Back on board.

First of all my laptop went down in the middle of work I was completing (off line).  Then after re-booting I found few of my programs would actually work.  I managed to get one to clean up my registry, then used another to re-set the laptop.  After almost a day of trying this and that, having to re-boot each time, I finally got the thing working.

Then it happened again.  Something was not right.  But this time my security software kicked in suggesting a Trojan was on board.

I rebooted and ran a full security scan of the laptop and sure enough there was a Trojan - two files were identified, one was deleted by the software but the other left.  This I was able to delete using the security software.  After re-booting, yet again, the laptop behaved itself.

A Trojan is mallware that hides inside another innocent looking program.  Some Trojans are just pests, others are downright dangerous.  Even though I'm careful about anything I download, trying to stay with trusted companies, it still happened to me and if this can happen to me it can happen to anyone.  This Trojan caught me off guard, even though I run my security software often.   This time I was able to deal with the mess it made of my computer files.

Be careful, there are nuts out there in Cyberspace who love to mess with your PC or Laptop because they've nothing better to do with their sad, pointless lives.  Check with the companies that provide your security software for infomation on mallware and the like and follow their advice.

Mick - Glad to be back.