I have an old HP Pavilion from around 2015 that I used to play PC games on. After years of inactivity, I decided to revive it as it was stuck in a login loop. I thought installing Linux could help. I initially flashed Ubuntu onto a new 64GB USB stick using Rufus, but the installation failed with screen glitches and freezes. Then, I tried using Kali Linux, which led to Windows Defender on my main laptop flagging multiple threats from the USB drive, including backdoors and Trojans. I suspect there was something persistent on my old HP that spread to the USB and possibly infected my main laptop. Now I'm worried that my main laptop's data, including passwords, might be compromised. I've unplugged both systems and disconnected them from the internet. I'm wondering: 1) How likely is it that my old Pavilion had a rootkit that infected the USB and spread to my main laptop? 2) Can I trust my main laptop again, or should I just do a BIOS reset? 3) Were the malware alerts just false positives triggered by Kali's tools, or signs of real infections? 4) Should I just give up on fixing the old HP Pavilion?
1 Answer
If you're worried about malware, the safest approach is to do a clean install of Windows 11. Make sure to back up your important files first. Use a new USB drive to create the install media, and ideally, do this on a different, clean machine to avoid risking reinfection. Your data on the USB will be wiped, but this is the best way to start fresh. Also, don’t forget to keep your antivirus updated after the reinstall!
Will do! But how do you think my USB got infected to begin with? Was it from the old computer or from trying to install Linux?