So you think you’ve got a computer virus.

Well, if your computer’s acting funny all of the sudden, chances are pretty good you’ve got a virus or some other malware causing the trouble. This can be a very disturbing feeling and if you’re like me, you’ll want to do whatever it takes to get your computer back to normal again.

Luckily, in almost all cases, dealing with a virus situation is pretty straight forward. In fact, there are really only three steps:

1. Detect the virus
2. Remove the virus
3. Prevent future viruses

There are lots of free online virus scan tools that can help you detect viruses which is the first thing you need to do. Two that I can recommend are the McAfee Stinger tool and the Panda ActiveScan online tool. Both of these tools are very effective at detecting viruses and the Panda ActiveScan tool is also good at detecting spyware.