How To Remove a Keylogger

A keylogger is a software program that monitors and captures each keystroke you make on your keyboard. These days, keyloggers can be used for legitimate or illegitimate activities. While an employer may use a keylogger to monitor the activities of their employees during working hours, cyber crooks or cyber criminals exploit the software program for all illegitimate and fraudulent activities – tracking passwords, logins, social security numbers, online bank account information and credit card details of users. Thus keyloggers, if used as spyware programs, are extremely capable of making you a victim of identity theft.

Harmful Keyloggers

Since most of the system security tools are unable to identify keyloggers, which are designed to remain invisible, it becomes extremely hard to detect and remove them.  Moreover, since keyloggers have legitimate uses as well, most security programs may mistake them as legitimate, making detection and removal more difficult.

When you suspect a keylogger infection, do not type any personal information on any document or online because the spyware keeps track of all the typing activity, whether online or offline.

To log into your email or where an id or password is required, first you must open an on-screen keyboard by clicking on Start ->Programs ->On-Screen Keyboard. A keylogger is unable to track the activity of the on-screen keyboard, so you can get around it’s spying capabilities in times of an emergency.

To remove a keylogger, you must first detect it. Usually keyloggers are installed in more than 100 places in one of the system files. On the desktop task bar, click Task Manager to detect if the keylogger is actually running in the background. You may find the keylogger on the list of processes.  Select the program and click End Process.  Immediately run a legitimate antivirus and spyware program to scan the system and remove the keylogger.

Removal of Hardware Keylogger

A hardware keylogger connects your keyboard to the computer.  You can remove a hardware keylogger using the following steps:

• Power off the system and unplug the chord.  Do not attempt to remove the keylogger while the system is running, since it could damage the computer.
• Detach the keyboard from the computer.
• Remove the keylogger if it is an inline version.
• Carefully plug the keyboard back in.
• Turn the computer system on and run an antispyware program.

Protect Your System From Keyloggers

• Use an antispyware program to remove a keylogger and perform regular scans. The best antispyware program (we recommend Malwarebytes) can detect the latest types of keyloggers that use rootkits to stay hidden.
• It is better and safe to use a firewall, such as ZoneAlarm Pro, to disable the keylogger from transferring the collected data. A firewall can alert you in case of a malicious program.
• Run regular scans with the best security software to protect yourself against a keylogger attack.
• Never click on suspected links or emails and detect phishing emails.
• Always monitor the processes running on your system to make sure there is no suspicious activity.

If you have any issues removing a keylogger, feel free to give us a call for help.