Igfxext.exe process belongs to a malicious program that can correctly be defined as a coin miner virus. That malware type uses your hardware to mine cryptocurrencies, primarily – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your system pretty much nonfunctional because of high CPU use.
What is Igfxext.exe process?
Igfxext.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus
As I have actually specified earlier, Igfxext.exe is a coin miner virus. The names of the .exe file may be diverse, but the effects are generally the same. Considering that coin miners aim at cryptocurrency mining, they utilize all available hardware power of your desktop to perform this operation. This malware doesn’t take note of the fact that you may want to make use of your machine for other tasks – it will always consume over 80% of your CPU power.
Igfxext.exe – Extremely 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 likely struggle even to see the mouse cursor moving – GPU is often used on 100%. It is not as critical as CPU for system work, so Igfxext.exe coin miner viruses don’t waste time on trifles and use all of it. It sometimes may lead to unhappy results.
Shortly about cryptocurrency mining
Crypto mining term means the operation of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a basic element of anything based on the blockchain technology. Since this action takes a lot of calculations, a very powerful machine is needed. Exactly, the GPU is better for this purpose, because they have more cores available. Cryptocurrency mining farms usually consist of tens and hundreds of graphic cards to complete their task efficiently. Such systems are not usable for “general” purposes, like gaming or web browsing. Crooks who make profit 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
How dangerous is the Igfxext.exe miner?
Coin miners does not deal damage to your files. However, they make a lot of unpleasant things with the whole system
Initially, Igfxext.exe virus makes your computer overloaded. It is unable to run your applications now, as all CPU power is used by a virus. That malware does not care for your demands, all it pays attention to is generating income on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until browser is open, you will likely suffer from exceptionally slow efficiency. Pages will open for years, any type of logins will take about a minute – just a horror story for a person that works online.
Igfxext.exe Technical Summary.
| File Name | Igfxext.exe |
| Type | Trojan Coin Miner |
| Detection Name | Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner |
| Distribution Method | Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc. |
| Similar behavior | Accsvc.exe, Tidings.exe, Music.exe |
| Removal | Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Igfxext.exe removal. |
“Visible” harm is not a solitary unpleasant thing coin miners perform to your personal computer. Igfxext.exe coin miner also deals damage to your OS. To perform all malevolent operations effectively, it ruins the security features of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware stops it to prevent recognition. If you open the HOSTS file, you will likely see a lot of new notes – they are brought in by this trojan miner to connect your PC to a malicious cryptomining network. All these changes are about to be reverted to the initial state in the process of system recovery.
Hardware effects of coin miner activity
Besides decreasing your system’s performance, running at peak level for a long period of time may cause damage to your machine and increase power costs. Hardware components are created to easily deal with high load, but they are good with it only when they are in a good shape.
Tiny and well-protected CPU fan is quite hard to damage. Meanwhile, GPUs have big and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily cracked if touched while running, for instance, by the user much earlier before the coin-miner injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the extremely high load caused by Igfxext.exe can easily lead to GPU failure3. Video cards are also tend to have fast wearing when utilized for crypto mining. It is likely an unwanted case when your GPU’s performance decreases on 20-30% only after 1-2 weeks of being exploited in such a way.
How did I get Igfxext.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 common malicious programs among “severe” viruses. Adware frequently functions as a carrier for Igfxext.exe malware infiltration: it demonstrates you the banners, which have a link to malware downloading. Yes, this abstract “malware” may belong to any kind – yet another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. But the statistics say that approximately 30% of all malware spread through the malevolent banners are coin miners – and Igfxext.exe is right with them.4
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 dubious 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 get paid. Hence, there is a huge temptation to include malware to the final package of the hacked application and receive a coin for each installation. Before blaming these guys for hacking and also malware spreading, ask yourself – is it OK to avoid purchasing the program in such a way? It is more affordable to pay $20-$30 at once than to pay a much bigger sum for antivirus program as well as new parts for your computer.
How to remove the Igfxext.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 involves the use of special app. Appropriate anti-malware program should have high capability at scanning and be lightweight – in order to make no problems with usage even on weak systems. On top of that, it is recommended to have on-run protection in your security solution – to halt the virus even before it launches. Microsoft Defender does not have these elements for different factors. That’s why I’d suggest you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that reason. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a great option that fits each of the discussed characteristics.5
Prior to the malware removal, it is important to boot your Windows into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Igfxext.exe miner takes a lot of processor capacity, it is needed 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.
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.
When your PC is in Safe Mode, all third-party applications, just like the majority of non-crucial Windows components, are not launched with the system start. That gives you the ability to clean the system without dealing with high CPU usage of the coin miner.
Remove Igfxext.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.
After activating your free trial, start Full scan. It may last up to 10 minutes. You may use the PC as usual.
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.
Now, you are good to go. Reboot your PC into a normal Windows mode and use just as there was nothing malicious.
Remove Igfxext.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner
Name: Igfxext.exe
Description: The Igfxext.exe is a Trojan Coin Miner that uses the infected computer’s sources to mine electronic money without your authorization. This Igfxext.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
User Review
( votes)References
- Read about why Monero and DarkCoin are so popular amongst cybercriminals.
- Detailed explanation of how does cryptomining work.
- About unwanted effects for GPUs in the process of cryptomining.
- Read more about various malware type on Cybersecurity Glossary.
- Our review on GridinSoft Anti-Malware.
