Often time customers will visit their local computer sales and repair store and state that a virus has “destroyed” their computer or “wiped out” their hard drive. They’re understandably upset because they didn’t plan on having to buy a new computer and they want to know if there is anything that can be done to repair their machine. Too often they’re told that no, there is nothing that can be done. They’ll either have to purchase a brand new computer (which of course the sales person has at the ready) or at least replace the hard drive. The unsuspecting customer falls for this tall tale and winds up forking over money they don’t have to. The unscrupulous sales and repair person then pockets the profits from the sale and shuffles the customer out of the store before they learn the truth.

The Truth? But Viruses Destroy PCs and Cheap Laptops, Don’t They?

There are too many unscrupulous sales and repair shops that will try and encourage you to buy things you don’t need. But Affordable Computers in Wheat Ridge, Colorado is not one of them. When you bring your PC or laptop to us with a problem we’ll give you the straight story. And that is this: there has never been a computer virus written that is able to physically destroy a hard drive. Ever. While it can, and often does, destroy files and perhaps even overwrite the boot sector so your computer won’t start, the boot sector can be fixed and the drive can be reformatted, returning the machine to a perfectly useful state.

No, You Don’t Have to Replace Your Computer

Now maybe you know a guy who has a friend whose brother once worked in a computer store. And he says that computer viruses destroy cheap laptops and you’ll need to buy a new one. But the fact is it’s just not so. If your PC or laptop has been infected by a computer virus bring it to us at

Keep in mind though, that while a computer virus isn’t the end of your computer it might, as we said, mean the end of some of your files. But if you’ve been diligent in backing up your data any losses in that regard will be minimal. You can also be sure that before we finish we’ll make certain your newly restored machine has the most robust, up to date antivirus software so that you don’t fall victim to another virus.

Other Non-Virus Invaders

Some folks come to us confused about what might be going on with their computer. It’s running but it’s become sluggish. Even when they don’t have any big applications open it’s just not very responsive. It doesn’t seem to be a virus because everything still works and the problem doesn’t seem to be getting progressively worse. Their computer just suddenly got slow and no matter how many times they clear their cache or defragment the various drives nothing seems to work. They’ve also got some pretty decent antivirus software (or so they thought) so they’re sure nothing got through. So what could it be?

The Scourge of Malware

Most of the time when someone comes to us with a computer that suddenly seems like it’s under sedation the problem can be traced to some sort of malware. Here are some of the various types of malware we remove from PCs and laptops.

• Trojans- Trojans have become the malware of choice for hackers primarily because they’re easy to write and distribute. A trojan often pretends to be a legit program and may present itself in the form of a warning box that tells you your antivirus is out of date and urgently needs to be updated. Unsuspecting folks often fall for this. They then download the “fix” and install the trojan without realizing it. The trojan then goes about stealing their data or allowing someone else to use their computer power for things like cryptocurrency “mining”.
• Ransomware- Sometimes you go to open a file and suddenly you’re presented with a message that says your computer has been locked. You’re then directed to make some type of electronic payment to unlock it. Sometimes these ransomware programs use FBI or Homeland Security shields to make you think you’ve done something wrong. You haven’t. It’s the weasels who wrote the program that did something wrong. Bring it to Affordable Computers. We’ll fix it.
• Adware - Adware is generally regarded as the least harmful type of malware. But it can still be a pain as it continually redirects you to web pages you didn’t ask to visit where you’re bombarded with product promotions.
• Spyware - There’s legitimate spyware and illegitimate spyware. Legit spyware is the kind installed by parents on their kids’ smartphones that tells the parents what sites their kids are visiting and who they’re communicating with. Illegitimate spyware is downloaded and installed secretly and records things like passwords, which it sends to the spyware designer who uses the info to charge things on your credit cards etc.

It’s not just cheap laptops that become infected with viruses and malware. It can happen to any computer. If you suspect your computer may be infected bring it to Affordable Computers in Wheat Ridge today. We’ll fix it for you.