Facebook are stepping things up a notch and getting tough on malware, in a good way. Their latest initiative can detect malware on your computer. If anything suspicious is found, your Facebook account is temporarily locked (to prevent the malware sending spam using your account), and you’ll be asked to download an anti-virus program called McAfee Scan & Repair. There’s also an option to use Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE).
This new procedure can also be invoked manually, if you suspect your computer might be infected. The link is http://on.fb.me/infectedMSE, and you’ll need to enter your password. Note: when entering passwords, always look at the address bar at the top of your browser and make sure it’s genuine – in this case, it needs to have facebook.com/ in the address.
If your account is temporarily locked because malware was detected or because you manually started the procedure, you won’t be able to unlock the account until you finish the virus scan.
This is all for Windows. OS X users will have a slightly different procedure.
There are more details on Facebook’s web site.