Postinstall.exe executable file belongs to a harmful application that can properly be recognized as a coin miner virus. That malware type utilizes your hardware to mine cryptocurrencies, basically – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your personal computer almost unusable due to high CPU utilization.
What is Postinstall.exe process?
Postinstall.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus
As I have mentioned earlier, Postinstall.exe is a coin miner trojan virus. The names of the .exe file may be diverse, but the effects are almost always the same. Since coin miners aim at cryptocurrency mining, they utilize all possible hardware power of your personal computer to perform this operation. This virus does not take note of the fact that you may want to use your PC for other activities – it will always consume over 80% of your CPU power.
Postinstall.exe – Very high CPU/GPU use
Besides CPU consumption, some of the coin miners also utilize GPU power for their tasks. In that case, you will struggle even to see the mouse arrow moving – GPU is usually used on 100%. It is not as critical as CPU for system work, so Postinstall.exe coin miner viruses do not waste time on trifles and use all of it. It sometimes can lead to bad results.
Shortly about cryptocurrency mining
Crypto mining means the activity of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a basic part of anything based on the blockchain technology. Since this action takes a lot of calculations, a very strong computer is needed. Exactly, the graphic card is better for this task, because they have more cores available. Cryptomining farms are usually constructed of dozens of GPUs to complete their task efficiently. Such computer systems are not usable for “normal” purposes, like gaming or browsing the Web. Fraudsters who make profit via this coin miner use someones’ PCs instead, even if they are used for the regular activity.2
List of the typical coin miner symptoms
How dangerous is the Postinstall.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, Postinstall.exe virus makes your PC overloaded. It is unable to run your applications anymore, since all processor power is used by a malware. That malware does not care for your needs, all it pays attention to is generating income on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until web browser is open, you will likely suffer from exceptionally sluggish performance. Pages can open up for years, any type of logins will likely take about a minute – just a nightmare for a person who works online.
Postinstall.exe Technical Summary.
| File Name | Postinstall.exe |
| Type | Trojan Coin Miner |
| Detection Name | Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner |
| Distribution Method | Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc. |
| Similar behavior | Wrap.exe, Vncutil.exe, Comsore3.exe |
| Removal | Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Postinstall.exe removal. |
“Visible” harm is not a solitary bad thing coin miners do to your system. Postinstall.exe coin miner likewise deals damage to your operating system. To carry out all malicious functions successfully, it ruins the security components of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware halts it to avoid recognition. If you open the HOSTS file, you will likely see a load 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 slowing down your PC, performing at peak power for long times can cause damage to your machine as well as raise electricity bills. Hardware elements are created to easily get along with high load, but they are good with it only in case when they are in a good shape.
Little and covered processor fan is hard to damage. Meanwhile, GPUs have large and easy-to-access rotors, which can be easily cracked if affected while working, for instance, by the user much earlier before the malware injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the extremely high load caused by Postinstall.exe virus can easily lead to graphic processing unit failure3. GPUs are also prone to have very fast wearing when used for cryptocurrency mining. It is surely an undesirable case when your GPU’s performance plunges 20-30% only after 1-2 weeks of being used in such a way.
How did I get Postinstall.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 widespread malevolent programs among “severe” viruses. Adware often works as a carrier for Postinstall.exe malware injection: it shows you the banners, which include a link to malware downloading. Yes, this abstract “malware” may belong to any type – another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. However, the statistics say that around 30% of all viruses spread with the malicious banners are coin miners – and Postinstall.exe is right with them.4
The example of malicious banners you can see in the Internet
One more way you could get this thing on your computer is by downloading it from the suspicious site as a part of a program. People that spread hacked versions of popular programs (which do not need the license key) have small chances to get paid. Therefore, there is a huge lure to add malware to the final package of the hacked application and acquire a coin for each setup. Prior to criticizing these guys for hacking and malware spreading, ask yourself – is it alright to avoid purchasing the program in this manner? It is more affordable to pay $20-$30 one time than to pay a much greater figure for antivirus program as well as new parts for your PC.
How to remove the Postinstall.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 using special program. Proper security tool should have high efficiency at scanning and be lightweight – in order to create no problems with usage also on weak computers. Furthermore, it is recommended to have proactive security in your protection solution – to stop the virus even before it starts. Microsoft Defender does not have these elements for various factors. That’s why I’d recommend you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that reason. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a perfect choice that fits all of the mentioned characteristics.5
Prior to the virus removal, it is important to reboot your operating system into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Postinstall.exe miner takes a lot of processor power, it is required 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 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 PC without dealing with high CPU usage of the coin miner.
Remove Postinstall.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 Postinstall.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner
Name: Postinstall.exe
Description: The Postinstall.exe is a Trojan Coin Miner that uses the infected computer’s sources to mine electronic money without your authorization. This Postinstall.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.
