Exe.exe Virus ⛏️ (Coin Miner Trojan) Removal

Written by Robert Bailey
Exe.exe executable file belongs to a harmful program that can properly be recognized as a coin miner trojan. That malware type uses your hardware to mine cryptocurrencies, basically – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your system roughly nonfunctional because of high CPU utilization.
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 Exe.exe process?

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

As I have mentioned earlier, Exe.exe is a coin miner virus. The names of the .exe file may be different, but the effects are generally the same. Considering that coin miners focus on cryptocurrency mining, they use all possible hardware power of your desktop to run this operation. This malware doesn’t take note of the fact that you probably need to use your PC for other tasks – it will always take over 80% of your CPU power.

Exe.exe Windows Process

Exe.exe – Extremely high CPU as well as GPU usage

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

Shortly about cryptocurrency mining

Cryptocurrency mining is a term that means the activity 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 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 dozens of graphic cards to complete their task efficiently. Such computer systems are not usable for “normal” purposes, like gaming or web browsing. Fraudsters who gain money via this coin miner use someones’ hardware instead, even if they are used for the regular activity.2

List of the typical coin miner symptoms

  • Your device overheats (system unit/laptop body is very hot)
  • You are not able to open your apps or they are opening for ages
  • Unknown process is running in the background and consumes your PC resources
  • Windows Defender does not respond
  • How dangerous is the Exe.exe miner?

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

    First off, Exe.exe malware makes your PC overloaded. It is not able to run your applications anymore, as all processor power is consumed by a malware. That malware does not care for your demands, all it pays attention to is making money on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until web browser is open, you will likely suffer from 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.

    Exe.exe Technical Summary.

    File NameExe.exe
    TypeTrojan Coin Miner
    Detection NameTrojan:Win32/CoinMiner
    Distribution MethodSoftware bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc.
    Similar behaviorSessionmsg.exe, Explorer.exe, Moxia.exe
    RemovalDownload and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Exe.exe removal.

    “Visible” harm is not a single unpleasant thing coin miners do to your system. Exe.exe coin miner likewise deals damage to your OS. To carry out all malicious operations correctly, 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 lot of new notes – they are added by this trojan miner to connect your computer to a malicious cryptomining network. All these changes shall be gone back to the original in the process of computer recovery.

    Hardware effects of coin miner activity

    Besides slowing down your PC, performing at peak power for a long period of time may cause damage to your machine as well as increase electricity costs. Hardware elements are created to easily deal with high load, but they are good with it only when they are in a good shape.

    Compact and covered CPU fan is quite hard to broke. Meanwhile, graphic cards have large and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily broke if affected while spinning, for instance, by the user much earlier before the malware injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the really high load caused by Exe.exe malware can easily lead to graphic card failure3. Graphic cards are also prone to have increased wearing when used for cryptocurrency mining. It is likely an unwanted case when your GPU’s performance plunges 20-30% only after several weeks of being exploited in such a way.

    How did I get Exe.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 widespread malicious programs through “major” malware. Adware sometimes works as a carrier for Exe.exe malware injection: it demonstrates you the banners, which contain a link to malware downloading. Yes, 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 with the malicious banners are coin miners – and Exe.exe is just with 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 computer is by downloading it from the untrustworthy site as a part of a program. People who spread hacked versions of well-known programs (which do not demand the license key) have small chances to earn money. Hence, there is a huge lure to add malware to the final package of the hacked app and receive a coin for every setup. Prior to blaming these individuals for hacking and malware spreading, ask yourself – is it OK to avoid paying for the program in this manner? It is much cheaper to pay $20-$30 at once than to pay a much greater sum for antivirus software as well as new parts for your computer.

    How to remove the Exe.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 involves the use of special software. Effective anti-malware program should have high performance at scanning and also be lightweight – in order to make no problems with usage also on weak PCs. Additionally, it is better to have proactive protection in your protection solution – to halt the virus even before it launches. Microsoft Defender does not have these features for various factors. That’s why I’d advise you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that reason. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is an ideal choice that fits all of the discussed features.5

    Prior to the malware removal, it is important to reboot your Windows into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Exe.exe miner consumes 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 system is in Safe Mode, all third-party programs, along with the majority of non-crucial system components, are not started with the system start. That gives you the ability to clean the computer without dealing with high processor usage of the coin miner.

    Remove Exe.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 Exe.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner

    Name: Exe.exe

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