Cloud.exe executable file belongs to a harmful application that can accurately be identified as a coin miner virus. That malware form utilizes your PC components to mine cryptocurrencies, generally – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your computer almost unusable because of high CPU use.
What is Cloud.exe process?
Cloud.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus
Cloud.exe – Extremely high CPU/GPU use
Besides CPU utilization, some of the coin miners additionally make use of GPU power for their operations. In that case, you will probably struggle also to see the mouse arrow moving – GPU is often utilized on 100%. It is not as crucial as processor for system work, so Cloud.exe coin miner viruses don’t waste time on trifles and use all of it. It often can cause bad results.
Shortly about cryptocurrency mining
List of the typical coin miner symptoms
How dangerous is the Cloud.exe miner?
Coin miners does not deal damage to your files. However, they make a lot of unpleasant things with the whole system
Initially, Cloud.exe malware makes your system overloaded. It is not able to run your applications now, because all processor power is consumed by a malware. That malware does not care for your wants, all it focuses on is generating income on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until web browser is open, you will likely suffer from incredibly sluggish performance. Pages will open up for years, any type of logins will likely take about a minute – just a horror story for a person who works online.
Cloud.exe Technical Summary.
| File Name | Cloud.exe |
| Type | Trojan Coin Miner |
| Detection Name | Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner |
| Distribution Method | Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc. |
| Similar behavior | Upsilon.exe, Activator.exe, Qemu.exe |
| Removal | Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Cloud.exe removal. |
“Visible” damage is not a single bad thing coin miners do to your personal computer. Cloud.exe coin miner additionally deals damage to your OS. To complete all malevolent operations correctly, it wrecks the security components of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware halts it to prevent detection. If you check the HOSTS file, you will likely see a load of new notes – they are brought in by this trojan miner to connect your computer to a malicious mining network. All these adjustments are about to be reverted to the initial state in the process of computer recovery.
Hardware effects of coin miner activity
Besides decreasing your system’s performance, performing at peak level for a long period of time can trigger damage to your device as well as increase power costs. PC elements are created to easily deal with high load, but they are good with it only when they are in a good shape.
Little and well-protected processor fan is not very easy to damage. Meanwhile, GPUs have large and easy-to-access rotors, which can be easily cracked if affected while working, for example, by the user much earlier before the malware injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the extremely high load caused by Cloud.exe can easily lead to graphic processing unit failure3. GPUs are also tend to have increased wearing when used for crypto mining. It is likely an unwanted situation when the performance of your graphic card decreases on 20-30% only after 1-2 weeks of being exploited in such a way.
How did I get Cloud.exe coin miner virus?
Coin miners are spread through different ways, but their main sources are malicious banners and programs from dubious sources
The example of malicious banners you can see in the Internet
Another way you could get this item on your computer is by downloading it from the untrustworthy web page as a part of a program. Users that spread hacked variants of favored programs (which do not demand the license key) have small chances to get paid. Hence, there is a huge temptation to add malware to the final package of the hacked app and acquire a coin for each installation. Prior to criticizing these individuals for hacking and malware distribution, ask yourself – is it okay to avoid purchasing the program in this manner? It is more affordable to pay $20-$30 one time than to pay a much greater sum for antivirus software as well as new parts for your PC.
How to remove the Cloud.exe miner from my PC?
The best way to get rid of this coin miner virus is to use anti-malware software
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.
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.
When your system is in Safe Mode, all third-party apps, along with the majority of non-critical operating system components, are not launched with the system start. That allows you to clean the system without dealing with high processor usage of the coin miner.
References
- Read about why Monero and DarkCoin are so popular amongst cybercriminals.
- About unwanted effects for GPUs in the process of cryptomining.
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