Can Viruses Cause Stop Errors Just by Being Transferred to a New PC?

It's definitely possible that the data you're moving could be causing the errors. When restoring from backups after a malware infection, the risk of reintroducing malware increases. Even files that aren't directly executed can interfere with system processes such as antivirus operations or file indexing, leading to issues. So, while not super common, it's feasible that something in your transferred files is triggering the crashes.

Keep in mind though, just because files are causing problems doesn't mean it's definitely malware. Sometimes, it could be other software issues. Modern malware tends to focus on stealing data rather than crashing systems. You might be dealing with hardware problems instead, especially now that you mention it hasn't crashed since the last format.”,

You might be onto something! Usually, malware can sit in files without being activated, yet still disrupt processes. They might not crash your PC on purpose but could be causing issues indirectly. If you're consistently crashing after restoring specific files, it could help to pinpoint the source. But let’s remember, modern malware aims to steal data in hidden ways, not make your life miserable by crashing your system left and right! So, while it's a possibility, it could also just boil down to your hardware misbehaving as the crashes happened even before transferring data.