Trojan-PSW.Win32.Hooker Pop-up is not to be trusted, as it portrays itself as a legitimate security alert message, when in actuality it is merely a tactic employed by the rogue application, Windows PC Defender (WindowsPCDefender), to ensure its goal of goading money from unsuspecting PC users.

As soon as Windows PC Defender is installed and activated on a computer system, it continues to harass the computer user with pop-up message alerts, the likes of Trojan-PSW.Win32.Hooker Pop-up. This particular pop-up message looks like this:

“Warning! Your computer is infected
Warning! Trojan Found!

Threat detected: Trojan

File name: kernal32.exe
Threat name: Trojan-PSW.Win32.Hooker
File at risk of infection: C:/Documents and Settings/User/…

Total Vulnerabilities: 9

Description: This is a password-stealing Trojan. When activated
it installs itself to the system, copies itself to the
Windows or Windows system directory and
registers itself in the system registry auto-run
section.

Recommended: Please click “Remove All” to eliminate all possible threats and protect Your PC Remove All”

Should the user click on the “Remove All” button, they will immediately be redirected to the affiliated website, and be prompted to purchase the full version of Windows PC Defender. Do NOT click this button!

As soon as a computer begins to show the following symptoms, chances are the system has been infiltrated by a rogue application, and should be attended to ASAP:

• Annoying Pop-Up Advertisements
• Changes in Internet Settings
• Changes Web Browser Components
• Decrease in System Speeds
• Slow computer performance
• New desktop shortcuts or switched homepage
• Displays of false positives/fake alerts

Although manual removal is sometimes best, this process should be left to the PC user that knows their way around the system’s registry.

It may be more beneficial to simply use an up to date and fully operational antispyware application, to combat the infection and get rid of Trojan-PSW.Win32.Hooker Pop-up and the affiliated rogue application.