If the virus affected one or several files, you will remove its effects while keeping the data that were affected. If a legitimate file — like something you store in My Documents — was compromised, chances are you will still have access to it if the cleanup is successful.
The sooner you do that, the more you can expect to minimize the damages. You relocate it to a specific area of your device, one that is isolated and kept under control by your antivirus software. But its harmful effects are blocked until you give your antivirus further instructions on how to proceed with it.
Sadly, I cannot give you an exact answer either. Specifically, traditional virus infections are usually best tackled with a simple clean up. If you have a decent antivirus, it should be able to clean the virus infection from all of the infected files. And have peace of mind that there will be no further complications. Consequently, it might be safer to choose the quarantine option or the delete option. In other words, instead of trying to track down and clean up all the places where the virus moves, you prevent it from moving.
You either quarantine it, allowing the antivirus to inspect the file and collect relevant data. Or you delete it from your device. Also, notably, if you have a security suite in place and the antivirus is giving you a specific instruction. If all your programs are running fine, and your system isn't crashing, you can happily delete those files. You may find files in quarantine that surprise you: files that have been on your computer a long time, or files that a program needs in order to run.
These may be the victims of a false alarm. If a program won't run because a file is in quarantine, use your discretion before restoring it or adding it to exceptions. Read up about the suspected virus and see if it makes sense.
Very often, you can send that file to the support team behind your antivirus and they can check it out. If it is a false alarm, they can teach their antivirus program to recognize it. A quarantined virus is perfectly harmless while in quarantine. It cannot run, and it's well hidden. Human nature, of course, would prefer it entirely off the premises, so once you're sure it's not a file your computer needs — delete!
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We and our partners process data to: Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Depending on the software, you can choose between a basic scan or a full scan. The difference usually has to do with the depth and breadth of the scan. With a basic scan, it may only scan major files to save time, while a deeper scan will usually take longer as it scans every file on your computer.
If an infected file is found, it may be sent automatically to quarantine or you may be given a prompt to decide what to do with the infected files. It depends on the antivirus you use, and your software settings. When an antivirus places an infected file in quarantine, it deletes the file from its original location and makes changes to it so that it cannot run as a program.
It then transfers it to a hidden folder that other programs or yourself as the user cannot access where it stays until you choose to deal with it. Quarantined files are not deleted unless you want them to be. As mentioned above, quarantining a suspicious file merely relocates the infected file into a safe space on your computer. You will need to instruct your antivirus to delete the file or otherwise delete it yourself manually. You can keep a file in quarantine indefinitely, but if an important file that is infected, you should place it in quarantine and clean it.
While quarantining a virus is safe and the best course of action for infected files, there is always the risk of your antivirus making a false alert and quarantining a system file that your computer needs to run effectively.
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