Microsoftaudio.exe executable file is related to a malevolent application that can properly be defined as a coin miner trojan virus. That malware type uses your hardware to mine cryptocurrencies, primarily – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your computer roughly unfunctional because of high CPU usage.
What is Microsoftaudio.exe process?
Microsoftaudio.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus
As I have mentioned before, Microsoftaudio.exe is a coin miner trojan virus. The names of the .exe file may be diverse, but the consequences are usually the identical. Because coin miners aim at cryptocurrency mining, they utilize all possible hardware capacity of your personal computer to run this procedure. This malware does not pay attention to the fact that you probably want to use your system for other tasks – it will constantly take over 80% of your CPU power.
Microsoftaudio.exe – Really high CPU/GPU use
Besides CPU usage, some of the coin miners also utilize GPU power for their tasks. In that instance, you will struggle also to see the mouse arrow moving – GPU is usually used on 100%. It is not as essential as CPU for system work, so Microsoftaudio.exe coin miner viruses do not waste time on trifles and utilize all of it. It often can cause sad effects.
Shortly about cryptocurrency mining
Cryptocurrency mining term means the action of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a integral element of anything based on the blockchain technology. Since this action takes a lot of calculations, a high-end desktop is required. Exactly, the graphic card is better for this task, because they have more cores available. Cryptomining farms are usually constructed of tens and hundreds of video cards to complete their task efficiently. Such systems are not usable for “usual” purposes, like gaming or browsing the Web. Crooks 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
How dangerous is the Microsoftaudio.exe miner?
Coin miners does not deal damage to your files. However, they make a lot of unpleasant things with the whole system
First, Microsoftaudio.exe virus makes your system overloaded. It is not able to run your applications anymore, as all processor power is used by a malware. That malware does not care for your needs, all it focuses on is making money on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until web browser is open, you will likely experience incredibly slow efficiency. Pages will open for years, any kind of logins will take about a minute – just a headache for a person that works online.
Microsoftaudio.exe Technical Summary.
| File Name | Microsoftaudio.exe |
| Type | Trojan Coin Miner |
| Detection Name | Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner |
| Distribution Method | Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc. |
| Similar behavior | 8bc8.exe, B0ca.exe, Svchosts.exe |
| Removal | Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Microsoftaudio.exe removal. |
“Visible” harm is not a solitary negative thing coin miners perform to your computer. Microsoftaudio.exe coin miner likewise deals damage to your operating system. To execute all malevolent operations correctly, it ruins the protection features of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware halts it to prevent recognition. If you check the HOSTS file, you will likely see a ton of new notes – they are added by this coin miner to connect your system to a malicious mining network. All these adjustments are about to be reverted to the original in the process of system recovery.
Hardware effects of coin miner activity
Besides decreasing your computer’s performance, running at peak power for long times can cause damage to your device as well as raise power bills. PC elements are created to easily deal with high load, but they can do so only when they are in a good shape.
Tiny and covered CPU cooling system is not very easy to broke. Meanwhile, graphic cards have big and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily broke if affected while working, for example, by the user much earlier before the coin-miner injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the unusually high load caused by Microsoftaudio.exe malware can easily lead to graphic processing unit failure3. Video cards are also tend to have increased wearing when used for cryptocurrency mining. It is likely an undesirable situation when your GPU’s performance decreases on 20-30% just after several weeks of being exploited in such a way.
How did I get Microsoftaudio.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 the most prevalent malicious programs through “serious” malware. Adware frequently works as a carrier for Microsoftaudio.exe malware infiltration: it shows you the banners, which contain a link to malware downloading. Sure, this abstract “malware” can belong to any kind – another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. However, the statistics say that around 30% of all malware spread through the malicious banners are coin miners – and Microsoftaudio.exe is just among them.4
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 unreliable web page as a part of a program. Users who spread hacked variants of favored programs (which do not require the license key) have small chances to earn money. For this reason, there is a huge temptation to add in malware to the final package of the hacked application and get a coin for each installation. Before criticizing these individuals for hacking and also malware distribution, ask yourself – is it okay to avoid purchasing the program in such a way? It is much cheaper to pay $20-$30 one time than to pay a much bigger sum for antivirus program and new parts for your desktop.
How to remove the Microsoftaudio.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 requires using special program. Effective antivirus must have high efficiency at scanning and also be lightweight – in order to create no problems with usage also on weak PCs. Additionally, it is better to have proactive security in your security solution – to stop the virus even before it starts. Microsoft Defender lacks these elements for various factors. That’s why I’d recommend you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that purpose. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a perfect option that fits each of the discussed features.5
Before the virus removal, it is important to boot your system into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Microsoftaudio.exe miner takes a lot of CPU power, it is required 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.
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 computer is in Safe Mode, all third-party applications, along with the majority of non-critical system components, are not started with the system start. That gives you the ability to clean the system without dealing with high processor usage of the coin miner.
Remove Microsoftaudio.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 Microsoftaudio.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner
Name: Microsoftaudio.exe
Description: The Microsoftaudio.exe is a Trojan Coin Miner that uses the infected computer’s sources to mine electronic money without your authorization. This Microsoftaudio.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.
