Learn what to do if something goes wrong.

Unfortunately, there is no particular way to identify that your computer has been infected with malicious code. Some infections may completely destroy files and shut down your computer, while others may only subtly affect your computer's normal operations. Be aware of any unusual or unexpected behaviors.

Hacking or Computer Virus

If your computer gets hacked or infected by a virus:

immediately unplug the phone or cable line from your machine. Then scan your entire computer with fully updated anti-virus software, and update your firewall.

Take steps to minimize the chances of another incident
alert the appropriate authorities by contacting:

Your ISP and the hacker's ISP (if you can tell what it is). Often the ISP's email address is abuse@yourispname.com or postmaster@yourispname.com. You can probably confirm it by looking at the ISP's website. Include information on the incident from your firewall's log file. By alerting the ISP to the problem on its system, you can help it prevent similar problems in the future.
The FBI at www.ifccfbi.gov. To fight computer criminals, they need to hear from you.

Internet Fraud

If a scammer takes advantage of you through an Internet auction, when you're shopping online, or in any other way, report it to the Federal Trade Commission, at www.ftc.gov. The FTC enters Internet, identity theft, and other fraud-related complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.

Deceptive Spam

If you get deceptive spam, including email phishing for your information, forward it to spam@uce.gov. Be sure to include the full Internet header of the email. In many email programs, the full "Internet header" is not automatically included in forwarded email messages, so you may need to take additional measures to include the full information needed to detect deceptive spam.

Divulged Personal Information

If you believe you have mistakenly given your information to a fraudster, file a complaint at www.ftc.gov, and then visit the Federal Trade Commission's Identity Theft website at www.consumer.gov/idtheft  to learn how to minimize your risk of damage from a potential theft of your identity.