A month ago, my computer started slowing down significantly. I thought it might just be due to its age, so I decided to restart it. After rebooting, I noticed all my applications were gone and my wallpaper was black with a weird message saying, 'Something is watching you.' It happened at 2:43 PM, and even though it seemed suspicious, I thought it might be malware or something related to the wallpaper engine I use. I checked for malware using the built-in Windows malware detector, but nothing was found. After a minute, everything went back to normal, and I haven't seen the message again. I'm curious if this means I might have a virus or if there's something more benign happening. Additionally, my PC sometimes turns on and off by itself at night while in sleep mode, which I attributed to my sensitive mouse. Any thoughts on what I should do?
3 Answers
Haunted PC vibes aside, if you're concerned, definitely look into checking your system's Task Manager for what's using resources. Sometimes the signs can be misleading, but being proactive is key.
It sounds like you could have encountered some unexpected behavior from either malware or a feature of your wallpaper engine. I'd suggest uninstalling the wallpaper engine as a precaution and running a thorough malware scan with MalwareBytes. It's quite effective and can detect threats that Windows might miss. Also, make sure your antivirus is up-to-date.
Definitely! MalwareBytes is a great choice. You could also consider doing a full OS wipe if you're really worried about it. Just remember to change your passwords afterward.
That message seems pretty creepy for sure. You should definitely have a good antivirus installed to monitor your PC regularly. It's also worth checking if your power settings are causing the PC to wake up unexpectedly—sometimes it's not just the mouse movement that does it!
Good point about the power settings—I've had similar issues before. Just make sure your antivirus is solid; you don’t want any hidden threats lurking!
Totally agree! Keeping an eye on resource usage can reveal a lot. If you think there's persistent malware, changing your passwords is a must after cleaning up.