My DigitalZone

Antivirus 2008 is malware and is becoming rampant. It is extremely annoying and oftentimes makes a computer unoperable with its pop-ups and fake warnings. According to Wikipedia, Malware is “software designed to infiltrate or damage a computer system without the owner’s informed consent.” Most people get infected with Antivirus 2008 by installing a fake codec for audio or video files or by installing software that hides malicious software in the package. You can remove Antivirus 2008 with free software called “Anti-Malware” by Malwarebytes. So, do not buy software that Antivirus 2008 recommends.

Infections
It has many variants but the main characteristics of this malware is to rely on scare tactics (about virus infection on the PC) and to convince the user to buy Virus removal software online. When Antivirus 2008 gets installed on a computer, it will start giving warnings about viruses on the computer. It will ask the user to scan the computer with Antivirus and will show the results. All the infections shown in the result window are actually fake, planted by Antivirus 2008 itself. When the user tries to remove infections, he/she will be notified that the removal capability is disabled with the free version of Antivirus and only the purchased version will be able to remove the infections.

Here are a few screenshots of the Antivirus warnings.

Removal
It is possible to remove Antivirus 2008 manually; however, it is a complicated process and can be intimidating if you are not familiar with computers. There is excellent software that can take care of Antivirus 2007/2008/2009 infections and other malware problems. The software is free for basic uses, and you don’t need to buy an upgraded paid version. Please go to Malwarebyte’s home page, download Anti Malware, install it, scan your computer, and follow the directions. I’ve used this software many times on my and my friend’s computer. It is effective and easy to use.

Additional software for precaution and regular maintenance
I also recommend to use Lavasoft’s Ad-Aware. One note of caution for this software is that their latest version seems to be a bit buggy, at least on my computer. This software scans for spyware and other malware that can cause problems.