Drvcmsm.exe Virus ⛏️ (Coin Miner Trojan) Removal

Written by Robert Bailey

Drvcmsm.exe executable file belongs to a malicious application that can accurately be recognized as a coin miner trojan. That malware type utilizes your PC components to mine cryptocurrencies, primarily – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your computer pretty much unfunctional as a result of high CPU utilization.

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What is Drvcmsm.exe process?

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

As I have actually mentioned in the introduction, Drvcmsm.exe is a coin miner trojan. The names of the .exe file may be different, however, the consequences are generally the same. Since coin miners aim at cryptocurrency mining, they utilize all available hardware capacity of your PC to perform this procedure. This malware does not pay attention to the fact that you may need to use your machine for other activities – it will always use over 80% of your processor power.

Drvcmsm.exe Windows Process

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

Besides CPU consumption, some of the coin miners additionally use GPU power for their operations. In that situation, you will likely struggle also to see the mouse arrow moving – GPU is usually used on 100%. It is not as crucial as processor for system work, so Drvcmsm.exe coin miner viruses don’t waste time on trifles and use it all. It sometimes may cause unhappy effects.

Shortly about cryptocurrency mining

Cryptocurrency mining means the activity of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a integral part of any project based on the blockchain technology. Since this operation takes a lot of calculations, a high-end computer is needed. Exactly, the GPU is better for this purpose, because they have more cores available. Cryptocurrency mining farms are usually constructed of tens and hundreds of graphic cards to complete their task efficiently. Such systems are not usable for “general” purposes, like gaming or browsing the Web. Crooks who make profit via this coin miner use someones’ hardware instead, even if they are used for the regular activity.

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 Drvcmsm.exe miner?

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

    First, Drvcmsm.exe virus makes your system overloaded. It is unable to run your applications anymore, as all CPU power is used by a malware. That malware does not care for your wants, all it pays attention to is generating profits on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until browser is open, you will likely struggle with extremely slow efficiency. Pages can open up for years, any type of logins will take about a minute – just a nightmare for a person that does a job online.

    Drvcmsm.exe Technical Summary.

    File NameDrvcmsm.exe
    TypeTrojan Coin Miner
    Detection NameTrojan:Win32/CoinMiner
    Distribution MethodSoftware bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc.
    Similar behaviorDesigner.exe, Seedmine.exe, Intel_pie_service.exe
    RemovalDownload and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Drvcmsm.exe removal.

    “Visible” harm is not a solitary bad activity coin miners do to your personal computer. Drvcmsm.exe coin miner likewise deals damage to your OS. To complete all malevolent operations effectively, it ruins the security mechanisms of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware stops it to avoid recognition. If you open the HOSTS file, you will likely see a ton of new entries – they are brought in by this coin 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 system’s performance, running at peak power for long times can cause damage to your device and raise electricity bills. Hardware elements are created to easily get along with high load, but they are good with it only when they are in a good shape.

    Small and well-protected CPU fan is not very easy to broke. Meanwhile, GPUs have big and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily cracked if touched while spinning, for instance, by the user much before the malware injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the really high load caused by Drvcmsm.exe malware can easily lead to graphic card failure. Video cards are also tend to have increased wearing when used for cryptocurrency mining. It is surely a bad situation when the performance of your graphic card plunges 20-30% only after several weeks of being used in such a way.

    How did I get Drvcmsm.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 malevolent programs through “severe” malware. Adware often functions as a carrier for Drvcmsm.exe malware injection: it shows you the banners, which contain a link to malware downloading. Yes, this abstract “malware” can belong to any kind – an additional adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. But the statistics say that about 30% of all malware spread through the malevolent banners are coin miners – and Drvcmsm.exe is right among them.

    Unwanted banners adware

    The example of malicious banners you can see in the Internet

    One more way you could get this thing on your PC is by downloading it from the untrustworthy website 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 make money. Hence, there is a huge temptation to add in malware to the final package of the hacked app and acquire a coin for every installation. Before blaming these individuals for hacking and also malware distribution, ask yourself – is it OK to avoid paying for the program in this manner? 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 PC.

    How to remove the Drvcmsm.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 program. Proper antivirus must have high efficiency at scanning and also be lightweight – in order to make no problems with utilization even on weak PCs. Furthermore, it is recommended to have proactive security in your security tool – to prevent 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 purpose. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a great option that fits each of the discussed features.2

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

    Remove Drvcmsm.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 for Drvcmsm.exe

    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 Drvcmsm.exe process

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

    Remove Drvcmsm.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner

    Name: Drvcmsm.exe

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