Shortcut virus is one of the simple-looking yet devastating viruses affecting thousands of computing systems globally. It appears quite simple and something not to worry about. But, it acquires damaging proportions if ignored. That is exactly why we present the tips to remove shortcut viruses in this concise yet informative post.
There are a few solutions to fix the shortcut virus issue. But, before going into those details, let us understand what is actually a Shortcut virus.
You must eliminate them from your devices to maintain your data privacy. Understand the tactics mentioned in this guide and implement them accurately for desired outcomes.
What is Shortcut Virus?
Well, as the name itself indicates, the shortcut virus converts all your files and folders into shortcuts. It keeps the original folder icon but converts it into a shortcut file format. The virus does not delete the files during the initial stages of the attack but can cause issues if no action is taken in time.
The shortcut virus can affect all sorts of storage media. It can enter into your Pen Drive, Hard Drive, Mobile Phone, or even Memory card. Once it affects one of the files on your system, it spreads across multiple files and thus can damage your entire system. There is no precise definition available for the Shortcut Virus.
There is no information available on how it works, but it does not remove the affected files. The files remain on the drive, but stay inaccessible. However, the virus in the advanced stages can corrupt your files. There is also a likelihood of the files getting deleted.
The shortcut virus can affect your device or storage media when you use your drives on an affected machine or use an affected drive on your machine.
How to Remove Shortcut Virus from Your System?
There are a few different methods you can employ to remove shortcut viruses that might have affected your PC. Let us explain each of these methods in easy-to-understand steps.
Method 1 – Using WinRAR
WinRAR is a useful tool that helps you get rid of the Shortcut virus. It can be used to remove shortcut viruses if it has affected your Pen Drive or any such external drive.
Follow the steps below –
- Connect your Pen Drive to your PC or Laptop.
- Launch WinRAR on your computer. If you do not have WinRAR installed on your system, you can install it from the official website.
- On WinRAR, navigate to the affected drive. You should be able to view all your files on the affected drive.
- Create an archive of the files you would want to save. If you do not know how to do it, follow the steps below
- Choose the files you would want to create an archive of and right-click.
- Now open My Computer and select your affected drive. You should find the newly created archive here.
- Cut and paste this file anywhere on your hard drive.
- Format the affected Pen Drive
- Choose Add Files to Archive. Label it with a name you would want to.
- You have successfully created an archive.
Read Also: Tips to Prevent Cyber Extortion from Ruining Your Files
You have thus successfully disinfected the Pen Drive. WinRAR is an application that will never allow any malware files to execute. That is exactly why this tool lets you remove shortcut viruses from your external drive.
Method 2 – Using Command Prompt
This method is one of the best ways that can be used to remove shortcut viruses. The command prompt method can be used to remove the shortcut virus from a hard drive, memory card, pen drive, or any other storage media.
Follow these steps to remove shortcut virus.
- Look for the Search button or icon in the bottom bar.
- In the search menu, type Run and click on the RUN option in the search results.
- Go to the root directory of the drive you would want to clear the shortcut virus from.
- Type attrib -h -r -s /s /d e:*.*. Please replace e: with the drive letter of your affected drive.
- Press Enter
Your files will now be visible. You can copy the files to a location somewhere on your hard drive and format the affected drive.
The command prompt method may give errors in some cases. These errors are common on drives using the NTFS file format. The problem has rarely been observed on drives working on FAT or FAT32 format.
Method 3 – Using Third-party Apps
You can use third-party apps to remove shortcut virus from your system. The above two methods should work best for getting rid of the virus in most cases. However, it is possible that the virus has spread across the system, and it could have grown beyond these methods.
There are several apps available in the app stores. One of the able and simple applications that work wonders in removing the shortcut virus is Shortcut Virus Remover. You can get it from this link.
Some other popular Shortcut virus remover apps are USBFix and HFV (Hidden Folder Virus).
Method 4 – Using Antivirus
If the shortcut virus is in its initial stages, you can use an effective antivirus to remove the shortcut virus. Most of the above methods are best suited for removing the shortcut virus from your external drives, including memory cards, USB Flash drives, Pen Drives, and other external media. However, if your PC itself is affected, you may need to use a good anti-virus solution.
Avast, Quick Heal, Norton, and Avira are some solutions. They have an excellent rating as a few good antivirus solutions that can accomplish this task. You can configure your antivirus program to perform a Boot Time Scan. The name may differ for different antivirus solutions.
Final Thoughts
Those were some of the best options to remove the shortcut virus. We do not claim that these methods are not exclusive and exhaustive. Many other methods are there to get rid of this simple-looking yet dangerous virus.
In most cases, the methods indicated above perform the best and solve your issues. Do share any other methods that are effective in removing shortcut viruses. Share your experience if you have used any of the methods featured above.
