Normally, you can trust the software that comes preinstalled on a new computer. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case with the shopping-search app Superfish, which came installed on every Lenovo device sold between September and December 2014. If you’ve got the Superfish app on your computer, then you need to remove it before it does some superbad damages. Here’s how you do it.
First and foremost, if you’re using Superfish on any of your devices, stop. In fact, even if you’re not using it, if Superfish is simply installed on your computer, it still poses a threat. The threat was discovered by Errata Security, and they say that the app is capable of giving hackers access to a user’s encrypted Web data, which includes fun stuff like online passwords.
Lenovo is apologetic of their mestep and they disabled Superfish on systems that had the app as soon as they got the grim news. While it’s good that Lenovo is fessing up to their mistake and taking action like this, if you’ve got Superfish on your computer, you will need to meet them halfway and remove the app from your device.
Normally, you would be able to remove a threat like this by simply uninstalling the app from the Windows Control Panel. To do this, simply go to to Windows Control Panel > Programs > Uninstall a Program > locate Superfish on the list of programs > select it > and click Uninstall.
However, this isn’t your run-in-the-mill app that can be uninstalled so easily. For Lenovo users, Superfish comes preinstalled, which means it’s categorized as bloatware. If you’ve ever tried to remove bloatware, then you know how tricky it can be (a program like AOL is an infamous example of hard-to-delete bloatware). We would like to point out that when a new computer is purchased directly through ClearView IT, we make sure to remove bloatware that your business doesn’t need, which would bypass a risk like the one presented by the preinstalled-and-unnecessary-to-business Superfish app.
In order to delete all traces of the Superfish app from your computer, Lenovo has just released a downloadable tool along with detailed instructions that’s available on their official support website.
After using this tool, your computer should be completely rid of Superfish. That’s great, but you’ve still got some work to do. In security-compromising situations like this, you will want to run a virus scan with up-to-date virus definitions. In fact, don’t hesitate to run a complete scan on your system any time you smell something fishy.
Another preventive security measure is to change all the passwords associated with the accounts accessed from your machine that had Superfish on it. We understand that doing this may be a bit of a hassle, but this is one case where “better safe than sorry” definitely applies. In fact, we recommend that you get in the habit of cycling out your online passwords every few months. It’s a surefire way to stay ahead of the hackers, especially in today’s digital environment which is ripe for the password pickin.’
For the sake of your company’s network security, it’s crucial that you remove Superfish from your systems. Need assistance making sure the Superfish app is completely removed? ClearView IT can remove malicious programs, apply security patches, run virus scans, monitor a firewall, and much more in order to protect your company’s data. For a free network assessment of your company’s security, call us today at 866-326-7214.
