Has your keyboard started acting out, or are you worried about reconnecting an old or flawed keyboard to a new computer in case it’s carrying a virus? Regardless of what’s brought you to us, we’re going to take a look at how malware affects the computer’s peripherals and whether or not viruses can be stored in the keyboard.
Computer viruses, also known as malware, are often designed to gain access to valuable information by infecting the computer.
The most successful viruses run in the background, preventing the user from noticing that something’s going on until the virus has achieved its goal.
Interfering with the computer’s keyboard or mouse will raise suspicion and lead to very little profit for the hackers, in comparison to larger viruses, such as Trojans.
With that said, should you worry about your keyboard having a virus? Will that virus transfer to other units?
A keyboard is a hardware component and is, therefore, not really infected with viruses. However, the keyboard can be affected by a virus because the computer that the keyboard is connected to can get a virus that interferes with the keyboard’s drivers. When the keyboard is removed from the computer, the keyboard is free from virus, as the virus has affected the computer, not the keyboard.
Technically speaking, a keyboard is able to hold a virus if someone replaces some of the components in the keyboard and then transfers the virus to the computer through the dongle or something along those lines.
This has, however, not happened as far as I’m concerned and unless someone who has access to your keyboard is trying to target you specifically, you shouldn’t need to worry about this.
Generally speaking, a virus that’s designed to affect the computer’s keyboard will not be of much harm – but can be quite frustrating.
You should focus on getting rid of the focus regardless of what it does. Even if you don’t find it bothersome, it’s always best to remove malware from your computer.
The scariest virus that affects the keyboard is without a doubt the keylogger. The keylogger can retrieve information that has been input from your computer and send it to the hacker.
Keyloggers stay hidden in the background while they track every single key you press on your keyboard, the information is documented and sent back to the source.
With that information, the hacker can access a fair amount of your stuff. What’s even worse though, is that keyloggers are quite hard to trace as they’re stealthy.
Down below is a list of the most common symptoms of a keyboard-affecting virus (that are noticeable).
Common Keyboard Virus Symptoms
Having used computers and worked with them for several years, I have seen a bunch of different viruses that changed the keyboard’s behavior.
Some were out of pure amusement, while others were intended to prevent the user from interrupting other processes that were running in the background.
To understand if your computer is infected or not, it’s important to look at some of the common symptoms that appear when a keyboard has been affected by a virus.
The keyboard keeps changing layout
If your keyboard suddenly starts changing the layout, malicious software is probably rewriting the language of your keyboard into another language.
Viruses can, for instance, change your English keyboard into any other language and prevent you from reversing it until the virus has been removed.
These viruses come in different variations, the ones that I have come in contact with have been easy to deal with.
Sometimes the language can be changed back without a problem. Sometimes the new language can be uninstalled/disabled, which makes the computer jump back to the initial language. Running an anti-virus scan to find malware is your best bet.
The keys have been remapped / The keyboard is inserting the wrong letters
Your keyboard has been mapped so that certain keys produce certain symbols. The word mapping describes the connection between the symbol the key produces and the actual key.
It’s what makes the A-key type out the letter A. Some viruses that affect keyboards tend to cause discrepancies by reconfiguring the keys or changing their position.
Viruses of this sort will swap the keys out, leading the keyboard’s keys to insert symbols from nearby or totally random keys instead of the actual one that was pressed.
The keyboard is repeating letters or not writing them at all
If your keyboard is repeating the characters you type over and over again, the keyboard’s drivers may be infected.
The same thing could also be said about a keyboard that isn’t inserting certain letters at all. However, it’s important to filter out water damage, physical damage to keys, because they can also cause the keyboard to act this way.
The keyboard is typing random words automatically
If your keyboard starts typing random words or combinations of letters that don’t even make sense, you could be dealing with a virus.
If your keyboard is typing actual words automatically, then you’re definitely dealing with a virus. Speaking from experience, I don’t dare to say the same about random combinations of letters, as it could be something else.
The keyboard is backspacing / deleting automatically
If you’re in a full-fledged war against your keyboard because it keeps deleting anything you type, then you could be dealing with a virus.
The computer suddenly starts running slowly
If your computer’s performance is lowered substantially overnight for no reason. It could be a sign that a virus is running in the background, gathering information from your keyboard input.
However, if you’ve started running more demanding software or if the computer’s cooling system has started to degrade, that can also be the cause of the sudden decrease in performance.
How Do You Scan Your Keyboard For Viruses?
Regardless of how dire the virus seems to be, it’s always best to get rid of it because you never know if the virus is running an untraceable operation in the background. Now, as we’ve mentioned before, the virus isn’t bound to the keyboard, but the computer.
Through the computer, the virus can infect the keyboard’s drivers, telling it to act differently. Thus, the scan should be performed on the computer, as that’s where the virus is stored.
If you’re unsure whether or not your keyboard is affected by a virus, but you think it’s acting strangely, the following steps will show you a couple of things you can do.
- Run a complete anti-malware scan on your computer. If you don’t have an anti-virus program installed, download one of the free ones, they’re very good these days. I usually recommend something along the lines of Avast.
- Run Windows Virus & threat protection. Go to Settings -> Update & Security -> Windows Security -> Virus & Threat protection and click “Scan Options” and check the “Windows Defender Offline Scan” then click “Scan Now” to start scanning.
- Remove the keyboard’s batteries if it has batteries. Replace them and try the keyboard again.
- Disconnect the keyboard and connect a new one. Does the new keyboard act the same way?
- Uninstall the keyboard’s drivers in the Device Manager and restart the computer.
I have found these things to be a great start when trying to figure out if the computer’s peripherals are being interfered with by malware.
By doing this, you should be able to come to a conclusion – is it a virus, a malfunctioning keyboard, or physical damage to the keyboard that’s causing these discrepancies?
The more things you try without successfully removing the virus, the closer you get to having to reinstall the operating system or replacing the keyboard.
How Do You Fix a Keyboard With Virus On It?
Up above we talked about scanning the keyboard (the computer) for viruses. Running a virus scan on a third-party application and one within Windows should be more than enough to remove any malware that’s been installed on your computer.
Here’s a quick recap of what I always start by doing when I’m unsure if it’s a virus or not.
- Run a virus scan in Windows and on a third party application
- Remove the keyboard and its batteries then reconnect both
- Uninstall the keyboard’s drivers then restart the computer
As useful as these methods are, they’re not always going to fix the problem. If you’ve done everything listed above without successfully removing the virus – then proceed to do these things.
- Reinstall Windows on the computer to get a clean slate
- Update the computer’s BIOS
If none of these work, then you’re most likely dealing with a hardware problem caused by physical damage, water damage, debris, dust, junk, and a whole lot of other things that will take a toll on your keyboard over time.
Can a Virus Stop My Keyboard From Working?
Both yes and no. Some malware can prevent you from using your keyboard, but it doesn’t stop the keyboard from working per se.
The keyboard is, in a sense, still working but it isn’t working as intended because the drivers on the computer are infected, rendering the keyboard void.
But bear in mind that the same keyboard will most likely work if it’s connected to another computer, as the issue isn’t damaged malware.
So, while a virus can cause your keyboard to stop typing or typing random letters, the keyboard is still functioning and will go back to normal once the virus has been removed from the computer.
It’s good knowing this so you don’t go spending money on a new keyboard when you have a fully functioning keyboard at home. It’s important to be able to tell the difference between a hardware and a software problem but it can be hard at times.
I have troubleshot thousands of computers over the years and I still have a hard time telling the difference sometimes.
When the problem lays within the software, there’s no need to replace parts. It’s all about finding the problem and getting rid of it.