All types of this software is BOGUS! Do not do anything but close all of the windows that pop-up, and definitely DO NOT input your credit card information and “buy” the software as it puts your information at risk!

These fake antivirus programs are so convincing with their graphics and the way they look that many people fall for them. They can be seen under many names and some of them are:

• AV8 Antivirus
• System Security 2009, 2010, 2011
• Antivirus System Pro
• Antivirus Pro 2009, 2010, 2011
• Antivirus 2009, 2010, 2011
• Antivirus 360
• Malware Doctor
• Spyware Guard 2008, 2009, 2010
• And Many More

Just to give you something to compare these to, I am going to give some of the names of the more popular LEGITIMATE Antivirus programs that most of you will have. They are:

• Norton Internet Security
• Norton 360
• McAfee
• AVG
• Avast
• Trend Micro
• NOD32
• Kaspersky
• Microsoft Security Essentials
• And Many More

If you do happen to get one of these fake antivirus programs on your computer there are a few things you can do. The very first thing to do is to press Ctrl+Alt+Delete all at the same time. This will bring up the windows Task Manager. Click on the Processes tab at the top of this window. You will see a list of processes that are running and you’ll want to find the processes that coincide with name of the fake software that installed itself. Once you find them just select them and hit the “End Process” button.

The above will stop the program from running, so now you want to find and delete the infected files. A great, free, program to locate these files is called Malwarebyte’s AntiMalware, which you should download and install HERE.

Once it is installed, open it up and go to the update tab to make sure everything is fully updated. You are now ready to scan your computer, so you can select either “Quick Scan” or “Full Scan”. Quick Scan takes about 10-20 Minutes and will scan all of the vital files where most viruses will lodge themselves. Full Scan takes anywhere from 1-4 hours, but it is much more thorough as it scans every single file on your computer.

Once it has finished scanning and you see the list of infections it found you just need to click the “Remove Selected” button and restarted if prompted to do so. You should now be free of that pesky virus!

~ Computer Freaks

This could be caused by a few different things and we will touch on one of them in this post.  As you use your computer it is constantly storing bits of data for possible future use.  For example, every time you go to a website on the Internet your computer stores that data in temporary folders located on your hard drive.  This same thing occurs every time you open up a document on your computer whether it’s for Microsoft Office, Adobe PDF files, etc.  The reason your computer does this is so if you need to access the same web page or document again, but you have already closed it, your computer is able to load it much quicker.  But, as you can imagine these temporary files can really add up and can slowly take away to processing power of your computer.

An easy solution to keeping these files under control comes in the form of a free program called CCleaner.  This program easily scans your computer for all of the temporary files stored on your computer and allows you to delete them!  Don’t worry, you will not be deleting any vital or necessary files that you need.  I use and highly recommend this program for keeping the junk out of you computer.  You can download CCleaner HERE.

We will be touching on some other reasons for slow computers and what you can do to handle this in later posts, so stay tuned!

~ Computer Freaks

To find us on Facebook and share us with all of your friends you can go to – www.facebook.com/computerfreaks.

To read our tweets and follow us on Twitter you can go to – @2ComputerFreaks.

We look forward to connecting up with you in the future!

~ Computer Freaks

We would like to introduce ourselves and let you know the types of services that we provide.  Our business name is Computer Freaks and we are located, and do business, in the Portland Metro Area!  We have been established for the last 2 years, since 2009, and look forward to continuing to expand and deliver exceptional service!

We service BOTH PCs AND MACs!

For residential clients we offer professional, on-site service to help you with any number of issues you may be having.  Here are some of the services we provide:

• Virus Removal
• Wireless Network Setup
• Operating System Repair
• Data Backup
• Operating System Re-Install
• New Computer Setup
• Printer Installation and Configuration
• Hardware Upgrades or Replacements (Hard Drives, Memory, Video Cards, Power Supplys, CD/DVD Drives, etc)
• Software Configuration (Quickbooks, Microsoft Office, Outlook, etc)
• Debugging Email Configuration
• Internet Connectivity Issues
• And many more…

We are competent, friendly and efficient, so we will get your problems handled and get out of your hair quickly to your satisfaction!

We also have many commercial and business clients who we assist with their technology issues, so their business never stops and becomes more efficient.  For businesses we offer all of the above services plus some of the following:

• Network Troubleshooting and Debugging
• Microsoft Exchange and Email setup and Configuration
• Server Maintenance
• Printer Networking
• And more…

When your computer goes down, we know that there is no time to lose so we are able to get a technician out to you the same day that you call.  If that doesn’t work for you then we can always schedule another time in the future that is more convenient for you.

You can get pricing and other details by visiting our website at – www.thecomputerfreaks.com.  We are always happy to help so call or send an email and we will assist you!

~ Computer Freaks

That’s right! The Computer Freaks are in business!

For more information visit our website at – www.thecomputerfreaks.com

What We Do:

We are a Professional On-Site Computer Service and Repair business located in Portland. Whether you have a PC or a Mac we will come to your location, do a full diagnosis and repair all of the problems so your computer is running in tip-top shape.

What We Service:

We are able to service both PCs and Macs of all types. The list of services we offer include, but is not limited to:

1. Virus and Spyware Removal
2. PC Tune-Up
3. Data Recovery and Backup
4. Wireless Network Setup
5. New Computer Installation
6. Hardware and Software Upgrades

What We Charge:

• As well as delivering professional, friendly service we like to keep it as affordable as we can. We have different prices for Residential Customers and Commercial Customers.
• For Residential Customers we charge $80 for the first hour and $50 per hour after that, with a 1 hour minimum.
• For Commercial Customers we charge $100 for the first hour and $75 per hour after that, with a 2 hour minimum.

If you want to ensure your data stays safe and computer stays running great every month we also have a few Monthly Protection Plans for you to choose from. You can find these and a full list of Service Locations at our website!

Visit: www.thecomputerfreaks.com

You can also find us on Facebook, under “Computer Freaks”, and become a fan!

- Gabriele

We have our own page on Facebook, so we can let everyone in Portland know about us! Click our badge to the right in order to become a Fan and then you can follow us see what is happening!

Also, you can tell your friends, family and co-workers about us, so they all have a good, reliable source for computer repair as well!

- Gabriele

I just recently did a job for a client who had gotten Antivirus System Pro on their computer. I got it off an their computer is running great, but I want to make a post so you know what to look for and what you can expect with this virus.

Antivirus System Pro is a rogue antivirus software that infects your computer and attempts to get you to purchase the program, which won’t help at all. You will start getting a lot of unwanted pop-ups in the lower right corner saying things such as “your computer is infected”, “scan now to get rid of infected files”, “purchase antivirus system pro to clean out your computer”, etc. It may also pop-up as an antivirus program and seem to be scanning your computer, but it isn’t and you should close it right away!

It is misleading because it looks like it is part of Windows Security and even it’s icon and pop-ups look as though they are coming from Windows!

Symptoms of Antivirus System Pro include:

1. A LOT of unwanted pop-ups and warnings
2. Your computer running much slower
3. Your Web Browser being taken over, so you are constantly redirected to other web pages
4. Your actual antivirus programs being disabled so you can’t run them
5. Some of your files and other programs not opening or working correctly

If your computer happens to have this virus then we a few recommendations for you in dealing with it. I found that the only Web Browser that Antivirus System Pro hijacks is Internet Explorer, so DON’T USE IT! Instead use other Web Browsers such as Mozilla Firefox or Safari.

For actual anti-spyware programs, I strongly recommend using Malwarebyte’s Anti-Malware. This is the best program I have found in detecting and getting rid of many newer viruses and rogue spyware programs that other programs won’t detect. Plus it’s FREE!

Another good, all-around, antivirus program is AVG. AVG has a very high detection rate for most viruses and will get rid of them much better than other programs. It has a Free version and a Paid version. I have been using the Free version and it works great!

Now you have the data on Antivirus System Pro and some recommendations on how to deal with it and get rid of it. If you are still having trouble and you are in Portland, OR then give me a call at 503.936.6212 and I will come out and assist you!

- Gabriele

I want to make you aware of the Special Offers we have going on right now. We try to put together great prices for people in the Portland Metro Area, because we know it is NOT FUN when your computer goes down and also, it is NOT FUN to have to pay a bunch of money to get it running again.

For all New Customers we are giving you 10% Off Your First Hour! Remember that this still includes us coming out to your location to either service your computer there or pick it up and drop it back off when it is fixed.

For College Students, we know how important having a computer is nowadays so we put together a Special Offer just for you. Right now we are giving all College Students 25% Off Your First Hour! You get your computer repaired and put some money back into your pocket.

For more information on our these offers you can visit the Special Offers page on our website at – www.thecomputerfreaks.com/SpecialOffers.html.

- Gabriele

We know that computers don’t break down on a scheduled basis nor do they conveniently stop working between 9 and 5, when most places are open. I want to let you know that we are open and ready to repair your computer at inconvenient times and on the weekends!

Here is our full schedule of operations:

1. M – F: 9am to 6pm
2. Sat: 10am to 6pm
3. Sun: 10am to 6pm

As you can see, we are open on both Saturday AND SUNDAY ALL DAY! So, just in case your computer decides to break down at an inconvenient time you can always call us and we will be ready to come out and get your computer repaired!

You can call us at 503.936.6212 or email us at help@thecomputerfreaks.com and we will come out to you on the SAME DAY YOU CALL!

- Gabriele

I looked outside this morning and noticed that ice was all over the roads, cars and everything else. As these conditions are dangerous for driving, they can also be dangerous for your computer at home. This is a post giving you some helpful hints in keeping your computer safe this Holiday Season.

All home, desktop computers are plugged in. FACT. Ice build-up and weight on power lines creates power surges and power outages. FACT.

Through the many repairs we have done on people’s computers, we have noticed that a majority of the people don’t shut down their computer very often. They keep it on with the screen saver, they turn the monitor off, they let it go into Sleep or Hibernate Mode, but they very rarely turn it off.

Based on the two facts above this can prove to be very dangerous for your computer. Anything can happen when a power surge or a power outage occurs and the computer’s power is cut unexpectedly. This can include such things as:

1. Computer Not Booting Up
2. Data Loss
3. Hardware Malfunction
4. Software Malfunction
5. Motherboard Frying and Not Responding

The list goes on and on. In order to protect your computer through the icy months we STRONGLY recommend shutting down your computer, when you know you won’t use it for at least an hour. When all of the components are off then they can’t be interrupted, and possibly damaged, by a power surge or outage.

We hope you will use this information to help keep your computer safe and we wish you all a very Happy Holiday Season!

- Gabriele