Dgen.exe Virus ⛏️ (Coin Miner Trojan) Removal

Written by Robert Bailey
Dgen.exe executable file belongs to a harmful application that can properly be identified as a coin miner trojan virus. That malware form utilizes your PC components to mine cryptocurrencies, generally – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your system roughly unfunctional due to high CPU utilization.
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What is Dgen.exe process?

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

As I have actually mentioned in the introduction, Dgen.exe is a coin miner trojan. The names of the .exe file may be diverse, however, the impacts are usually the same. Considering that coin miners aim at cryptocurrency mining, they use all available hardware power of your PC to perform this procedure. This malware doesn’t pay attention to the fact that you may want to use your machine for other activities – it will always consume over 80% of your processor power.

Dgen.exe Windows Process

Dgen.exe – Very high CPU and GPU use

Besides CPU utilization, some of the coin miners also make use of GPU power for their tasks. In that case, you will probably struggle also to see the mouse arrow moving – GPU is usually utilized on 100%. It is not as essential as processor for system work, so Dgen.exe coin miner viruses do not waste time on trifles and utilize it all. It often may result in unhappy effects.

Shortly about cryptocurrency mining

Cryptocurrency mining is a term that means the operation of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a basic element of any project based on the blockchain technology. Since this operation takes a lot of calculations, a very powerful computer is required. Exactly, the GPU is better for this purpose, because they have more cores available. Cryptomining farms usually consist of dozens of GPUs to complete their task efficiently. Such systems are not usable for “normal” purposes, like gaming or web browsing. Fraudsters who make profit 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 Dgen.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, Dgen.exe malware makes your computer overloaded. It is not able to run your applications anymore, as all processor power is used by a malware. That malware does not care for your needs, all it pays attention to is generating profits on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until web browser is open, you will likely experience incredibly slow efficiency. Pages can open for years, any type of logins will likely take about a minute – just a horror story for a person that does a job online.

    Dgen.exe Technical Summary.

    File NameDgen.exe
    TypeTrojan Coin Miner
    Detection NameTrojan:Win32/CoinMiner
    Distribution MethodSoftware bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc.
    Similar behaviorMigrate.sfx, Winopen.exe, Host.exe
    RemovalDownload and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Dgen.exe removal.

    “Visible” damage is not a single unpleasant thing coin miners perform to your personal computer. Dgen.exe coin miner likewise deals damage to your OS. To execute all malicious functions successfully, it wrecks the protection features of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware stops 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 shall be thrown back to the original in the process of PC recovery.

    Hardware effects of coin miner activity

    Besides decreasing your PC’s performance, running at peak power for a long period of time may trigger damage to your machine as well as increase power bills. PC components are created to easily get along with high load, but they are good with it only in case when they are in a good shape.

    Compact and covered processor cooling system is hard to crack. Meanwhile, GPUs have large and easy-to-access rotors, which can be easily cracked if affected while spinning, for example, by the user much earlier before the malware injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the really high load caused by Dgen.exe can easily lead to graphic card failure3. Graphic cards are also tend to have very fast wearing when used for crypto mining. It is surely an unwanted case when your GPU’s performance decreases on 20-30% only after several weeks of being exploited in such a way.

    How did I get Dgen.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 common malicious programs among “major” viruses. Adware frequently serves as a carrier for Dgen.exe malware infiltration: it shows you the banners, which include a link to malware downloading. Sure, this abstract “malware” can belong to any type – yet another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. However, the statistics say that about 30% of all viruses spread through the malicious banners are coin miners – and Dgen.exe is right with them.4

    Unwanted banners adware

    The example of malicious banners you can see in the Internet

    One more way you could get this item on your computer is by downloading it from the untrustworthy website as a part of a program. Users that spread hacked versions of popular programs (which do not demand the license key) have small chances to make money. Therefore, there is a huge lure to include malware to the final package of the hacked app and get a coin for every installation. Before criticizing these guys for hacking and malware distribution, ask yourself – is it alright to avoid purchasing the program in such a way? It is much cheaper to pay $20-$30 one time than to pay a much bigger figure for antivirus program and new parts for your computer.

    How to remove the Dgen.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 demands using special app. Proper anti-malware program must have high capability at scanning and also be lightweight – in order to make no problems with usage even on weak systems. On top of that, it is better to have on-run protection in your protection tool – to stop the virus even before it starts. Microsoft Defender does not have these functions for various factors. That’s why I’d suggest you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that goal. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a superb choice that fits each of the discussed features.5

    Prior to the malware removal, it is important to reboot your Windows into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Dgen.exe miner takes a lot of CPU power, 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 computer is in Safe Mode, all third-party applications, along with the majority of non-crucial Windows components, are not started with the system start. That allows you to clean the computer without dealing with high CPU usage of the coin miner.

    Remove Dgen.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 Dgen.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner

    Name: Dgen.exe

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