Win XP is driving me nuts!

I'm using VMware Fusion to run Windows XP Professional on my macbook.

Every few minutes a bubble and 2 or 3 windows pop up, warning me about my computer not being protected against viruses. I don't really care, since I'm not letting VM Fusion access the internet at all (using little snitch), but even though I went into the control panel and told it not to warn me, it continues to. It keeps telling me it found all these bad files and asks me to register for a program... instead, I downloaded AVG for free and the scan didn't turn up anything. But I can't get it to stop bugging me!

I was running Windows in unity mode, with windows stuff on two different desktops, when those windows popped up and my mac switched back and forth between the two desktops quickly and continuously. I couldn't do anything but force my computer off.

Can someone please help me!?

Sounds you actually have a virus on Windows. There's a number of them that fake you into thinking you have a virus in order do get you to buy bogus software.

Either run a virus scan with a good AV app like Avast. Look at Adware from Lavasoft too that removes a whole bunch of nasties and it's free for personal use

Or you could always just install a new virtual machine.

I have XP Pro running in Fusion; I installed AVG and it works fine and I no longer get the "you need antivirus software" prompts. AVG should suffice. Not sure why you still get the prompts.

I'm using a boot camp partition with fusion so I'd rather not have to start all if I don't have to.... it's XP Police Antivirus that's bugging me..is that supposed to be built into windows? I really have no idea. But I don't know how I could have a virus without ever having connected to the internet through windows...? I downloaded avg through osx and dropped into windows.. I guess I'll try another antivirus program and see if that works.

well, duh I should have googled the frickin thing...it was a fake program that somehow installed itself on my computer...and wanted me to buy the full version of a fake program. Wow...

Thanks for your input, but what I want to know is how did it get there if I never went online...? Its on a separate partition than my mac os....can a virus get through that way???

I think the answer is you have been online . . . . whether you know it or not...

If I were you I'd disable the network card in the VM settings to be sure you're not making any kind outbound connection

Any Windows installation is open to attacks. But the good news is that in a virtual machine, or in a Boot Camp partition, the attacks won't infect your OSX side of the house. The program probably installed itself before you installed AVG - that is a very good program and should suffice.

Cheers

If I were you and that happened to me I would download, update and run Malwarebytes from Malwarebytes.org
AVG is on the outer now, and Avast! is now the AV to have (free).
Also if you have been a previous Windows user, you should know to have Ccleaner and at least two antispyware apps on your computer, even if it is running on a Mac.

Cheers LL (Win XP and Macbook user)

lakewoodlady said:

rl]
AVG is on the outer now, and Avast! is now the AV to have (free).

Click to expand...

Can you elaborate more on AVG being on the "outer"?

I was curious about that too as AVG still has a free version.
Cheers