Dog.exe Virus ⛏️ (Coin Miner Trojan) Removal

Written by Robert Bailey
Dog.exe executable file is related to a harmful program that can correctly be identified as a coin miner trojan virus. That malware type uses your hardware to mine cryptocurrencies, primarily – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your system pretty much unfunctional as a result of high CPU usage.
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What is Dog.exe process?

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

As I have pointed out earlier, Dog.exe is a coin miner trojan. The names of the executive file may be different, however, the consequences are usually the same. Since coin miners aim at cryptocurrency mining, they use all possible hardware power of your personal computer to run this procedure. This malware does not pay attention to the fact that you may need to use your PC for other activities – it will constantly take over 80% of your CPU power.

Dog.exe Windows Process

Dog.exe – Really high CPU and GPU use

Besides CPU utilization, some of the coin miners additionally make use of GPU power for their tasks. In that instance, you will probably struggle even to see the mouse arrow moving – GPU is often used on 100%. It is not as critical as processor for system work, so Dog.exe coin miner viruses do not waste time on trifles and use it all. It sometimes may result in unhappy results.

Shortly about cryptocurrency mining

Cryptocurrency mining term means the action 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 strong PC is required. Exactly, the graphic card is better for this purpose, because they have more cores available. Cryptocurrency mining farms are usually constructed of tens and hundreds of GPUs to conduct their activity effectively. Such computer systems are not usable for “usual” purposes, like gaming or browsing the Web. 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

  • Extremely bad performance
  • CPU/GPU cooler fan creates a lot of noise
  • High temperature of the device (for laptops)
  • 80-90% consumption of CPU/GPU resources by an unknown process
  • Microsoft Defender is not working
  • How dangerous is the Dog.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, Dog.exe virus makes your PC overloaded. It is not able to run your applications now, as all CPU power is used by a virus. 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 browser is open, you will likely experience exceptionally sluggish performance. Pages will open for years, any sort of logins will likely take about a minute – just a headache for a person that does a job online.

    Dog.exe Technical Summary.

    File NameDog.exe
    TypeTrojan Coin Miner
    Detection NameTrojan:Win32/CoinMiner
    Distribution MethodSoftware bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc.
    Similar behaviorDog.exe, Decrypt_bit.exe, Newx.exe
    RemovalDownload and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Dog.exe removal.

    “Visible” damage is not a solitary negative thing coin miners perform to your PC. Dog.exe coin miner likewise deals damage to your OS. To execute all malevolent functions effectively, it wrecks the security features of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware halts it to prevent recognition. If you open the HOSTS file, you will likely see a number of new notes – they are brought in by this trojan miner to connect your PC to a malicious mining network. All these changes are about to be reverted to the initial state in the process of computer recovery.

    Hardware effects of coin miner activity

    Besides decreasing your computer’s performance, performing at peak power for long times may trigger damage to your machine and raise power bills. Hardware elements are designed to easily get along with high load, but they can do so only when they are in a good shape.

    Small and well-protected processor fan is hard to damage. Meanwhile, GPUs have large and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily broke if touched while spinning, for example, by the user much earlier before the malware injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the really high load caused by Dog.exe malware can easily lead to graphic processing unit failure3. Video cards are also tend to have very fast wearing when utilized for crypto mining. It is surely a bad situation when the performance of your GPU plunges 20-30% only after 1-2 weeks of being used in such a way.

    How did I get Dog.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 prevalent malicious programs through “major” viruses. Adware frequently works as a carrier for Dog.exe malware infiltration: it demonstrates you the banners, which include a link to malware downloading. Sure, this abstract “malware” may belong to any type – yet another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. However, the statistics show that about 30% of all viruses spread through the malevolent banners are coin miners – and Dog.exe is just among 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 unreliable site as a part of a program. People that spread hacked variants of favored programs (which do not need the license key) have small chances to make money. Therefore, there is a very big temptation to add malware to the final package of the hacked application and get a coin for each setup. Prior to blaming these guys for hacking and malware spreading, ask yourself – is it okay to avoid buying the program in this manner? It is more affordable to pay $20-$30 at once than to pay a much greater sum for antivirus program and new parts for your desktop.

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

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

    Removing such a virus needs the use of special app. Effective antivirus must have high capability at scanning and also be lightweight – in order to create no problems with usage also on weak systems. In addition, it is recommended to have on-run protection in your security solution – to stop the virus even before it starts. Microsoft Defender lacks these elements for various reasons. That’s why I’d recommend you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that goal. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a great choice that fits each of the mentioned characteristics.5

    Before the virus removal, it is important to boot your Windows into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Dog.exe miner takes a lot of processor capacity, 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 apps, along with the majority of non-crucial Windows components, are not started with the system start. That gives you the ability to clean the PC without dealing with high processor usage of the coin miner.

    Remove Dog.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 Dog.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner

    Name: Dog.exe

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