Faster, PC! Clean! Clean!

24/7 PC Guard

Kristopher — Tue, 14 May 2013 12:56:29 +0000

24/7 PC Guard is a new type of fake antisypware program that is a little more difficult to remove than the usual junk like Win 7 Smart Defender Pro and Security Defender. The crooks behind this program are like all the others in that they want free money, but they also seem interested in just wreaking havoc on people’s computers. It’s not too fun to deal with.

24/7 PC Guard gets around the web as an attachment to ill-advised downloads, and it is being actively promoted on social networking and phony e-commerce websites. In general, you don’t have to be a tech expert to recognize that this program is up to no good, but getting rid of it is another matter.

Just to be clear, 24/7 PC Guard does not actually do anything beneficial for your computer. All its scans and warnings are fake, and it’s just trying to scare you so you’ll hand over your credit card info.

Want to cut this scam short? Follow these steps to completely remove 24/7 PC Guard for free.

Remove 24/7 PC Guard Now

Download Spyware Doctor

Read our review
.

Delete 24/7 PC Guard registry entries:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce “[random numbers and chars]”

Delete 24/7 PC Guard files:

%CommonAppData%\[random numbers and chars]\
%CommonAppData%\[random numbers and chars]\[random numbers and chars]
%CommonAppData%\[random numbers and chars]\[random numbers and chars].exe
%CommonAppData%\[random numbers and chars]\[random numbers and chars].ico

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Windows Essentials Pro 2013

Kristopher — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 17:29:25 +0000

Everything about the design of Windows Essentials Pro 2013—a new fake antispyware program—is calculated to make people think that it is a legitimate, Microsoft-endorsed security program with useful features. Of course, as you can probably tell, it’s nothing of the sort. It’s just another phony program made to scam people like you and me out of our hard-earned money.

As soon as this program gets into your computer—probably through a misleading website or an ill-advised illegal download—it starts sending waves of popups aimed at sending you into panic mode. They show fake system scans and frightening-looking warnings, one after the other, to try to convince you your PC could basically explode at any minute. That’s when they spring the payment screen on you. Obviously, you shouldn’t give these guys your credit card information.

Sadly, this program just doesn’t want to leave your computer and will do everything it can to stay, but I can take you through the basic steps for removing Windows Essentials Pro 2013 easily and for free.

Remove Windows Essentials Pro 2013 Now

Download Spyware Doctor

Read our review
.

Delete Windows Essentials Pro 2013 registry entries:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce “[random numbers and chars]”

Delete Windows Essentials Pro 2013 files:

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System Care Antivirus

Kristopher — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 14:05:52 +0000

System Care Antivirus is part of a never-ending series of fake antispyware programs that all offer slight variations on the hot pink design and the faux-frightening alerts and warnings. You don’t have to be a computer genius to see that System Care Antivirus and its brethren are fake, but that doesn’t make them any easier to remove.

System Care Antivirus gets around the internet through phony promotional websites, social-networking links, and trojans attached to torrent downloads. If you got this pest on your computer, it’s probably because someone was visiting some shady internet neighborhoods or downloading something they shouldn’t have touched. In any case, having a good antispyware program like Spyware Doctor could have prevented the infection in the first place.

But now that you have this infection, there are really only two things you can do. One is get Spyware Doctor or one of the other actual security programs and run a full system scan in Safe Mode With Networking. The other is to go into your PC’s innards and remove all the bad files one by one, along with the registry entries. Obviously, this is only for advanced PC users.

Ready to purge your PC manually? Here’s how to completely get rid of System Care Antivirus for free.

Remove System Care Antivirus Now

Download Spyware Doctor

Read our review
.

Delete System Care Antivirus registry entries:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce “[random numbers and chars]”

Delete System Care Antivirus files:

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AVASoft Antivirus Professional

Kristopher — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 14:50:52 +0000

Anyone who has had to deal with AVASoft Antivirus Professional knows that it is anything but professional. The program is a fake, and it doesn’t even do a good job of hiding this fact. From the start, it bombards you with a lot of obnoxious popups that go beyond anything a legitimate program would do, and when it starts asking for your credit card information, any reasonably intelligent person will know recognize the hallmarks of a pushy scam.

Yes, AVASoft Antivirus Professional is an obvious fake, but that doesn’t make it any easier to remove. Like other programs of its ilk, it digs in to your computer and refuses to budge. You can’t even remove it through the usual Add/Remove Programs process. It resists anything but (1) removal by an actual antispyware program like Spyware Doctor, and (2) manual removal.

And just in case you haven’t figured it out yet, nothing that AVASoft Antivirus Professional tells you is true. All those warnings and alerts might look scary, but they have have no basis in reality. These crooks are just trying to scare you into paying for nothing.

If you are not ready to get a security program and have some skill with tech stuff, you can completely remove AVASoft Antivirus Professional by following the steps below.

Remove AVASoft Antivirus Professional Now

Download Spyware Doctor

Read our review
.

Delete AVASoft Antivirus Professional registry entries:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce “[random numbers and chars]”

Delete AVASoft Antivirus Professional files:

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Win 7 Smart Defender Pro

Kristopher — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 17:24:57 +0000

If you have Windows and don’t run any sort of security program, you’re bound to get an infection like Win 7 Smart Defender Pro sooner or later. The people behind fake antispyware like this program have gotten pretty darn good at spreading their products around, and even smart PC users are vulnerable to this junk. So if you have this pest on your computer, don’t feel too bad. It happens.

Still, Win 7 Smart Defender Pro is extremely annoying. In case you haven’t figured it out yet, this program is indeed completely fake. It has no actual function whatsoever. It exists solely to scam you, and it does this by imitating an actual antispyware program, showing lots of phony alerts and warnings, and then asking for money to “fix” all the problems it supposedly detects. It’ll take your money, but the money will go down a black hole, never to be seen again, and you obviously won’t get a full version of the software, because the full version doesn’t exist.

The best way to stave off these infections is to run an actual security program like Spyware Doctor. Of course, it’s too late for you if you’re already getting these Win 7 Smart Defender Pro popups, but the fact that you have this infection is a sign that maybe it’s time to do something about your PC’s security. But for now, you can follow the steps below to manually remove Win 7 Smart Defender Pro for free.

Remove Win 7 Smart Defender Pro Now

Download Spyware Doctor

Read our review
.

Delete Win 7 Smart Defender Pro registry entries:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce “[random numbers and chars]”

Delete Win 7 Smart Defender Pro files:

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Vista Smart Defender Pro

Kristopher — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 14:51:44 +0000

Vista Smart Defender Pro is part of a large new family of fake antispyware programs designed to scare innocent Windows users into paying for software that doesn’t work. If you’re seeing lots of popups and alerts on your PC and some of the windows are called Vista Smart Defender Pro, that’s a clear sign that your computer has been infected with this junk.

Getting rid of Vista Smart Defender Pro and its ilk is not easy. If it were as simple as using your Add/Remove Programs wizard, then these crooks would not be in business. Unfortunately, the program will cling to your hard drive and refuse to leave until you take serious action to remove it.

Ideally, you would have an actual antispyware program in place to block this junk before it even enters. But obviously you did not do that, which means other actions are needed. You can still get a good antispyware program like Spyware Doctor and run a full scan, preferably in Safe Mode With Networking. If you don’t want to do that, though, and are an advanced PC user, you can follow the steps below to manually remove Vista Smart Defender Pro.

Remove Vista Smart Defender Pro Now

Download Spyware Doctor

Read our review
.

Delete Vista Smart Defender Pro registry entries:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce “[random numbers and chars]”

Delete Vista Smart Defender Pro files:

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FBI Cybercrime Division ransomware

Kristopher — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 15:59:24 +0000

Having your computer taking over by an ugly-looking FBI CyberCrime Division popup can be pretty frightening if you take it at face value, but fortunately this thing is just a fairly uncreative malware scam and has no real connection to the FBI. If you have this thing on your computer, you are not in any trouble, and the FBI is not actually controlling your computer. It is worrying that this malware infection was able to get into your computer, but we can deal with that.

If you get this infection, you’ll see a popup window with text that starts like this:

Attention! Your PC is blocked due at least one of the reasons specified below.

If you read on, you’ll see a lot of poorly written text about supposed crimes committed on your PC, with some nonsensical legalese thrown in to make it look legitimate. Don’t listen to any of it.

The main goal of this infection, obviously, is to get you to click on that MoneyPak link and pay money to get your computer unblocked. It is true that the program will give you access again if you pay, but that doesn’t strike me as a good solution. I don’t know about you, but I prefer not to give money to bad people.

Fortunately, there is a way to get rid of this FBI CyberCrime Division thing without spending any money. Here’s what to do.

Remove FBI Cybercrime Division ransomware Now

Download Spyware Doctor

Read our review
.

Delete FBI Cybercrime Division ransomware registry entries:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce “[random numbers and chars]”

Delete FBI Cybercrime Division ransomware files:

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Disk Antivirus Professional

Kristopher — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 17:03:36 +0000

Disk Antivirus Professional is not really an antivirus program, and it’s certainly not professional. At best, it’s a well-put-together scam, but even that is questionable because it is essentially a clone of a few dozen identical scams that have come before. These crooks are stuck in the mid-2000s with their tactics, but I guess they wouldn’t keep releasing this junk if it didn’t bring in a profit.

The main thing you need to know about Disk Antivirus Professional is that it does nothing. It shows a lot of flashy popups and pretends to scan your PC, but this is basically just a clever animation. No matter how real it looks, nothing’s going on behind the curtain.

That this program got into your PC at all is cause for concern. Most people are able to avoid these things by having a good antispyware program that is constantly running in the background. This infection is a sign that either your antispyware isn’t running or you don’t have one at all.

If you’re reluctant to download something to zap this pest, I can take you through the manual removal instructions, outlined below, but for the future you might want to make sure your PC is fully protected.

Remove Disk Antivirus Professional Now

Download Spyware Doctor

Read our review
.

Delete Disk Antivirus Professional registry entries:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce “[random numbers and chars]”

Delete Disk Antivirus Professional files:

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Security Defender

John — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 17:28:15 +0000

The program pictured here is actually not the first fake antispyware called Security Defender—it seems to be a popular name among the people who make this junk—but it is the nastiest one to date. According to the reports, it essentially takes over your entire system, prevents you from using your browser, and attempts to browbeat you into handing over your credit card information.

Of course, as you’ve probably guessed, Security Defender does not do any of the things it claims to do. It’s just a cleverly designed virus, basically, made to look like a legitimate Windows program so that people will be more likely to trust it. I hope you didn’t fall into that trap.

These programs can be removed with a good, real antispyware program like Spyware Doctor, but of course the fact that you have this pest means you probably weren’t running a real security program in the first. That’s definitely something you should do in the future. For now, though, it is possible to remove Security Defender for free by following these steps (which are not for tech beginners).

Remove Security Defender Now

Download Spyware Doctor

Read our review
.

Delete Security Defender registry entries:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.exe “(Default)” = “”
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\pcdfdata
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\.exe\shell\open\command “(Default)” = “”%CommonAppData%\pcdfdata\.exe” /ex “%1″ %*”
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run “pcdfsvc” = “%CommonAppData%\pcdfdata\.exe /min”

Delete Security Defender files:

%AllUsersProfile%\Desktop\Security Defender.lnk
%CommonAppData%\pcdfdata\
%CommonAppData%\pcdfdata\[random].exe
%CommonAppData%\pcdfdata\app.ico
%CommonAppData%\pcdfdata\config.bin
%CommonAppData%\pcdfdata\defs.bin
%CommonAppData%\pcdfdata\support.ico
%CommonAppData%\pcdfdata\uninst.ico
%CommonAppData%\pcdfdata\vl.bin
%CommonStartMenu%\Programs\Security Defender\
%CommonStartMenu%\Programs\Security Defender\Remove Security Defender.lnk
%CommonStartMenu%\Programs\Security Defender\Security Defender Help and Support.lnk
%CommonStartMenu%\Programs\Security Defender\Security Defender.lnk

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Smart Security

Kristopher — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 21:38:00 +0000

The program that calls itself Smart Security might be smart, but it has nothing to do with security. In fact, despite all appearances, it is a scam program that does nothing but try to scam you while destabilizing your system and making it vulnerable to further infections. In other words, you do not want this junk on your PC.

Smart Security displays a lot of popups designed to give the impressions that it’s a real program and that it is detecting all sorts of problems with your PC. These are supposed to scare you so that you’ll be more willing to give them your credit card to pay for the nonexistent full version. If you let it get that far, there is no way to get your money back, and you get nothing in return.

The only foolproof way to protect against these infections, which spread through various channels, is to have a good antispyware program such as Spyware Doctor running at all times. Since that obviously didn’t work for you in this case, you might want to double check to make sure you have an antispyware program and that it’s running correctly.

For advanced PC users, it is possible to remove programs like Smart Security manually. If you want to give it a try, here’s what to do.

Remove Smart Security Now

Download Spyware Doctor

Read our review
.

Delete Smart Security registry entries:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\.exe “(Default)” = ”
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\.exe\shell\open\command “(Default)” = “%LocalAppData%\.exe” -a “%1″ %*
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\ “(Default)” = ‘Application’
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\\DefaultIcon “(Default)” = ‘%1′
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\\shell\open\command “(Default)” = “%LocalAppData%\.exe” -a “%1″ %*
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.exe\shell\open\command “(Default)” = “%LocalAppData%\.exe” -a “%1″ %*
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ah\shell\open\command “(Default)” = “%LocalAppData%\.exe” -a “%1″ %*
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ah\shell\open\command “IsolatedCommand”
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\StartMenuInternet\FIREFOX.EXE\shell\open\command “(Default)” = “”%LocalAppData%\.exe -a “C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe”"
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\StartMenuInternet\FIREFOX.EXE\shell\safemode\command “(Default)” = “”%LocalAppData%\.exe” -a “C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe” -safe-mode”
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\StartMenuInternet\IEXPLORE.EXE\shell\open\command “(Default)” = “”%LocalAppData%\.exe” -a “C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\iexplore.exe”"

Delete Smart Security files:

%CommonAppData%\
%LocalAppData%\
%LocalAppData%\.exe
%Temp%\
%AppData%\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Templates\

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