You May Lose Your Internet on July 9 — Here’s How to Fix It

Last year, the FBI took down the servers of hackers operating out of Estonia. But not before the international criminals had successfully turned off virus updates and redirected many to fraudulent websites, according to the Better Business Bureau.

So they wouldn't interrupt service, the FBI "set up clean servers to replace the ones that were running the scam, and victims have been redirected to those clean servers ever since, usually without any knowledge they’d been infected in the first place."

What does this mean to you?

Originally the rescue servers were to be active until March, but a court ruling extended the program until July 9. At that time the clean servers will be turned off and anyone who is still infected with the malware will lose their internet access. The FBI believes there are still about 360,000 infected computers in a dozen countries, including the U.S. and Canada.

Here is what Katherine Hutt, spokesperson for the Council of Better Business Bureaus says you should do by July 9:

Everyone should check to see if their computer is infected. It takes less than a minute to check and, if your equipment is clean, there is nothing more you need to do. If your computer is infected, the DNS Changer Working Group recommends the necessary steps to save your computer. But this must be done by July 9 or you could lose internet access.

Click here for step-by-step instructions on how ensure your computer is clean, and if not how to clear it.