Malware Removal Tools and Quick Tips for Windows, Mac, and Android

Key Features of Malware Removal Tools 

Malware scanners and removers are tools that are designed to detect and eliminate malware from a computer. Some key features of these tools include:

• Detection: Malware scanners use various methods to detect malware on a computer, including signature-based detection, heuristics, and behavior-based detection. Signature-based detection involves searching for specific patterns or “signatures” associated with known malware. Heuristics involve analyzing the behavior of a piece of software to determine if it exhibits characteristics typical of malware. Behavior-based detection involves monitoring the behavior of a program or process to see if it performs any actions that are typically associated with malware.
• Removal: Once malware is detected, a malware remover will typically attempt to remove the malware from the infected system. This may involve deleting the malware files, repairing any damage caused by the malware, and restoring any settings that may have been changed by the malware.
• Scheduled scanning: Many malware scanners allow you to schedule regular scans of your system to ensure that it is continuously protected against new threats.
• Real-time protection: Some malware scanners offer real-time protection, which means that they will continuously monitor your system for any suspicious activity and block any potential threats in real time.
• Quarantine: Some malware scanners have a quarantine feature that allows you to isolate potentially malicious files and prevent them from executing or spreading within your system. This can be useful if you are not sure whether a particular file is malicious or not, as it allows you to remove the file from your system without deleting it permanently.
• Update: To stay effective, malware scanners and removers need to be regularly updated with the latest definitions and signatures for new malware threats. Many tools offer automatic updates to ensure that you are always protected against the latest threats.
• System Repair and Recovery:  Advanced removal tools can repair corrupted system files, reset altered configurations, and restore security policies to baseline. This is particularly important after infections involving rootkits or ransomware remnants.
• Reporting and Forensic Logging: Effective tools document detection events, file hashes, process trees, network connections, and remediation actions. These logs can be ingested into SIEM systems for correlation and further threat hunting.

There are two main types of malware removal tools: on-premise and online. On-premise tools are installed on a computer and run locally, while online tools are accessed through a web browser and run on a remote server.

Some factors to consider when choosing a malware removal tool:

• Behavioral and signature-based analysis: Both of these methods can be used to detect malware. Behavioral analysis involves analyzing the behavior of a piece of software to determine if it exhibits characteristics typical of malware. Signature-based analysis involves searching for specific patterns or “signatures” associated with known malware. Together, they can help to more accurately identify malware, as they take into account both the behavior and characteristics of a piece of software.
• Automatic flagging: This feature allows a malware scanner to automatically identify and flag potentially malicious files or activity. This can be useful for quickly identifying and isolating potential threats, as it reduces the need for manual analysis and intervention.
• Grayware sandboxing: Sandboxing is a technique that involves running a program or process in a simulated environment where it can be safely analyzed without affecting the rest of the system. This can be useful for analyzing grayware, which is software that is not necessarily malicious but may exhibit unwanted or suspicious behavior.
• Offsite backup: Backing up data on a separate physical location or server can protect data from being lost or destroyed in the event of a disaster, such as a fire or natural disaster, at the primary location. It can also provide an additional layer of security, as the data is not stored on the same system as the original data, which can help to prevent it from being accessed or compromised by malware.
• Windows offers built-in protection, like Microsoft Defender,  advanced firewalls, performance optimization, and identity protection. These are intended to help provide a first layer of defense, as Windows devices are major targets for malware attacks. macOS is perceived as more secure, due to its Unix-based architecture and Apple’s stringent app screening processes. On the other hand, functionality on macOS is limited compared to what you get on Windows and Android for many third-party solutions. Android provides app sandboxing and the Google Play Protect built-in scanner to provide baseline protection. It is considered more vulnerable than iOS due to its open ecosystem.

Related content: Read our guide to malware prevention

How to Remove Malware for Windows PCs 

There are several ways to remove malware on Windows 10 and 11. Microsoft Defender is the built-in antivirus software for Windows 10 and 11. To use Microsoft Defender to scan for and remove malware:

1. Open the Start menu and type “Microsoft Defender” into the search bar.
2. Click on “Microsoft Defender Security Center” to open the app.
3. Click on the “Virus & threat protection” tile.
4. Click on “Scan options” and select “Full scan”.
5. Click on “Scan now” to begin the scan.
6. If Microsoft Defender detects any malware, it will display a list of the detected threats and give you the option to remove them.

In addition to Microsoft Defender, you can also use third-party antivirus software to scan for and remove malware. NGAV, or next-generation antivirus, is a type of antivirus software that uses advanced techniques to detect and remove malware, including machine learning and behavioral analysis. 

How to Remove Malware for Mac 

First, you’ll want to understand which apps are taking up a disproportionate amount of resources. To do this, open “Activity Manager” in Launchpad to evaluate how different applications and processes are performing. Try to identify programs that might be malware—these are apps that run in the background, take up a lot of memory, and constantly interact with the network. Remove suspicious apps by killing the process and moving the app to the trash.

Conduct a quick search for .DMG files—DMG files are containers for macOS applications. Attackers often insert executable .DMG files into harmless downloads such as video and audio clips. Keep an eye out for this potential malware indicator in the Downloads folder.

Avoid browser pop-ups, as these are a common way to distribute malware. Fortunately, it can be easily prevented. Chrome has a built-in pop-up blocker, and the Apple Safari browser lets users block pop-ups from the Safari Settings > Security menu.

Disable suspicious Login Items—malware can often include itself in the boot cycle and initialize along with other legitimate applications. This malware can be removed through the System Preferences utility. Select Users & Groups, click the administrator username, and click Login Items. This lists all automatically initialized applications—identify and remove potentially malicious files.

How to Remove Malware for Android 

Here are the steps involved in removing malware on an Android device:

1. Identify signs of infection: There are several signs that an Android device may be infected with malware, including:
2. Unfamiliar apps the user did not install
3. Pop-up ads that appear unexpectedly
4. Changes to the device’s settings or home screen
5. Poor device performance or battery life
6. Unfamiliar charges on the mobile phone bill

If you notice any of these signs, it is possible that the device has been infected with malware.

• Download Google Play Protect: Google Play Protect is a security feature that is built into the Google Play Store and is designed to protect Android devices from malware. To download it:
• Open the Google Play Store app on the device.
• Tap the three horizontal lines in the top left corner of the screen to open the menu.
• Tap on “Play Protect” to open the Play Protect screen.
• Tap on the Download button to download and install Google Play Protect.
• Use the device in safe mode: Safe mode is a diagnostic mode that disables third-party apps and enables troubleshooting problems on the device. To use a device in safe mode:
• Press and hold the power button until the power menu appears.
• Tap and hold the “Power off” option until the “Reboot to safe mode” prompt appears.
• Tap “OK” to restart the device in safe mode.
• Once in safe mode, you can identify and remove any suspicious apps that may be causing problems on the device.
• Report suspicious activity: If you suspect that a device has been infected with malware, report the activity to Google by:
• Going to the Google Play Protect section in the Google Play Store app.
• Tapping on the App details button next to the suspicious app.
• Tapping on the Report button and following the prompts to report the suspicious activity.
• By reporting suspicious activity, you can help Google identify and remove malicious apps from the Google Play Store.

Free Malware Removal Tools: Pros and Cons

Malware poses a serious risk, yet many organizations and users still rely on free removal tools. This is often due to budget constraints, limited awareness, or the appeal of simple, no-cost solutions. While these tools can serve specific needs, their capabilities are typically limited.

Pros:
Free malware removal tools are often basic scanners, suitable for identifying and cleaning up known threats on individual systems. They can be useful for:

• One-time or reactive scans to confirm infection or clean residual malware.
• Lightweight use cases, where system resources are limited.
• Supplemental analysis, offering a secondary opinion alongside another security product.

Cons:
However, free tools come with major limitations:

• No real-time protection: They cannot prevent infections, only remove them after compromise.
• Limited detection scope, often lacking heuristic and behavioral analytics.
• Slower or manual updates, creating gaps in coverage for zero-day or emerging threats.
• Minimal remediation capabilities, typically unable to repair registry or system-level damage.
• No centralized management or reporting, making them unsuitable for enterprise-scale environments.

In short, free tools serve as reactive, single-endpoint utilities rather than proactive defense layers.

Paid Malware Removal Tools: Pros and Cons

Pros:
Paid solutions offer a significant operational and security advantage, extending beyond simple removal to full lifecycle protection.

• Real-Time Threat Prevention: Continuous background scanning prevents malware execution rather than merely detecting it after infection.
• Ransomware and Exploit Shielding: Premium products integrate behavior-based ransomware protection, rollback capabilities, and exploit mitigation layers.
• Web and Email Protection: Paid versions often include URL filtering, phishing detection, and malicious attachment scanning, addressing two of the most common attack vectors.
• Automated Updates and Threat Intelligence: Regular cloud-synchronized updates ensure the latest detection signatures and behavioral models are always active.
• Comprehensive System Repair: Paid tools restore corrupted system settings, disable persistence mechanisms, and perform registry or startup cleanup.
• Centralized Management and Reporting: Enterprise-grade paid tools offer dashboards, SIEM integration, and remote deployment, supporting SOC workflows and compliance audits.
• Customer Support and Response: Commercial licenses include vendor support, which accelerates incident response and troubleshooting during active compromises.

Cons:
The primary downside is cost, particularly for small organizations or home users. Some products may also introduce performance overhead due to continuous scanning. However, these are typically outweighed by the protection and efficiency gained.

When to Use Each

• Free tools suffice for personal or lab systems, forensic verification, or single-instance cleanup after an isolated infection.
• Paid tools are non-negotiable in any environment requiring real-time defense, ransomware protection, compliance reporting, or centralized management. Essentially, any enterprise or production network.

Malware Removal Tools for Challenging Scenarios

As cyber threats continue to evolve, modern malware is designed to evade traditional defenses, embed itself deeply within systems, and resist standard cleanup methods. Conventional removal tools often struggle against these advanced infections. This is particularly common in those involving fileless malware, persistent rootkits, or multi-stage attacks that reintroduce themselves after removal. To stay protected, both organizations and individuals need tools and strategies capable of identifying, isolating, and eradicating these complex threats without disrupting business continuity.

Below, we explore two challenging malware scenarios and outline effective approaches for addressing them.

Use Case #1: Dealing with Ransomware, Rootkits, Persistent Malware & Boot Sector Infections

These types of malware burrow deep into the operating system or even the hardware level. These cases need deep system-level scanning, kernel analysis, and sometimes even offline or external intervention to fully remove the infection and repair damage.:

• Ransomware locks or encrypts files and demands payment for decryption. Removing it requires isolating the system to stop lateral spread and using specialized decryptors after safely cleaning the infection.
• Rootkits hide themselves within the OS kernel, making them invisible to regular antivirus scans. Removal often requires trusted, low-level tools that can detect kernel modifications or unusual driver behavior.
• Persistent malware is designed to reappear after deletion by regenerating processes, using scheduled tasks, or reinstalling itself through registry hooks. Effective tools must detect and eliminate persistence mechanisms as well as the primary payload.
• Boot sector infections compromise the Master Boot Record or EFI partition, which means the malware loads before the operating system. These infections require specialized tools that can scan and repair the boot sector before Windows even starts.

Use Case #2: Tools with Offline Boot Scanning or Rescue Disk Capabilities

Some malware hides so effectively that it can’t be removed while the infected system is running. Offline boot scanning tools solve this by running outside of the infected OS. They work like this:

1. Create a rescue disk or bootable USB with a trusted malware removal environment.
2. Boot the infected system using this clean environment.
3. The scanner runs before the OS and malware processes load, giving it unrestricted access to system files and the ability to remove deeply embedded threats.

This method prevents malware from defending itself or re-infecting cleaned files and is essential for dealing with infections that manipulate the system kernel or boot sequence.

Maintaining Device Hygiene After Malware Removal

Successfully removing malware is only the first step. And keeping your system clean and secure afterward is just as important. Post-removal hygiene ensures that no residual threats remain, prevents reinfection, and strengthens your overall security posture. Even a single overlooked setting, outdated patch, or synced file can allow malware to resurface.

Use the following checklist to restore and maintain a healthy, secure environment after malware removal:

• Change all passwords, including email, banking, work logins, and more.
• Scan and check other connected devices, even phones, tablets, USB drives, and IoT devices.
• Update OS and software with the latest security patches and ensure antivirus definitions are current.
• Review browser extensions and startup apps, and remove unknown or suspicious ones.
• Disable or reformat external drives used during infection.
• Monitor system and account activity. Look for unauthorized logins, slow performance, or network spikes.
• Check cloud sync folders to ensure no infected files were uploaded or shared.
• Back up the clean system to create a new restore point or image for future recovery.

Advanced Malware Protection with Cynet

The Cynet Unified, AI-Powered cybersecurity platform provides protection against threats, including zero-day attacks, advanced persistent threats (APT), advanced malware, and trojans that can evade traditional signature-based security measures.

Block exploit-like behavior

Cynet monitors endpoints’ memory to discover behavioral patterns that are typical of exploitation. These patterns are common to the vast majority of exploits, whether known or new, and provide effective protection even from zero-day exploits.

Block exploit-derived malware

Cynet employs multi-layered malware protection powered by CyAI, its AI SOC Agent that drives autonomous threat prevention, detection, investigation and response. Built and continuously trained on millions of real-world samples, it features ML-based statistical analysis, and process behavior monitoring to learn, adapt, and act to stop malware at the endpoint without uploading to an analysis sandbox. The platform provides fuzzy hashing and threat intelligence, ensuring that even if a successful zero-day exploit establishes a connection with the attacker and downloads additional malware, it’s prevented from running, so no harm can be done.

Uncover hidden threats

Cynet uses an adversary-centric methodology to accurately detect threats throughout the attack chain. Cynet thinks like an adversary, detecting behaviors and indicators across endpoints, files, users, and networks. They provide a holistic account of the operation of an attack, irrespective of where the attack may try to penetrate.

Accurate and precise

Cynet uses a powerful correlation engine and provides its attack findings with near-zero false positives, and is free from excessive noise. This simplifies the response for security teams so they can react to important incidents.

You can carry out automatic or manual remediation, so your security teams have a highly effective yet straightforward way to detect, disrupt, and respond to advanced threats before they have a chance to do damage.

Learn more about Cynet’s AI-powered, Next-Generation Antivirus (NGAV) Solution.