How to Scan USB Drives

By Greyson Ferguson

USB drives, such as flash drives and external hard drives, are additional sources of storage space for a computer, capable of transporting data between computer systems. Due to this, however, you also face the risk of obtaining a virus and spreading it to any other computer you connect the USB drive to. Scan the drive with an anti-virus software, just to make sure it's clean.

Download and install the PC Tools AntiVirus Free Editing program (see Resources for link). Connect the USB drive to the computer, then launch the installed software. Choose the USB drive as the device you want to scan for viruses, then click "Scan," and the program looks over the USB drive for any possible viruses or threat files. Once complete, check off all the virus files the scan detects (if any) and click "Remove."

Download and install "Avast Free Antivirus" software (see Resources). Connect the USB drive to the computer, then choose "Current Status" and select the USB drive as the hardware you want scanned. Click "Scan" and the software runs over the hardware, checking for any dangerous files. Click "Select All" once complete, then choose "Remove" to delete the viruses from the USB drive.

Download and install "ESET NOD32 Antivirus" (see Resources). Connect the USB drive to the computer. Launch the program. Select the USB drive as the device you want scanned, and click "OK." The program now scans over the connected USB device. Once complete, select "Choose All," then "Delete," to remove the viruses from the drive.

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