Expert: Carolyn Meinel - 8/17/2011

Question
Carolyn,

I have the following message appearing on my Desktop computer screen " XP Antispyware 2012 Firewall Alert" Internet Explorer is infected with (Trojan-BNK.Win32.Keylogger.gen Private data can be stolen by third parties, including credit card details and passwords.  Windows recommended Activate XP Antispyware 2012, Click "Yes" Activate to register your copy of XP Antispyware 2012 and perform threat removal on your computer.  XP Antispyware 2012 has blocked a program from accessing the internet. Unfortunately I has my Firewall Disabled when loading some router connecting hardware and forgot to enable it again.

Thank you for taking the time to answer this!

Answer
I'm glad you had the sense not to fall for that scareware infection and send them money to register XP Antispyware. That message about "Trojan-BNK is, of course, totally false. Those extortionists at XP Antispyware have made millions with that scam. While we're waiting for the authorities to capture those crooks, here's what you can do to get rid of this infection.

The best instructions I've found are at http://www.pcrisk.com/removal-guides/6475-remove-xp-antispyware-2012

If this doesn't work -- those criminals keep on "improving" their extortion scheme -- please let me know and I'll work on this. I can tell you a way to remove it absolutely for certain, but it is time consuming and no fun! So please try the solutions at the Pcrisk.com website forst.