XPAntivirus: what it is and how to remove it

If you did not install XPAntivirus yourself and it is not part of your hardware or a program you rely on, yes. Uninstalling an unwanted program does not harm Windows. Before you do, search the exact name and publisher to be sure it is not a driver tool, a printer utility or a game launcher with an odd name.

Then remove it from Settings, Apps, Installed apps. Ignore any offers or warnings in its uninstaller about losing protection or performance. Afterwards check Startup apps and your browsers for leftovers, and restart once to confirm that it does not reinstall itself.

Something else is reinstalling it. Common causes are a second program from the same publisher, a scheduled task that downloads it again, or a browser extension that keeps prompting for it. Sort Installed apps by install date and uninstall each entry from the same day that you did not choose.

Then open Task Scheduler and look in the Task Scheduler Library for tasks with updater-style names that you do not recognise. Check Startup apps in Task Manager too. If XPAntivirus still returns, start Windows in Safe Mode, uninstall it there and run a Microsoft Defender offline scan, which looks for loaders that ordinary scans can miss.

Close it in Task Manager first, then uninstall it from Settings > Apps > Installed apps (in Windows 10, Apps & features). If it blocks this or restarts itself, start Windows in Safe Mode, where third-party programs do not start automatically, and uninstall from there.

Afterwards run a Microsoft Defender offline scan and delete any leftover folder named after XPAntivirus in C:\Program Files or %AppData%. If nothing works, Windows can be reset while keeping your personal files, which removes the program together with any settings it changed.

End the call and do not let them reconnect. If they installed a remote-access tool, disconnect the PC from the internet and uninstall that tool from Installed apps. Change passwords for e-mail, banking and anything you typed during the call, using another device.

If you paid, contact the bank today for a chargeback. Report the number to the authorities in your country. The program behind XPAntivirus in the list of installed apps still needs removing: follow the plan in this guide, then run a full scan in Windows Security.

No. It looks like one, with a shield, a scan and a list of threats, but XPAntivirus is a rogue antivirus: its scans are designed to find something every time, and every fix leads to a payment page.

A real antivirus detects the same threats consistently, removes them without asking for money first and does not block other security tools. Windows 11 and Windows 10 already include Microsoft Defender in Windows Security, which is enough for most home users. Remove XPAntivirus and keep Defender on.

Anything you could do. Callers working with fake alerts like XPAntivirus typically show you Windows logs as "proof", install their own remote tool for later, and steer you to online banking or a gift card purchase. Some add a password to Windows or lock the PC if you refuse to pay.

Remove every remote access program you did not install yourself, check Settings > Accounts > Other users for new accounts, and change important passwords from a clean device. If you cannot be sure what was changed, a reset of Windows is the safe choice.

No. Real Windows Security notifications appear in the notification area and in the Windows Security app, use Microsoft's design and never ask you to call a phone number or pay to fix anything. What people report is XPAntivirus in the list of installed apps, drawn by a program that copies the look of a system message.

Open Windows Security from the Start menu to see the real status of your PC. If it shows no threats while the window keeps appearing, the window itself is the problem, and the plan in this guide removes the program that shows it.

Usually not. A thorough clean-up is enough when the offline scan finds nothing afterwards and you do not see XPAntivirus in the list of installed apps again. A reset is the safer choice if an attacker had remote control, if security tools were switched off, or if detections come back after every clean-up.

Windows 11 can reset itself without a USB stick under Settings > System > Recovery > Reset this PC. Copy documents and photos out first and scan the copies. A reset does not change passwords or undo stolen data, so the account steps still apply.

Almost certainly not. Refund calls are a well-known second stage of scareware and tech support scams. The caller says you are owed money, asks you to install a remote access program to "process" it, then opens your online banking, makes it look as if too much was refunded and asks you to send the difference back.

Hang up. Real refunds go back to the card or PayPal account you paid with, through your bank or the payment provider, and never need remote access or a gift card.

Fortect scans Windows for malware and unwanted programs and repairs the system files and settings they change, and its free scan shows what it finds on your PC before you decide anything.

For XPAntivirus, follow the plan above as well: the browser steps take back permissions and settings that no scanner treats as a threat, and uninstalling the program that brought it removes the source.

Run Microsoft Defender's full scan and, if anything was found, its offline scan as a second opinion. If the symptoms are gone after the plan and both scans are clean, there is nothing more to do.