How Do I Apply The Conficker Patch?

There has been a recent wave of panic attack regarding the Conficker worm. Although it is a dangerous worm, infection can be prevented and cured with proper precautions and measures.

So did here I hear someone ask, “How do I apply the Conficker patch?” This article lists the main ways to apply the Conficker patch.

The main Conficker patch is the patch released by Microsoft that fixes the vulnerability in Windows networking. It is very important to have this patch installed in order to be completely safe from the Conficker virus.

The Conficker patch can be downloaded from Microsoft’s site and used to patch the system manually. If you pc has been running automatic updates all this while, your Windows computer should have the patch installed already.

If you are still unsure of whether the patch has been properly applied or not, you can do a very simple thing. Run the windows update software and make sure that you have installed all the available updates for your system.

Remember that this patch only prevents the Conficker worm from entering your system from the Internet and spreading through your network. To have a full prevention ready, make sure that you have disabled the Autorun or Autoplay feature on your Windows system.

There are several free Conficker detection and removal tools available for free on the Internet from several security websites. You can use these to find out if you have a Conficker infection.

Microsoft has a lengthy step-by-step guide for removing the worm and preventing a re-infection. In case you see that you have been infected, apply the patch after all the removal and prevention steps have been taken. Following Microsoft’s guidelines exactly would be a good idea when recovering from an infection.