Mcshield.exe executable file belongs to a malevolent program that can correctly be identified as a coin miner trojan. That malware type uses your PC components to mine cryptocurrencies, basically – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your system pretty much unfunctional because of high CPU usage.
What is Mcshield.exe process?
Mcshield.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus
Mcshield.exe – Really high CPU/GPU use
Besides CPU utilization, 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 CPU for system work, so Mcshield.exe coin miner viruses do not waste time on trifles and utilize it all. It sometimes may cause sad results.
Shortly about cryptocurrency mining
List of the typical coin miner symptoms
How dangerous is the Mcshield.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, Mcshield.exe malware makes your computer overloaded. It is unable to run your applications anymore, as all CPU power is consumed by a malware. That malware does not care for your needs, all it pays attention to is making money on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until browser is open, you will likely suffer from incredibly sluggish efficiency. Pages can open for years, any kind of logins will likely take about a minute – just a headache for a person who works online.
Mcshield.exe Technical Summary.
| File Name | Mcshield.exe |
| Type | Trojan Coin Miner |
| Detection Name | Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner |
| Distribution Method | Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc. |
| Similar behavior | Servicehost.exe, Mfemms.exe, Mmsshost.exe |
| Removal | Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Mcshield.exe removal. |
“Visible” harm is not a single unpleasant activity coin miners do to your PC. Mcshield.exe coin miner likewise deals damage to your OS. To execute all malevolent operations correctly, it wrecks the protection components of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware stops it to prevent recognition. If you check the HOSTS file, you will likely see a lot of new notes – they are brought in by this trojan miner to connect your computer to a malicious cryptomining network. All these changes shall be reverted to the original in the process of computer recovery.
Hardware effects of coin miner activity
Besides decreasing your PC’s performance, running at peak power for a long period of time can trigger damage to your device and increase power costs. PC elements are created to easily get along with high load, but they are good with it only when they are in a good shape.
Tiny and covered CPU fan is quite hard to damage. Meanwhile, graphic cards have large and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily broke if touched while working, for example, by the user much before the malware injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the unusually high load caused by Mcshield.exe can easily lead to graphic processing unit failure3. Graphic cards are also prone to have increased wearing when used for crypto mining. It is likely an undesirable situation when your GPU’s performance decreases on 20-30% just after 1-2 weeks of being exploited in such a way.
How did I get Mcshield.exe coin miner virus?
Coin miners are spread through different ways, but their main sources are malicious banners and programs from dubious sources
The example of malicious banners you can see in the Internet
Another way you could get this item on your PC is by downloading it from the dubious web page as a part of a program. People that spread hacked variants of popular programs (which do not demand the license key) have small chances to make money. For this reason, there is a huge temptation to add malware to the final package of the hacked app and get a coin for each installation. Prior to criticizing these individuals for hacking and malware spreading, ask yourself – is it okay to avoid paying for the program in this manner? It is much cheaper to pay $20-$30 at once than to pay a much bigger figure for antivirus software and new parts for your desktop.
How to remove the Mcshield.exe miner from my PC?
The best way to get rid of this coin miner virus is to use anti-malware software
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 system 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 gives you the ability to clean the PC without dealing with high CPU usage of the coin miner.
References
- Read about why Monero and DarkCoin are so popular amongst cybercriminals.
- About unwanted effects for GPUs in the process of cryptomining.
Leave a Comment