My Dell laptop was infected with a Trojan, and afterward my Discord account was compromised and sent scam messages to my contacts. I disconnected the laptop from the internet and left it powered off for about two weeks. Before that, Windows Defender and Malwarebytes detected around 20 threats. I removed them, but new detections appeared roughly 10 minutes later. I cannot get into Safe Mode, and I thought the drive could not be wiped because it is encrypted. Is the laptop still recoverable, and what is the safest way to reinstall Windows?
3 Answers
If you want extra assurance, use the laptop's firmware storage-erase feature if available, or securely erase the drive before reinstalling. Since malware has already returned after removal, repeatedly running antivirus scans on the current installation is less reliable than wiping it completely.
The safest approach is to assume the installation is compromised and perform a clean reinstall from trusted installation media. Encryption does not prevent you from erasing the drive; you can delete the existing partitions during Windows Setup and install fresh. Do not restore executable files or unknown backups from the old installation.
Create a Windows installation USB using another trusted computer, boot the Dell from it, remove the existing partitions, and install Windows again. If you cannot access another computer, a repair shop or a trusted friend can create the installer. Some Dell systems also include a drive-wipe or recovery option in the firmware settings.
That will remove Windows from the drive too, but you can reinstall it immediately afterward from the bootable USB. Make sure anything important is backed up first, and scan those files before copying them back.