Brhost.exe Virus ⛏️ (Coin Miner Trojan) Removal

Written by Robert Bailey
Brhost.exe executable file comes from a malevolent application that can properly be recognized as a coin miner trojan. That malware type uses your PC components to mine cryptocurrencies, basically – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your personal computer pretty much unusable as a result of high CPU use.
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What is Brhost.exe process?

Brhost.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus

As I have mentioned previously, Brhost.exe is a coin miner virus. The names of the executive file can be different, but the impacts are usually the identical. Since coin miners focus on cryptocurrency mining, they utilize all available hardware capacity of your desktop to run this procedure. This malware doesn’t care about the fact that you probably want to make use of your device for other tasks – it will continuously use over 80% of your CPU power.

Brhost.exe Windows Process

Brhost.exe – Really high CPU as well as GPU use

Besides CPU utilization, some of the coin miners additionally make use of GPU power for their operations. In that situation, you will likely struggle even to see the mouse arrow moving – GPU is often used on 100%. It is not as essential as CPU for system work, so Brhost.exe coin miner viruses don’t waste time on trifles and use it all. It often can result in bad consequences.

Shortly about cryptocurrency mining

Cryptocurrency mining is a term that means the action of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a basic part of anything based on the blockchain technology. Since this action takes a lot of calculations, a very powerful machine is needed. Exactly, the graphic card is better for this task, because they have more cores available. Cryptocurrency mining farms are usually constructed of tens and hundreds of video cards to complete their task efficiently. Such systems are not usable for “general” purposes, like gaming or browsing the Web. Crooks who gain money via this coin miner use someones’ PCs instead, even if they are used for the regular activity.2

List of the typical coin miner symptoms

  • Microsoft Defender is stopped;
  • CPU and GPU is loaded at 80-90% exactly after the system start
  • Cooling fans are running at high speed and create a lot of noise
  • A single process in Task Manager consumes all CPU and GPU power
  • How dangerous is the Brhost.exe miner?

    Coin miners does not deal damage to your files. However, they make a lot of unpleasant things with the whole system

    First of all, Brhost.exe virus makes your computer overloaded. It is unable to run your applications now, as all CPU power is used by a malware. That malware does not care for your needs, all it focuses on is generating profits on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until web browser is open, you will likely experience extremely sluggish efficiency. Pages can open up for years, any type of logins will take about a minute – just a horror story for a person that works online.

    Brhost.exe Technical Summary.

    File NameBrhost.exe
    TypeTrojan Coin Miner
    Detection NameTrojan:Win32/CoinMiner
    Distribution MethodSoftware bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc.
    Similar behaviorXservicegpu.exe, Kthmimu.exe, Serviceks.exe
    RemovalDownload and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Brhost.exe removal.

    “Visible” damage is not a solitary unpleasant thing coin miners perform to your system. Brhost.exe coin miner additionally deals damage to your operating system. To conduct all malevolent operations correctly, it wrecks the security mechanisms of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware stops it to prevent recognition. If you check the HOSTS file, you will likely see a load of new notes – they are brought in by this coin miner to connect your computer to a malicious mining network. All these adjustments are about to be gone back to the initial state in the process of system recovery.

    Hardware effects of coin miner activity

    Besides decreasing your PC’s performance, running at peak level for a long period of time may trigger damage to your device as well as raise power expenses. Hardware components are created to easily get along with high load, but they can do so only in case when they are in a good shape.

    Small and covered processor cooling system is not very easy to damage. Meanwhile, graphic cards have large and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily cracked if touched while running, for example, by the user much before the coin-miner injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the very high load caused by Brhost.exe miner can easily lead to graphic processing unit failure3. Video cards are also prone to have increased wearing when used for cryptocurrency mining. It is likely an unwanted situation when your GPU’s performance decreases on 20-30% just after several weeks of being exploited in such a way.

    How did I get Brhost.exe coin miner virus?

    Coin miners are spread through different ways, but their main sources are malicious banners and programs from dubious sources

    Coin miners are one of the most widespread malevolent programs through “serious” malware. Adware often functions as a carrier for Brhost.exe malware injection: it demonstrates you the banners, which include a link to malware downloading. Sure, this abstract “malware” may belong to any kind – another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. But the statistics show that approximately 30% of all malware spread through the malicious banners are coin miners – and Brhost.exe is just with them.4

    Unwanted banners adware

    The example of malicious banners you can see in the Internet

    An additional way you could get this item on your computer is by downloading it from the dubious web page as a part of a program. Users who spread hacked versions of favored programs (which do not need the license key) have small chances to earn money. Therefore, there is a huge lure to add in malware to the final package of the hacked application and receive a coin for each setup. Prior to blaming these guys for hacking and malware spreading, ask yourself – is it alright to avoid paying for the program in such a way? It is more affordable to pay $20-$30 at once than to pay a much bigger sum for antivirus program as well as new parts for your computer.

    How to remove the Brhost.exe miner from my PC?

    The best way to get rid of this coin miner virus is to use anti-malware software

    Eliminating such a virus requires making use of specific app. Proper anti-malware program must have high efficiency at scanning and also be lightweight – in order to create no problems with usage also on weak computers. Additionally, it is better to have on-run security in your protection tool – to halt the virus even before it starts. Microsoft Defender does not have these features for various factors. That’s why I’d recommend you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that objective. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a great choice that fits all of the discussed qualities.5

    Prior to the malware removal, it is important to reboot your Windows into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Brhost.exe miner takes a lot of CPU power, it is required to stop it before launching the security program. Otherwise, your scan will last for years, even though the GridinSoft program is pretty lightweight.

    Booting the PC into Safe Mode with Networking

    Press the Start button, then choose Power, and click on Reboot while holding the Shift key on the keyboard.

    Boot into Windows Safe Mode

    Windows will reboot into recovery mode. In that mode, choose Troubleshoot→ Startup Settings→ Safe Mode with Networking. Press the corresponding button on your keyboard to choose that option.

    windows safe mode boot option with command prompt

    When your PC is in Safe Mode, all third-party programs, just like the majority of non-crucial Windows components, are not launched with the system start. That allows you to clean the system without dealing with high CPU usage of the coin miner.

    Remove Brhost.exe coin miner virus with GridinSoft Anti-Malware

    Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware. You can use this anti-malware program for free during its 6-day trial period. In that term, all functions are available, and it takes no payments to remove malware from your system.

    GridinSoft Anti-Malware free trial

    After activating your free trial, start Full scan. It may last up to 10 minutes. You may use the PC as usual.

    Scanning in GridinSoft Anti-Malware

    When the scan is finished, press the Clean Now button to remove all detected elements from your system. This procedure takes less than a minute.

    GridinSoft Anti-Malware after the scan process

    Now, you are good to go. Reboot your PC into a normal Windows mode and use just as there was nothing malicious.

    Remove Brhost.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner

    Name: Brhost.exe

    Description: The Brhost.exe is a Trojan Coin Miner that uses the infected computer’s sources to mine electronic money without your authorization. This Brhost.exe will create your CPU to go for very warm temperatures for prolonged periods of time, which could reduce the life of the CPU.

    Operating System: Windows

    Application Category: Trojan

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    References

    1. Read about why Monero and DarkCoin are so popular amongst cybercriminals.
    2. Detailed explanation of how does cryptomining work.
    3. About unwanted effects for GPUs in the process of cryptomining.
    4. Read more about various malware type on Cybersecurity Glossary.
    5. Our review on GridinSoft Anti-Malware.

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    About the author

    Robert Bailey

    I'm Robert Bailey, a passionate Security Engineer with a deep fascination for all things related to malware, reverse engineering, and white hat ethical hacking.

    As a white hat hacker, I firmly believe in the power of ethical hacking to bolster security measures. By identifying vulnerabilities and providing solutions, I contribute to the proactive defense of digital infrastructures.

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