The Conficker virus, also referred to as Downadup and Kido, is a fast spreading virus that has put security experts in panic; it has infected approximately 10 million computers thus far and continues to do so by exploiting loopholes in networks, showing little or no signs of slowing down. Experts believe that there may be as many as 350 million computers out there that are vulnerable to this virus.

What makes the removal of this virus all the more difficult is the fact that it has the ability to crack passwords. Although it is not known to cause any sort of severe damage to your PC, other than preventing windows from updating and blocking installations of anti-virus software, the virus can potentially allow other malicious viruses to get installed on your PC and cause serious, sometimes irreparable damage to your system.

There are two alternative methods of removing this fast-spreading infection:

Method 1 – Detect and Remove using SpyHunter

Experts recommend using advanced anti-spyware software like SpyHunter to detect and remove any and all malware infections, including the Conflicker virus. For inexperienced users and professionals alike, SpyHunter is by far the easiest method due to its simplicity and speed.

Method 2 – Remove the virus manually

Start Windows normally and log in to the system.

Step 1: Stop Window’s Server Service

1. Click on the Start Menu, type services.mscin the search box type and press enter
2. A window displaying a list of all services will open up; look for Server,right-click on it and select Stop
3. Once the service has been stopped, close the Serviceswindow

Step 3: Remove AT-Created Scheduled Tasks

1. Click on the Start Menu, type cmd in the search box and press enter; this will launch Command Prompt.
2. In Command Prompt, type AT /Delete /Yesto remove all scheduled tasks

Step 4: Stop Task Scheduler Service

1. Click on Start, type regedit in the search box and press enter
2. Navigate to the following path using the column on the left: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Schedule
3. On the right, look for an entry named Start
4. Double-click this entry and change this value to 4.  Then click OK
5. Exit the registry editor and restart your computer

Step 5: Install Security Update

• Download and install security update 958644

Step 6: Modify netsvcs entry in Registry

1. Open the registry editor using the same method as specified in Step 4
2. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\SvcHost
3. On the right, look for an entry named netsvcs. Double Click it to open a list of services.
4. If your system is infected, an entry with the name Iaslogon will be present in the list. Delete this line and click OK

Step 7: Scan Your PC using Effective Anti-Virus and Anti-Spyware Definitions

Depending on the severity of the infection, the process of removing the Conflicker virus can be a rather lengthy one. In order to ensure complete removal of all traces left by the virus, scan your computer using certified antispyware software to guarantee complete protection for your PC.