Miniz_gui.exe executable file belongs to a malicious program that can accurately be defined as a coin miner trojan virus. That malware type uses your PC components to mine cryptocurrencies, generally – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your personal computer roughly unfunctional as a result of high CPU utilization.
What is Miniz_gui.exe process?
Miniz_gui.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus
As I have mentioned in the introduction, Miniz_gui.exe is a coin miner virus. The names of the .exe file can be different, however, the consequences are generally the identical. Since coin miners aim at cryptocurrency mining, they use all possible hardware power of your personal computer to perform this operation. This malware does not take note of the fact that you may want to use your desktop for other activities – it will continuously take over 80% of your CPU power.
Miniz_gui.exe – Extremely high CPU as well as GPU usage
Besides CPU consumption, some of the coin miners also make use of GPU power for their tasks. In that case, you will likely struggle also to see the mouse cursor moving – GPU is often utilized on 100%. It is not as essential as CPU for system work, so Miniz_gui.exe coin miner viruses do not waste time on trifles and utilize all of it. It often may result in bad effects.
Shortly about cryptocurrency mining
Cryptocurrency mining term means the activity of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a basic part of anything based on the blockchain technology. Since this operation takes a lot of calculations, a high-end PC is needed. Exactly, the GPU is better for this task, because they have more cores available. Cryptocurrency mining farms usually consist of dozens of graphic cards to conduct their activity effectively. Such systems are not usable for “normal” purposes, like gaming or browsing the Web. Fraudsters 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 Miniz_gui.exe miner?
Coin miners does not deal damage to your files. However, they make a lot of unpleasant things with the whole system
Initially, Miniz_gui.exe virus makes your computer 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 focuses on is generating profits on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until web browser is open, you will likely experience extremely slow efficiency. Pages will open up for years, any kind of logins will take about a minute – just a horror story for a person that works online.
Miniz_gui.exe Technical Summary.
| File Name | Miniz_gui.exe |
| Type | Trojan Coin Miner |
| Detection Name | Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner |
| Distribution Method | Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc. |
| Similar behavior | Rjnhlsk.exe, Windows.exe, Astrill.exe |
| Removal | Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Miniz_gui.exe removal. |
“Visible” harm is not a solitary bad thing coin miners perform to your PC. Miniz_gui.exe coin miner also deals damage to your operating system. To carry out all malicious operations successfully, it ruins the security mechanisms of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware halts it to prevent detection. If you check the HOSTS file, you will likely see a load of new notes – they are added by this coin miner to connect your computer to a malicious mining network. All these changes shall be reverted to the initial state in the process of computer recovery.
Hardware effects of coin miner activity
Besides slowing down your PC, running at peak level for long times can trigger damage to your machine and raise power bills. Hardware elements are created to easily deal with high load, but they are good with it only in case when they are in a good shape.
Tiny and covered processor fan is quite hard to crack. Meanwhile, graphic cards have large and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily cracked if touched while working, for instance, by the user much earlier before the virus injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the really high load caused by Miniz_gui.exe virus can easily lead to graphic card failure3. Video cards are also tend to have very fast wearing when used for crypto mining. It is surely an unwanted case when the performance of your video card decreases on 20-30% just after 1-2 weeks of being exploited in such a way.
How did I get Miniz_gui.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 “major” malware. Adware sometimes serves as a carrier for Miniz_gui.exe malware injection: it shows you the banners, which contain a link to malware downloading. Yes, this abstract “malware” can belong to any type – an additional adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. But the statistics say that approximately 30% of all viruses spread through the malevolent banners are coin miners – and Miniz_gui.exe is right one of 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 suspicious website as a part of a program. Users who spread hacked versions of well-known programs (which do not need the license key) have small chances to make money. Therefore, there is a huge lure to include malware to the final package of the hacked application and acquire a coin for each setup. Prior to blaming these guys for hacking and also malware spreading, ask yourself – is it OK to avoid buying the program in such a way? It is more affordable to pay $20-$30 at once than to pay a much greater figure for antivirus program as well as new parts for your PC.
How to remove the Miniz_gui.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 specific tool. Effective antivirus must have high capability at scanning and be lightweight – in order to make no problems with utilization even on weak PCs. Furthermore, it is better to have on-run protection in your security tool – to halt the virus even before it launches. Microsoft Defender does not have these elements for different reasons. That’s why I’d advise you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that purpose. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a perfect choice that fits all of the specified features.5
Prior to the malware removal, it is important to reboot your operating system into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Miniz_gui.exe miner takes a lot of CPU capacity, 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.
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 programs, along with the majority of non-critical system components, are not started with the system start. That gives you the ability to clean the computer without dealing with high CPU usage of the coin miner.
Remove Miniz_gui.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 Miniz_gui.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner
Name: Miniz_gui.exe
Description: The Miniz_gui.exe is a Trojan Coin Miner that uses the infected computer’s sources to mine electronic money without your authorization. This Miniz_gui.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.
