Culdwnf.exe Virus ⛏️ (Coin Miner Trojan) Removal

Written by Robert Bailey
Culdwnf.exe executable file is related to a harmful program that can accurately be identified as a coin miner trojan virus. That malware type utilizes your hardware to mine cryptocurrencies, primarily – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your computer pretty much unfunctional due to high CPU use.
GridinSoft Anti-Malware Review
It is better to prevent, than repair and repent!
When we talk about the intrusion of unfamiliar programs into your computer’s work, the proverb “Forewarned is forearmed” describes the situation as accurately as possible. Gridinsoft Anti-Malware is exactly the tool that is always useful to have in your armory: fast, efficient, up-to-date. It is appropriate to use it as an emergency help at the slightest suspicion of infection.
Gridinsoft Anti-Malware 6-day trial available.
EULA | Privacy Policy | 10% Off Coupon
Subscribe to our Telegram channel to be the first to know about news and our exclusive materials on information security.

What is Culdwnf.exe process?

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

As I have pointed out earlier, Culdwnf.exe is a coin miner trojan virus. The names of the executive file can be different, however, the consequences are generally the same. Because coin miners focus on cryptocurrency mining, they utilize all possible hardware capacity of your personal computer to run this process. This virus doesn’t take note of the fact that you probably want to use your PC for other activities – it will consistently consume over 80% of your CPU power.

Culdwnf.exe Windows Process

Culdwnf.exe – Very high CPU as well as GPU use

Besides CPU consumption, some of the coin miners additionally use GPU power for their tasks. In that instance, you will struggle even to see the mouse cursor moving – GPU is often used on 100%. It is not as vital as processor for system work, so Culdwnf.exe coin miner viruses don’t waste time on trifles and use all of it. It sometimes can lead to unhappy consequences.

Shortly about cryptocurrency mining

Crypto mining term means the operation of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a integral part of anything based on the blockchain technology. Since this operation takes a lot of calculations, a very powerful PC is required. Exactly, the graphic card is better for this task, because they have more cores available. Cryptomining farms usually consist of tens and hundreds of graphic cards to conduct their activity effectively. Such computer systems are not usable for “classic” purposes, like gaming or web browsing. Fraudsters who gain money via this coin miner use someones’ computers 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 Culdwnf.exe miner?

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

    Firstly, Culdwnf.exe virus makes your PC overloaded. It is not able to run your applications anymore, since all processor power is consumed by a malware. That malware does not care for your necessities, all it focuses on is generating profits on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until browser is open, you will likely experience incredibly slow performance. Pages can open for years, any sort of logins will likely take about a minute – just a headache for a person that works online.

    Culdwnf.exe Technical Summary.

    File Name Culdwnf.exe
    Type Trojan Coin Miner
    Detection Name Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner
    Distribution Method Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc.
    Similar behavior Winlogson.exe, Binscheduler.exe, Bintask.exe
    Removal Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Culdwnf.exe removal.

    “Visible” harm is not a single unpleasant thing coin miners perform to your computer. Culdwnf.exe coin miner likewise deals damage to your operating system. To complete all malevolent functions correctly, it ruins the protection features of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware halts it to avoid recognition. If you check the HOSTS file, you will likely see a number of new notes – they are added by this coin miner to connect your PC to a malicious cryptomining network. All these adjustments shall be gone back to the original in the process of PC recovery.

    Hardware effects of coin miner activity

    Besides decreasing your computer’s performance, running at peak level for long times may trigger damage to your machine and raise electricity expenses. Hardware components are created to easily deal with high load, but they can do so only in case when they are in a good shape.

    Compact and well-protected CPU fan is not very easy to broke. Meanwhile, GPUs have big and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily broke if touched while working, for instance, by the user much before the coin-miner injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the unusually high load caused by Culdwnf.exe virus can easily lead to GPU failure3. Video cards are also prone to have fast wearing when utilized for cryptocurrency mining. It is surely an undesirable situation when the performance of your graphic card plunges 20-30% just after 1-2 weeks of being used in such a way.

    How did I get Culdwnf.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 the most prevalent malevolent programs among “major” viruses. Adware often works as a carrier for Culdwnf.exe malware injection: it demonstrates you the banners, which contain a link to malware downloading. Yes, this abstract “malware” may belong to any type – an additional adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. But the statistics say that about 30% of all viruses spread through the malevolent banners are coin miners – and Culdwnf.exe is just among 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 PC is by downloading it from the unreliable web page as a part of a program. People that spread hacked versions of popular programs (which do not require the license key) have small chances to earn money. Thus, there is a very big temptation to add in malware to the final package of the hacked application and get a coin for every setup. Prior to blaming these individuals for hacking and also malware spreading, ask yourself – is it okay to avoid paying for the program in such a way? It is much cheaper to pay $20-$30 at once than to pay a much bigger sum for antivirus program and new parts for your desktop.

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

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

    Getting rid of such a virus requires making use of specific app. Appropriate antivirus should have high capability at scanning and also be lightweight – in order to create no problems with utilization even on weak PCs. Additionally, it is recommended to have proactive security in your security solution – to prevent the virus even before it launches. Microsoft Defender does not have these functions for different reasons. That’s why I’d suggest you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that purpose. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a perfect choice that fits each of the mentioned qualities.5

    Prior to the malware removal, it is important to boot your system into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Culdwnf.exe miner takes a lot of processor capacity, it is needed to halt 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 system is in Safe Mode, all third-party applications, along with the majority of non-critical system components, are not started with the system start. That gives you the ability to clean the PC without dealing with high CPU usage of the coin miner.

    Remove Culdwnf.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 Culdwnf.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner

    Name: Culdwnf.exe

    Description: The Culdwnf.exe is a Trojan Coin Miner that uses the infected computer’s sources to mine electronic money without your authorization. This Culdwnf.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

    Sending
    User Review
    3.6 (5 votes)
    Comments Rating 0 (0 reviews)

    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.

    Spanish Turkish

    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.

    Leave a Reply

    Sending