Can malware get into your system through Windows updates?

I recently had a very nasty virus on my computer and had to reformat. Now Windows updater is telling me there are about 60 updates I need. I have no idea which ones I genuinely need, so I haven't installed any of them. Also, I am worried that this is how the virus got into my computer in the first place. Can malware pose as a Windows update?|||cimmic13 is 100% right you are getting infected because you aren't downloading these updates. By not updating your PC you are leaving your operating system ( Most likely Windows ) exposed to any hacker that has the know how to do it.





What a hacker does is look for Windows exploits on your computer. Once the hacker finds one its very easy for him/her to get the tools necessary to hack into your system and turn it into a zombie.





Then all of hell will break loose on your computer. So please get the updates for everyones sake.





In addition to the personal violation of privacy and inherent dangers that brings, the perpetrator can also use the zombie computer to engage in illegal online activities. A hacker that compromises many computers can combine them into a zombie network, called a “botnet.” The hacker can control the zombies by broadcasting single commands, negating the need to communicate with each target individually. The botnet becomes a kind of army to do the hacker’s bidding. Botnets are used to send spam, attack websites, perpetuate phishing scams, commit click-fraud, and grow larger botnets by infecting new computers that are vulnerable to attack.





Unfortunately, the risk of your system falling victim to a zombie computer attack might be greater than you imagine. In highly publicized reports from 2005, one dismantled botnet controlled by three young men in the Netherlands included 1.5 million zombie computers. In the United States teenagers termed “script kiddies” are competitively building botnets to gain peer recognition, and in 2000, a Canadian 15-year-old boy used zombie drones to bring down several large websites, causing $1.7 million US Dollars in damages.





To minimize the growing threat of becoming assimilated into a drone:





* Keep your anti-spyware and anti-virus software current.


* Use a firewall.


* Delete spam without opening it.


* Avoid installing programs from untrusted sources.


* Don’t allow untrusted websites to install software.


* Keep your operating system and Web browser current with the latest hotfixes.


* Use a good anti-rootkit program weekly to scan for rootkits.


* Back up your system each week after a clean scan.





P.S. Please keep your Windows system updated so the hackers don't use your PC as a zombie. Cause no one will win if that happens.|||Yes, Malware can pose as a Windows Update, however, they do not enter through the Microsoft Windows Update notification tool which is the pop-up your seeing. Malware through a Windows Update file will usually occur when browsing the internet, and you are asked to download a video codec from Windows Update, but, acutally, is not from Microsoft. Install ALL of the security updates, as these will keep 85% of all viruses and exploits off of your pc. Install a good antivirus, choose your choice.


AVG Free Edition - reccomend to install a sperate anti-rootkit detector


Avira Free Antivir


Avast! Home Edition


Microsoft Security Essentials|||Since you re-installed, you have hours of updates to get. normal. Requires many restarts. You will only be able to do so many at a time. ~|||windows updates are not viruses, their microsoft products