(916) 627-1818 Get a Repair Quote
  • Virus & Malware Removal
  • Elk Grove, CA

Malware Cleanup · Elk Grove and Sacramento

Something is running that you didn't start.

Adware, crypto miners, rootkits, hijacked browsers, compromised email accounts. We work the machine at the bench in Elk Grove, remove what is on it, and show you the door it came through.

Call (916) 627-1818
  • Elk Grove, CA 8145 Elk Grove Blvd, Suite 12, Elk Grove, CA 95758
  • Mon-Fri 10-5, Sat 10-3 Shop hours
  • Work done in-house By our own technicians at our Elk Grove shop
  • (916) 627-1818 Call or request a callback
“My computer was hacked and I had so many viruses that it was inoperable. They did a terrific job removing the viruses and reloaded Windows 11. Thank you Hammad and his tech team.”
Google review

Symptoms We See

The reports we get most.

Malware is written to stay out of sight, so nobody walks in announcing a rootkit. They walk in describing one of these instead.

Virus and malware removal is part of our computer repair service in Elk Grove.

  1. It got slow and stayed slow

    A machine that was fine last month and now stalls on simple tasks is often working for somebody else. Miners and background droppers sit on the processor all day.

  2. Ads where ads should not be

    Alerts on the desktop with no browser open, a scan warning from software you never installed, searches landing somewhere you did not pick. Adware or a hijacked browser.

  3. Your contacts got mail you never sent

    Reset messages you did not request, a password that suddenly stopped working, replies to something you never wrote. Somebody else is using the account.

  4. Files renamed and locked

    Documents that will not open, an unfamiliar extension on everything, a note demanding payment. Leave the machine off, bring it in, and do not pay.

  5. The machine moves on its own

    A webcam light with nothing open, a cursor that drifts, windows appearing while you watch. Remote access tools behave exactly like this.

  6. You rang the number in the warning

    Those pop-ups exist to get you on the phone and get a stranger onto your desktop. If somebody connected, we look at what they installed and what they opened.

  7. Your protection keeps switching off

    Defender turning itself off, updates refusing to install, System Restore greyed out. Malware disables the tools that would find it, and that pattern is the tell.

  8. Software you never chose

    A toolbar in the browser, a tune-up utility nobody asked for, extensions holding permissions you would not grant. Usually bundled junk riding along with something else.

  9. It started after a download

    Cracked installers, throwaway converter sites and codec packs remain one of the most dependable ways to infect a Windows machine. If the trouble began right after one, say so.

  10. Updates fail with odd errors

    Windows Update is a standing target, because a patched machine is harder to hold on to. Repeated failures there are worth looking into rather than living with.

  11. The phone is acting up too

    Android malware is rarer than the PC kind but real: battery draining, apps you did not install, permissions handed to something unfamiliar. Bring the phone as well.

  12. You bought it secondhand

    A used laptop from a marketplace listing can arrive with old accounts, remote tools and leftover software on it. Worth clearing before you sign in to anything that matters.

What We Work On

Platforms on the bench.

What a machine picks up depends on the platform. How the job runs does not: work out what is running, find what keeps it alive through a reboot, take it off, then look at the settings that let it in.

  • Windows 10 & 11

    Rootkits, ransomware, miners and hijacked browsers. Windows 10 systems can still be serviced. Windows 11 is recommended on supported systems for ongoing security and support.

  • macOS

    Mac adware, fake cleanup utilities, Safari search hijacks, and configuration profiles that quietly put themselves back.

  • Laptops

    Windows and Mac portables, including the ones that only misbehave once they are back on your own network.

  • Desktops & towers

    Home towers, office machines and custom builds, including systems nobody has signed in to for a long while.

  • Email accounts

    Gmail, Outlook and Yahoo: changing what the intruder knows, then checking the forwarding and filter rules left behind.

  • Browsers

    Chrome, Edge, Safari and Firefox: extensions, search providers, managed policies, and shortcuts edited to reopen the same page.

  • Android phones

    Sideloaded apps, permissions given to the wrong thing, and where it comes to that, a reset with your data moved off first.

  • Business networks

    When several machines in one office show the same symptoms, they get looked at as a group. Business support is available in-shop, remote and on-site.

The Process

From drop-off to pickup.

One scanner finding one file is not a cleanup. The part that decides whether it worked is persistence: whatever starts the malware again after a restart. That is what gets hunted.

  1. Drop it off

    Walk-ins welcome. Appointments welcome. Quote requests welcome. Tell us what you saw, roughly when it began, and anything you clicked or installed. That detail saves real work at the bench.

  2. Find what is actually running

    Several scanning engines, then the manual half: running processes, startup entries, scheduled tasks, services, browser extensions, and the registry keys or LaunchAgents that bring it all back after a reboot.

  3. You hear the findings first

    We go through what was found and what removing it involves, including whether a clean operating system install is the more sensible route. Every repair is quoted after inspection, before any work starts.

  4. Remove, then re-check

    The infection comes off, protection goes on with a product you are willing to keep, outstanding updates are applied, and the machine is re-tested before it goes back to you.

How We Compare

What a thorough job covers.

There are three usual ways to deal with an infected computer. This is roughly what each one gets you.

Virus & Malware Removal: iGeek compared with the alternatives

Several engines plus a manual audit
Both, every time
Browser extensions and search settings
Checked and reset
Settings and updates reviewed afterward
Part of the job
How long it takes
Ask about turnaround when you check in; it depends on the repair and parts availability.
Says when a rebuild is the better option
You will hear it

In Their Words

Customers on how it went.

Read our reviews on Google (opens in a new tab)

  • My computer was hacked and I had so many viruses that it was inoperable. They did a terrific job removing the viruses and reloaded Windows 11 and the OS files. Thank you Hammad and his tech team for spending so much time on my computer. It is working great!

    Hacked Windows user ComputerVirus removalNov 2025 Google review

  • In the past, I used iGeek for my Mac and now for my windows OS computers. I was 'OUCH!' hacked and once again, was very happy with the service. They cleaned the malware from my Dell desktop computer and my Lenovo laptop computer and installed anti-virus software; both are running efficiently, no more issues!

    Multi-device customer Mac & WindowsVirus removalAug 2024 Google review

  • Hammad at iGeek has single handedly saved three different laptops and a PC (Mac, and HP) from viruses, slow speeds, and even drink spillage on one! He has consistently been efficient with every single one of my devices. iGeek's scope of practice seems infinite, as they have always been able to resolve my issues.

    Repeat customer Multiple devicesVirus removalMay 2024 Google review

  • My computer was hacked but iGeek came to the rescue and removed the malware. They gave me ideas to avoid this happening again.

    Shelly Elk GroveComputerVirus removalMay 2024 Google review

  • Got hacked and had iGeek check and clean. Quick, easy, and the guys were nice. They even checked up with me a few days later to make sure everything was good. Will certainly use them again for computer related issues. Nice to support local businesses.

    Cleanup customer ComputerCleaning serviceApr 2024 Google review

  • iGeek was fast and efficient in fixing my computer problems. My email was hacked and they cleared the viruses and were readily available for any questions I had. Thanks for being such a friendly company.

    Email hack victim ComputerVirus removalSep 2025 Google review

Two Routes

Remove it, or rebuild it.

Most infected machines can be cleaned with your files and programs left exactly where they are. A few reach parts of the system nobody can audit with confidence, and those are better rebuilt. You will hear which one your machine calls for, and why.

Most cases

Cleaned in place

Your files, applications and settings stay put while the infection is taken off. This covers the majority of what comes through the door.

  • Adware, pop-ups and hijacked search
  • Spyware, keyloggers and crypto miners
  • Tune-up utilities nobody chose to install
  • Leftovers from cracked or repacked installers
  • Email account secured again
  • Browser extensions and policies reviewed
  • Antivirus reinstalled and configured
  • Outstanding updates and risky settings addressed
When trust is gone

Wiped and reinstalled

Some infections get into places you cannot inspect with any certainty. Wiping the drive and putting the operating system on fresh is the honest answer there, rather than scrubbing and hoping.

  • Ransomware that damaged the system itself
  • Boot-level malware, once confirmed
  • Windows system files that have been altered
  • The same infection turning up more than once
  • A secondhand machine with unknown history
  • Office computers that handled customer records

Where a reinstall is the right call, your data is copied off first if the drive allows it, the operating system goes on clean, and your files are put back onto the rebuilt system.

Cost

How the price is worked out.

There is no single number for this, because it is not the same job twice. Clearing a hijacked browser and rebuilding a machine after ransomware sit at opposite ends of the scale, and no one can tell those apart from a description over the phone.

So every machine starts on the bench. Computer diagnostic: $49 for Macs and everyday Windows laptops and desktops, $99 for gaming PCs, gaming laptops, custom-built PCs, liquid damage, data recovery and board repair, credited toward the repair when you approve it. Every repair is quoted after inspection, before any work starts.

If the sensible answer turns out to be a clean install rather than a cleanup, you will hear that, along with what it means for your files and your programs.

Frequently Asked

Asked at the counter, answered here.

I let a fake support pop-up connect to my computer. What now?
Shut the machine down, bring it in, and change the passwords on anything important from a different device. Those callers normally leave a remote access tool behind, and they tend to go through documents and browser sessions while they are connected. We look at what was installed, what was opened, and what still has a way back in.
Can you get rid of ransomware?
The malware itself, yes. Files it already encrypted are a separate question, and the only real answers there are a backup made before the infection or accepting the loss. Do not pay. Bring the machine in and we will tell you what state the data is in.
What does virus removal cost?
It depends entirely on what turns up. Computer diagnostic: $49 for Macs and everyday Windows laptops and desktops, $99 for gaming PCs, gaming laptops, custom-built PCs, liquid damage, data recovery and board repair, credited toward the repair when you approve it. Every repair is quoted after inspection, before any work starts.
How long will you have my computer?
Ask about turnaround when you check in; it depends on the repair and parts availability. Scans and the manual audit behind them take as long as they take, and cutting that short is how an infection ends up back on the machine.
Is it worth cleaning, or should I just replace the computer?
An infection on its own is rarely a reason to buy a new machine. If the hardware is failing as well, that is a different conversation, and we would rather have it with you than clean a computer that is on its way out.
What happens to my files while you have it?
The machine stays in the shop and the work is done here. If a clean install is needed, your data is copied off first where the drive allows it, and put back once the system is rebuilt.
Will there be antivirus on it when I collect it?
Yes. Protection is installed and set up before the machine leaves, using a product you are happy to keep running. We also go over the updates and settings that made the computer an easy target to begin with.
Someone is sending email as me. Can you sort that out?
Yes. That usually traces back to a reused password, an extension with more access than it needed, or malware on the computer itself. We work out which, secure the account again, and deal with the cause rather than just the symptom.
Several office machines are doing the same thing. Do you handle that?
Yes. Business support is available in-shop, remote and on-site. Call before you start unplugging things, so the machines can be looked at together and any shared source found.

Next Step

Bring it in.

Come by the Elk Grove shop, give us a call, or send the details and we will get back to you.

Call (916) 627-1818

8145 Elk Grove Blvd, Suite 12, Elk Grove, CA 95758 | Mon-Fri 10-5, Sat 10-3

How we work

  1. Quoted before we start

    Every repair is quoted after inspection, before any work starts. Diagnostic fee quoted at check-in and applied to your repair if you proceed.

  2. Parts explained first

    We'll explain your part options before you decide.

  3. Local, in-house repairs

    Repairs are done at our Elk Grove shop by our own technicians. Ask about turnaround when you check in; it depends on the repair and parts availability.

  4. After the repair

    Ask about our repair warranty; terms are printed on your repair ticket.

Get a Repair Quote Call

Get a callback

Drop your name and number. A technician at our Elk Grove shop will reach out.