There is a misconception on how to get rid of an obvious computer cold. Many times, we are only treating the symptom and not the source. I hope to help people understand how adware, spyware, and viruses generally work.

When we notice that our computer is displaying popups when we are not even in a browser that is a sure sign of adware but is it the whole picture of what is going on? The truth is, there could also be spyware and maybe even a virus present on your system.

Some people will notice only the surface of the iceberg when naturally there could be more to the adware. To understand this, I use a tree to demonstrate this idea.

Follow up:

When we scan and clean for adware it is the same as pulling the leaves off a healthy tree. They will just grow back. As for trimming the branches such as spyware we can see that new branches will grow. So how do we deal with the issue? The same way you would remove a tree.

The problem with getting rid of adware or spyware first is that many viruses are designed to download and install adware/spyware programs. So if the virus represents the roots and some of the trunk we would naturally want to get rid of the virus first.

Follow these very important steps to correctly eliminate a virus and other malicious software:

1 - Do a virus scan and clean.

2 - Then a spyware scan and clean.

3 - Finally, the adware scan and clean.

By following these steps you will have more effectively eliminated malicious software from your PC. We attack the root of the problem first, that being the virus. Next burn the branches of spyware. Then bag the leaves of adware then throw it away.

To do a better scan of a virus, I recommend going into safe mode of windows. This can be achieved by restarting your PC and pressing the "F8" key repeatedly. A screen will have you select a safe mode type. Choose the one without networking and once your system boots up do a virus scan. The reason this way is affective is because some many viruses, if any, do not run in safe mode. Many will use your start up as a trigger to run.

I hope this helps. If it does, feel free to reference others to this article in hopes that they too will be able to resolve their issue of the "Virus Tree".

Related Questions:

How do I get rid of a computer virus?
How should I get rid of spyware and adware?
Where can I find spyware and adware on my computer and delete it?