How to Get Rid of Viruses From Android

The chances of getting affected by a virus or malicious software are relatively less in Android as compared to a Windows laptop. However, sometimes malicious apps can be found on the Play Store, and chances are that you may install them unknowingly. These viruses or malicious apps can cause a significant dent in your phone’s performance. Here we are mentioning how you can identify these viruses and get rid of them from your Android.

How to Know If Your Phone Has Viruses

There is no specific aspect to look into for identifying if your phone has a virus. However, there are certain signs that your phone may show hinting towards a possible malicious app or file. For instance, you may notice that your phone has suddenly become slower in performance, you may find in-app purchases that you don’t remember doing yourself, you may notice unrecognized apps installed in your device. If you are facing some of these signs, don’t worry, getting rid of viruses from your Android device is reasonably straightforward.

Removing Unrecognized Files or Apps

You can make use of the Safe Mode provider in Android to uninstall the unrecognized app or file. Follow the steps as mentioned below;

1. You need to press and hold the Power button followed by pressing and holding the Power Off button. You will get the option to boot into Safe Mode, click OK.

Alternatively, you can also power off the device as usual and then press and hold the Power button until you see the manufacturer’s logo. As soon as you see the manufacturer’s logo, press the Volume Down button along with the Power button until you’re booted into Safe Mode.

2. Once you reach the safe mode, you need to head over to the settings and then go to apps.

3. Carefully scroll through the list of apps and look for any app that you don’t recognize. If you find any such app, click on it and then select the Uninstall button to get rid of those apps from your device.

4. If you are unable to directly uninstall the apps as the Uninstall button is responsive to clicks, it can mean that the app has device administration access. You can remove the device administration access by going to the security settings and selecting the option called Device Administrators, make sure you remove this app from the administrator-list.

5. You can simply press and hold the power button again to boot into the normal mode and exit the safe mode.

Factory Reset Your Device

If you fail to remove the virus from the above method, you can always factory reset your device to bring it back to a fresh state. Make sure you’ve backed up your data before performing a factory reset as doing so will wipe out all the data from your device.

1. Once you are done with your backup, hold the power button, and then power-off your device.

2. Now you will need to boot into the recovery mode, for doing so you need to press the Volume Down and the power button simultaneously when the phone is switched off.

3. You can use the volume up and Volume down button for navigation in the recovery mode, find the option called Wipe Data, and then tap on it. You will be asked for confirmation if you want to proceed with wiping all the data, select yes to continue.

4. This will completely format your local storage. Now reboot your device and then recover your data from the created backup.

Staying Cautious

Prevention is always better than cure. It is best to follow such practices that reduce the chance of your Android getting infected with a virus or malware. You should always keep your phone’s software up to date. Head over to the Play Store and make sure that Google Play Protect is turned on. The Play Protect is a Google service that automatically scans for malicious files in your Android apps. You should avoid using clone apps as much as possible; these apps are most likely to contain viruses. As an additional security measure, you can also install antivirus apps for adding an extra layer of security to your device. And the most important point is to avoid installing apps from outside the Google Play Store in the form of third party APKs. Follow these tips to have a safe and sound Android experience.

Source:-  Remove Viruses From Android