What is IDP Generic? Is it a Virus? Is it Harmful?

If you are one of the users that have been using third-party antiviruses like Avast, AVG, and Avira, chances are you have seen a notification telling you that the antivirus found a threat named IDP Generic. If that is the case, then this article is for you.

In this article, I am going to discuss IDP Generic threat that is detected by many antivirus software.

About IDP Generic

This is not limited to just one antivirus. However, Avast users have seen a threat named IDP.Generic. The virus can come with many file types. For some users, they found this in a game file, and for others, it was detected in a python file.

Generally, it is the game files and software downloaded from the internet that are infected with this IDP.Generic virus.

IDP.Generic is a trojan and we know that trojans are never good for the PC. However, it may be confusing for many users as sometimes it is just a false positive detected from your antivirus.

What is a False Positive?

False-positive is when a file is flagged as malware or a virus. But in reality, the file did not have any bad intentions for the user or the PC. This happens when a file has similar properties as that of malware or a virus.

Should I Ignore the IDP.Generic Threat Then?

You should never ignore any threat warnings from your antivirus. If you are getting the IDP.Generic threat warning, chances are that the file contains the trojan and you should fix it.

However, the point to note here is, sometimes it is just a false positive.

The easy way to rule out the possibility of a false positive is by scanning the target file with another antivirus or just run a check online.

VirusTotal is a great site if you want to check a file for any possible threats. All you have to do is just upload the file on the site and the site will conduct an extensive search. The service scans your file across all the popular antivirus software and tells you of any possible threats.

So if the VirusTotal Site doesn’t find any threats, you are all good. However, if the site finds any threats then you should conduct a full scan of your PC.

How Would I Know If I Have the IDP.Generic Virus?

Although the virus is made to avoid detection, it still shows some symptoms when in action. Here are some of the red flags:

• You can clearly observe a significant slowdown of your computer.
• You see that some essential Windows files are missing.
• The computer automatically installs some unwanted software that is very shady without your permission.
• You often see the BSOD(Blue Screen of Death Error).
• Your computer uses excessive RAM even in a normal state.
• You get a warning message every time you start/restart your PC.

How to Avoid Getting IDP Generic?

The thing is everyone uses the internet and they do not even realize when they have downloaded bogus software. Most of the times people don’t even realize that they have the IDP Generic virus and they just see it when their computer slows down significantly and they run a scan.

The problem with going online is that there are few ways to avoid getting viruses on your PC. The sites are designed in such a way that you accidentally click on the wrong download links and then your PC gets infected.

Sometimes people send you emails with attachments and you just download them without realizing that they might be infected.

Another very common case of getting the IDP.Generic virus is through crack software and games. People download them to use a game or software for free but it comes also brings viruses with them. So how can one avoid getting IDP.Generic virus?

• Keep Your Antivirus up to Date: As mentioned earlier, sometimes IDP.Generic is detected as a false positive. This is mainly because of an outdated antivirus database. If you want maximum security, it is always good to keep your antivirus up to date. Doing so ensures that you do not get infected with any new viruses.
• Avoid Click on Shady Links, Popups, and Emails: Popup ads are designed in a way that you always find yourself clicking on them accidentally. Fortunately, you can find some extensions that block or help you avoid clicking on popups. But it is you who should pay attention and no matter how luring a link is, if it seems shady, just don’t click on it. Also, open email attachments only from trusted people.
• Always Download Software from Legit Websites: If you want to get the best out of any software or game, you should only download it from legal channels. Not only do you get the best version of it but also the most secure one. You see the third-party sites that sell crack software and games often conceal viruses with the games. The IDP Generic virus is just a small threat, in many cases, users have completely bricked their computers by installing crack software and a lot have also lost a tremendous amount of money. So beware and only download games and software from legit sites.

Should I Delete the IDP Generic File?

If you are 100% sure that it is not a false positive but a real virus then sure you can delete the IDP Generic file. Just make sure that it is not in the Windows folder otherwise you could lose your OS.

Also, deleting a file containing the IPD.Generic virus from software or game can also corrupt the software or the game. So make sure you do not have the use for the software or the game.

In case you deleting the IDP.Generic virus file isn’t an option, this is what you can do:

Update your Antivirus and Conduct a Full Scan

If you use a third-party antivirus like Avira, AVG, and Avast, just update it to the latest version. I can’t stress enough how important it is for your antivirus to be up to date to detect and eliminate this virus.

Additionally, you can also use some other third-party antivirus to eliminate this threat. So just install a new antivirus and run a full scan. 

Uninstall Software You Do Not Use

We have a lot of software on our systems that we hardly use. You can find a lot of apps on the Microsoft Store that will tell you what software you do not use or use less frequently. You can simply uninstall all of that software and the virus should go.

Rescan Your Computer

Once you uninstall the software that you do not use, again conduct a full extensive scan with up-to-date antivirus and see check if detects the IDP.Generic virus or not. During the rescan make sure that the core files are also scanned as sometimes the virus is also embedded in the core files.

Reset Your PC

If none of the above methods work for you, you have no choice but to reset your PC. Before doing so, just scan your personal and important files and take their backup. After that, you can reset your PC. Just so you know, doing so will delete all of your data.

All you have to do is follow these steps:

• Go to the Windows Search Bar, type “Reset this PC” and hit enter.
• Now click on “Get started” on the right and follow the instructions.

Just make sure that you choose the option to remove all the files during the process.

Closing Phrase

So that was all about the IDP Generic virus. In many cases, it is just a false positive and that is because of an outdated antivirus. You should constantly update your antivirus and make sure that you only download files from safe and trusted sites.

Also Read: What is IDP Alexa 51? Is it a Virus? Is it Harmful?