Virus provides a Thinkpoint for all non-technicians

"Treat your computer password like your toothbrush. Don't let anybody else use it, and get a new one every six months." ~ Clifford Stoll

It's good advice. Nothing is more important than computer security - I learned the hard way.....

It's the weekend so I take the journey with the Mrs. from Coventry to Birmingham to drop in on the parents. A quick hello, friendly chat, drink, a bit of dinner will suit us both and enable us to unwind after busy weeks. That's the plan but as soon as the Mother answers the door, the plan disappears in a puff of smoke.

No friendly 'hello,' no 'good morning welcome', but instead the panicky voice of a woman who thinks her life might well be over. And why? "John, the computer's got a horrible thing on it that won't go away!"
No, a spider had not crawled on it, instead it had caught some sort of rogue anti-virus software, known as Thinkpoint. 'Oh dear' I thought, but that, apparently, wasn't enough!

Now I am by no means a technician. I'm a journalist and although I have picked up web practices working in online media over the years, when faced with a computer virus my first thought is 'how much does a new computer cost?'

Thinkpoint - I think the point is to
cause you hours of suffering

Unfortunately for me, the family computer back when I lived with the folks was also known as the John computer - I was by and large the only person that really used it and since I moved out, the little brother's started college and needs it frequently. Cue me then, by no means qualified to play around with a computer virus but the most computer-literate person in the family - yes, I got lured into having a look!

My next thought was let's destroy my friend's weekend. Irfan Yasin is the web developer I used to work with in Birmingham - a highly knowledgeable and thoroughally useful chap when it comes to all things computers. I gave him a call and he confirmed that Thinkpoint is a virus. Did he know how to fix it? Are computers here to make our lives easy? No, so I was on my own. A 'Google' search and I found a step-by-step guide to removing Thinkpoint and with help from a bloke known simply as 'Alex' via the magic of Twitter, I managed to bypass the virus and reclaim the desktop by manually launching Explorer. May I add at this point that I had no idea at all what I was doing and managed to bluff my way through a simple tutorial over a number of agonisingly long, painful hours.

I got the desktop back but the virus was still there. Instead of blocking me from accessing the computer, it was scanning the Internet settings doubtlessly searching for credit card numbers to pilfer away! I needed to do something quickly but the joy of public transport meant that I was about to miss my very last route home to Coventry - I needed the quickest solution in the history of the world!

"Never let a computer know you're in a hurry." ~ Author Unknown

No chance! As soon as it looked like I had killed off the virus for good (checking msconfig for the hidden batch files and launching super anti-spyware), lo and behold the computer decided that it had been overworked and promptly crashed. I restarted the computer and guess what - it wouldn't even load up the start screens - had I killed the virus or inflicted another on the machine? The only way to know was to reinstall EVERYTHING! - always good when you should have been on your way home an hour ago!

"Jesus saves! The rest of us better make backups." ~ Author Unknown

Cue hours of reinstalling Windows, printer material, Office software and the like meaning that by the time I did go home, it wasn't via public transport but via a private taxi firm at some ungodly hour!

But guess what? Windows was successfully restored with no trace of Thinkpoint. Don't ask me how I did it - I really don't know but the first thing I did was brag just a little to Mr Yasin. Let's put this into perspective - I'm a journalist, not a technician.

It took a long, long time to do and I still don't know exactly what it is I did to destroy Thinkpoint and restore the computer but after the harrowing experience, I am inclined to wholeheartedly agree with the following quote:

"Computers must be female. No one but the creator understands their internal logic. The native language they use to communicate with other computers is incomprehensible to everyone else. The message "Bad command or file name" is about as informative as, "If you don't know why I'm mad at you, then I'm certainly not going to tell you." Even the smallest mistakes are stored in long term memory for later retrieval. As soon as you make a commitment to one, you find yourself spending half your paycheck on accessories for it." ~ Author Unknown

For more information on Thinkpoint and to find out how to destroy it from your computer, click here