you’ll need to redownload and re-run it whenever you want to scan with it.

Peace After Wartime

Congratulations! You’ve won the war! Pour yourself a glass of champagne and take a sip.

But the celebrations shouldn’t start yet.

It’s time to repair system damage and then prevent future infections.
First – Run CCleaner again and go with the Registry Repair option. Your system will be scanned for all Registry Problems. Go ahead and repair all problems.

Then check Windows Updates and install any your system may need.

With that step complete your computer is now 100% tuned up and in the pink of health.

Phase Two – Time to strengthen your defenses.

Prevention being the strongest form of cure you need to be sure your computer is locked down to prevent future infections.

Without trying to sound repetitive here Spyware Doctor with AntiVirus is the very best way to go.

If you’re on a fixed budget and want to stick with free software then AVG Free Edition is a very respectable alternative.

Make sure you install AVG’s optional security toolbar. The AVG toolbar actually scans websites BEFORE you visit them to make sure they are infection free.

The AVG security toolbar in action

Following these steps exactly as given to you will make your computer virus-free for sure.