How Can I Tell if My Laptop Has Spyware from My Old Job?
Asked by
CuriousCat99
I'm in a bit of a tough spot here. I used my personal laptop for work in a job that didn't provide equipment, and after leaving, I couldn't afford to get rid of the laptop. I wiped it clean using 'clean' and 'clean all', then reinstalled Windows 11, but now I'm worried that my old employer might have planted spyware or a keylogger on it. My laptop's CPU is hitting 100% frequently, and it feels pretty sluggish. To make matters worse, I discovered six 'admin' accounts on the laptop, most marked with a $ symbol and loaded with permissions that make it impossible for me to delete them. Can there be something lurking in the BIOS? What steps can I take to ensure I'm spyware-free? Please break it down for me since I don't have much tech knowledge, as I've mainly been using this laptop for translation and proofreading. Thanks a bunch!
Answers
The best way to start is by creating a bootable USB drive with Windows 11 on it. Once you have that, fully reinstall Windows from scratch. This method is more thorough than just resetting the system and should wipe any spyware that might be hiding. For the CPU issues, could you share your laptop specs? Sometimes older or cheaper models struggle to run Windows 11 smoothly.
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Reinstalling from a USB is indeed the way to do a clean wipe of Windows. The built-in reset options might not eliminate everything, and there’s a chance things will still linger. I recommend checking out some guides on the sub wiki for detailed steps on how to perform this correctly.
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You might be facing issues due to a Mobile Device Management (MDM) setup if your previous employer enrolled your laptop with something like Microsoft Intune. Even after a clean install, it could still be manageable from their end. It would be a good idea to reach out to the IT department of your former workplace and ask them to remove your device from that management system if that's the case.
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CuriousCat99: My laptop is an Asus Vivobook S14 with an Intel Core i7-8565U, 8 GB of RAM, and a 256 GB SSD, along with an Nvidia Geforce MX150. I spent a good amount on it, which is why I'm keen on keeping it. I've already done the USB reinstall, but I found those pesky hidden admin accounts afterwards.