i am trying to clean my comp. of any possible viruses and malware that might be lurking.

i have avast and spybot search and destroy running in the background, but after an isolated incident of strange behaviour ( possibly the browser was hijacked) i was advised to run Dr. Web Cureit which found and got rid of a couple of trojans.

the computer is now working fine.

i have been looking on the web for ways to clean the computer and i found a site called "major geeks" which has a lot of advice devoted to cleaning windows.

it advises using 4 programmes (combofix, malwarebytes antimalware, MG tools, and superantispyware) to do once only scan sand remove anything it finds lurking.

it describes in great detail the procedures for using them but one or two of them seem a bit daunting for me ( i have little understanding of the terminology used or the workings of computers) and i wouldnt trust any of the local shops here to do it properly either.

are they worth using, or would it be overkill after the measures i have already taken.

i would do a format and reinstall , but i wouldnt know where to start.

thanks

I would suggest just to do a clean new installation. Not only to get out the last traces of old infections, it clear many other settings which let your computer slows down by the time of using.

First thing to do is to "wipe" your drive to really get out every traces. For to do so, there FREE tools available and one of them is Darik's Boot and Nuke (dban.sourceforge.net). Download the one you can create an bootable Media (CD/DVD/Diskette) and wipe all drives in question.

After done that, you'll need the Windows CD of that system you'll install: XP/Vista/Windows 7 or whatsoever. Boot from that CD and create a new partition and let do a full format with the build in tools of that OS. Finally let install that OS and the Application software later on.

Any question, just ask.

Cheers.

I had just placed some files on the TV download for to do "wiping" of data files and/or Storage drives:

Darik's Boot and Nuke 1.0.7 ISO Image + .EXE File

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Darik-s-Boot...age-t257965.html

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Darik-s-Boot...le-t257964.html

And No-File Recovery:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/File-Recovery-t257968.html

As a general rule, the less programs you have installed, the better. Only install programs you will actually use!

As far as software 'cleaners' are concerned, I'd be wary of them and not blindly follow recommendations you see throughout many sites and forums. For me personally, I've never used them, and I never will. I think they do more harm than good, besides, these cleaners leave behind quite a bit of junk... You can do it yourself, but it will require some basic computer skills and Windows 'know-how' to achieve this.

If you insist on using software, I'd recommend ccleaner. Out of all the cleaners out there, this one is highly regarded among novice as well as advanced users.

Perhaps the *best* cleaning solution is to format and reinstall (as Reimar suggested). If your system warrants such drastic action, there are many tutorials on how to do this. Just Google it.

I've heard of combofix, malwarebytes and superantispyware which are all legit and useful.

Ideally you should run HijackThis and post up the log for all the entries to be checked to see if you are clean. Unfortunately, checking all the entries via Google can be quite a long process, but is certainly quicker than reformatting.