XP Antivirus 2010 is Back – Removal Instruction

Back in the day (the mid 1960’s), I heard an old time College Football coach (Darryl Royal, of the University of Texas Longhorns) say, in answer to a question concerning his plans for an upcoming game, “we’ll dance with who brung us”.

What he meant was, he would continue to go with the players, and plays, that had contributed to a winning season. Or, to put it more succinctly – success breeds success.

Cyber criminals, particularly those responsible for the rogue software/scareware application, XP Antivirus, have learned this lesson well. XP Antivirus is back, and is running rampant on the Internet at the moment; having morphed from previous versions we had to deal with in 2008, and 2009.

Of all the rogue security applications released to date, and there have been thousands of them, this particular one has been the most successful for the criminal developers.

I first wrote on this scourge in 2008, and in the interim period, that specific article has been read 130,000+times. In the last week or so, I was surprised to see this older article, suddenly jump to the top of the daily read chart.

This shift in popularity, coupled with a number of readers reporting having to deal with infections caused by XP Antivirus 2010, convinced me to cover the scareware issue once again.

Just like its predecessor, XP Antivirus 2010 installer can be found on adult websites, salacious news sites, or it can be installed manually from rogue security software websites.

After the installation of XP Antivirus 2010 be prepared for false positives; fake or false malware detection warnings. As with all rogue security applications, XP Antivirus 2010 was developed to mislead uninformed computer users’ into downloading and paying for the “full” version of this bogus software, based on the false malware positives generated by the application.

If the full program fee is not paid, XP Antivirus 2010 continues to run as a background process incessantly reporting those fake or false malware detection warnings. To really try your patience, this rogue security software cannot be uninstalled using the Windows Add/Remove Programs tool.

XP Antivirus 2010 Removal Instructions:

If you have become infected by XP Antivirus 2010, or other scareware (rogue software), have your PC worked on by a certified computer technician, who will have the tools, and the competency, to determine if the infection can be removed without causing system damage.

If you feel you have the necessary skills, and you want to try your hand at removal, then by all means do so.

The following free resources can provide tools and the advice you will need to attempt removal.

Malwarebytes, a very reliable anti-malware company, offers a free version of Malwarebytes’ Anti-Malware, a highly rated anti-malware application which is capable of removing many newer rogue applications.

411 Spyware – a site that specializes in malware removal. I highly recommend this site.

Bleeping Computer – a web site where help is available for many computer related problems, including the removal of rogue software. This is another site I highly recommend.

SmitFraudFix, available for download at Geekstogo is a free tool that is continuously updated to assist victims of rogue security app

What can you do to ensure you are protected, or to reduce the chances you will become a victim?

Consider the ramifications carefully before responding to a Windows Security Alert pop-up message. This is a favorite vehicle used by rogue security application to begin the process of infecting unwary users’ computers.

Be cautious in downloading freeware, or shareware programs. Spyware, including scareware, is occasionally concealed in these programs. Download freeware applications only through reputable web sites such as Download.com, or sites that you know to be safe.

Consider carefully the inherent risks attached to peer-to-peer (P2P), or file sharing applications, since exposure to rogue security applications is widespread.

Install an Internet Browser add-on that provides protection against questionable or unsafe websites. My personal favorite is WOT (Web of Trust), an Internet Explorer/FireFox add-on, that offers substantial protection against dangerous websites.

As a form of added protection, you should consider running in a virtual environment while connected to the Internet. To find out what this means to your overall security, and to download a free virtual software application, please read “Download Free Returnil Virtual System 2010 Home”, on this site.

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