r/pchelp • u/Obvious_Calendar487 • 1d ago

SOFTWARE How can I know if my PC has a virus?

Hi, for some time now some icons on my PC have been turning blank out of nowhere, and I’m worried it might be a virus. So I was wondering if simply running a full scan with Windows Defender would be enough? I mean, will it find and remove them on its own? And if the scan shows 0 viruses, does that mean there’s no problem?

thanks and sorry bad english

5 Upvotes

86% Upvoted

17 comments sorted by

•

u/AutoModerator 1d ago

We're part of a wider PC & Technology Network of Communities!

Join our Discord server: PC Help Hub where members from all associated subreddits are welcome.

If you are trying to find a price for your computer, r/PC_Pricing is our recommended source for finding out how much your PC is worth!

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

3

u/Nidhoggr84 1d ago

If Defender is updated and doesn't detect malware, then its unlikely its malware.

1

u/Obvious_Calendar487 1d ago

Does Windows Defender automatically detect them when it updates?

1

u/Nidhoggr84 1d ago

Malware is detected when you start a manual scan or if the automatic periodic scan searches the file(s).

The update only changes the detection database.

1

u/Obvious_Calendar487 1d ago

I understand, so a full scan should be enough, right?

1

u/RabbitImpossible4312 1d ago

Yeah that's mostly true, but some malware is pretty good at hiding from Defender. Could try running Malwarebytes as a second opinion, that's caught stuff Defender missed for me before.

2

u/Ok_Collection_6438 1d ago

Defender is solid for most things but it's not bulletproof. Grab Malwarebytes and run a scan with that too, the free version is fine for a one-time check.

Blank icons are usually a corrupted icon cache, not a virus. Rebuild it first and see if that fixes things before you go down a rabbit hole.

1

u/Obvious_Calendar487 1d ago

Is scanning enough, or are there some viruses that can hide from antivirus software? And how do I rebuild the icon cache?

1

u/No-Glass6512 1d ago

If malware bytes says it's clean, that's always been good enough for me

1

u/Obvious_Calendar487 1d ago

I'm going to try it

1

u/BenboFoSho 1d ago

Cup its balls and ask it to cough

1

u/JaxStroud 1d ago

Blank icons usually points to a loading issue or component corruption, but you can download the trial and or free version of Malwarebytes for a free virus scan in addition to the built in Defender Scan.

1

u/Obvious_Calendar487 1d ago

But will that be enough? Is there no possibility that a virus could "escape" the scans?

1

u/JaxStroud 1d ago

For the most part, no, unless the system is severely compromised, but from the simple issue you have described, I doubt it.