Browsing the internet today is very different than it was back in the 90’s. When the internet was first available, very few people were using it except for the occasional email. Now, it’s hard to find someone who doesn’t even know what the internet is. With all of this change also comes some harm. Now there’s an entire following around creating viruses and spyware that is created for malicious doing. This type of software will somehow find its way onto your computer and depending on if it’s a virus it will essentially “break” your computer. If it’s spyware then it will sit on your computer and monitor your every move. It logs all of you internet browsing and keystrokes and then sends that information to other sources, such as hackers that will use that information to steal from you. With this new move towards the internet we have more to worry about as users of the internet. It is no longer to safe to surf the internet freely without some software that will protect you from invaders such as viruses and spyware.

One such invader is winxprotector. Once it is on your computer you will notice very slow performance from all of the popups warning you to download winxprotector. If you think you have it installed, you can follow these steps to remove it:

Uninstall Program
Go to Start --> Settings --> Control Panel
Double-click on Add/Remove Programs
Find and uninstall WinxProtector

Stop processes
Go to Start --> Run --> type taskmgr
Select the Processes tab and look for the following process under Image Name:
WinXProtector.exe
Select the name and click on “End Process”

Unregister registry keys
Go to Start -->Run
Type “regedit” and then press OK
Right click on the files below and select “Delete”
WinXProtector

Remove Files
Go to Start --> My Computer --> Local Disk (C:) --> Program Files --> Show the contents of this folder.
Start WinXProtector.lnk
WinXProtector.lnk
WinXProtector Uninstall.lnk
WinXProtector.exe
WinXProtector

If your homepage has been changed
Type in the address of your desired homepage in your browser

Go to Start --> Control Panel --> Internet Options --> click on the General --> click Use Current under Home Page

It is highly recommended that you find an antispyware program that you trust to remove winxprotector rather than attempt to remove it yourself. The problem with removing programs like these yourself is that you an accidentally remove a file that is important for your operating system, or you may not remove all of the files necessary. If you remove an important file, it could cause your computer to fail to work and then you may need to rebuild your computer or have someone repair it. If you don’t remove all of the files associated with winxprotector then it could possibly still be running in the background without your knowing it. This is a really bad situation to be in because you may have a false sense of security when you’re really not safe at all. Your best bet is to research antispyware programs that can monitor your computer from this type of malicious software.