By Adeniyi Ogunfowoke
Antivirus doesn’t necessarily mean your system is secured especially if you are always online. When on the World Wide Web, you may unknowingly download a file embedded with viruses and your so called antivirus may not alert you.
Hackers have developed or evolved smart ways to gain entry into your personal system to steal vital information.
They make the virus less conspicuous. Besides, it is not only when you are online that a system can be infected. It is, therefore, important to look out for signs that will let you know if your laptop is infected. We share some if these signs which can crash a PC and may result in losing your data.
Slowdown of your system
Your system only takes few seconds to boot or power but you suddenly observe that it started showing snail-like characteristics. For example, there is a decline in the speed of internet surfing and exchange of files.
Recurrent system crash
According to Wikipedia, a system crash is when a computer program (software or operating system) stops functioning properly. So, if your system consistently crashes, it may be as a result of virus. You may have to change to a more powerful antivirus.
Too many shortcuts
Not all shortcuts are viruses. But when almost all your files are shortcuts, you should be worried because they may be virus. And even if you delete the shortcuts and scan your system they will always reappear. The only way to kill the virus is by formatting your system.
Your apps take forever to start
The bytes that an App needs to function are not very big for it to take forever to start. Then, you need to scan your laptop for viruses and malware for it overwhelms your system.
Popups from nowhere
Unsolicited websites popping up on your system can be very annoying and inconveniencing. Popups like betting, porn and money making websites can invade and disrupt. The cause of this is virus!
Disabled antivirus
Due to your system being infected, it will automatically disable your antivirus. Thus, opening the doorway to viruses and malwares. Thankfully, if you are using windows virus protection, you will be alerted of this abnormality. You will be asked to activate, update antivirus and afterwards scan for virus.
Adeniyi Ogunfowoke is a PR Associate at Jumia Travel.