Warning your Java version is outdated!

[Crusoe]

Please are there any IT people that can help.
I keep getting a pop up saying "Warning your Java version is outdated!"
I know this is some sort of bug but how do I get rid of it?
Also - I know this is bad - really bad but I have no virus checker. What should I be buying? I am running a HP Notebook with Windows 7
Thanks

[DoctorTwo]

Don't buy an antivirus program. When I used Windows I used Avast Free, it never let me down.

First off, download and run either MBAM or Superantispyware. Then download and run Ccleaner to be sure you're rid of any nasties.

If it won't allow you to download an anti malware program it is likely you're infected. If so, use a clean machine and transfer using a USB stick.

[53Dragon]

I get this message too... On my work laptop that is protected by a local authority firewall! So it may not be as bad as you think, but definitely get some anti-virus protection. On my home laptop I just have the Microsoft Windows free one and I've never had a problem

[SandraBrown64]

Simply update your Java and it will go away. Its not a virus.

[LadySybilLikesCake]

Java is one of the programmed for games (like runescape). As Sandra says, it's not a virus, it just wants you to update it.

[LadySybilLikesCake]

www.java.com/en/ "What is Java?
Java allows you to play online games, chat with people around the world, calculate your mortgage interest, and view images in 3D, just to name a few. It's also integral to the intranet applications and other e-business solutions that are the foundation of corporate computing." It is OK, honest

[ThreeQuartersEmpty]

Just update Java. While you're doing that, set your laptop to get automatic updates.
For antivirus, Avast! is good, and it's free. Download it from a reputable site like Cnet.

[BaffledSomeMore]

Java is fine to update. Java.com/en iirc.
Use IE to do the post install test rather than Chrome etc as it sometimes throws a wobbly at that point.

[borisgudanov]

Java is a programming language that compiles to intermediate bytecode which is interpreted at runtime into the language of whatever processor and operating system you happen to be using. Computers running software written in Java require a runtime engine - the "Java Runtime Engine" or JRE - to interpret the bytecode and run it. If your version of the JRE is out of date, software compiled using newer versions of the Java compiler might not run because your JRE won't have all of the components (the Java "Application Programming Interface" or API) that the software might call for. When a computer tells you that "Java needs updating", it is telling you that Java programs you download might not work on your JRE because the JRE is out of date. The JRE is specific to the operating system you run; Java programs are written in the same language to run Windoze, Linux/Unix, Mac, etc. etc., and the JRE translates between the common language and the specific interfaces demanded by each individual operating system.

If downloading Java components ensure you get the right ones for your hardware. You are probably using an x86 64-bit machine. Also ensure that you get the version suitable for your operating system.

Latest versions of Java are 1.8.x.