Runme.exe process belongs to a malicious program that can correctly 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 system pretty much nonfunctional because of high CPU use.
What is Runme.exe process?
Runme.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus
As I have pointed out earlier, Runme.exe is a coin miner trojan virus. The names of the executive file can be different, however, the consequences are usually the same. Considering that coin miners aim at cryptocurrency mining, they utilize all possible hardware capacity of your PC to run this operation. This malware doesn’t pay attention to the fact that you probably want to use your machine for other activities – it will continuously take over 80% of your CPU power.
Runme.exe – Very high CPU as well as GPU usage
Besides CPU consumption, some of the coin miners also use GPU power for their tasks. In that instance, you will probably struggle even to see the mouse arrow moving – GPU is often utilized on 100%. It is not as crucial as CPU for system work, so Runme.exe coin miner viruses don’t waste time on trifles and utilize it all. It often can lead to sad consequences.
Shortly about cryptocurrency mining
Cryptocurrency mining is a term that means the operation of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a integral element of anything based on the blockchain technology. Since this operation takes a lot of calculations, a very strong computer is needed. Exactly, the video card is better for this task, because they have more cores available. Cryptomining farms are usually constructed of dozens of video cards to conduct their activity effectively. Such computer systems are not usable for “normal” 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 Runme.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, Runme.exe malware makes your system overloaded. It is unable to run your applications now, because all processor 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 web browser is open, you will likely experience incredibly sluggish efficiency. Pages can open up for years, any sort of logins will take about a minute – just a horror story for a person who does a job online.
Runme.exe Technical Summary.
| File Name | Runme.exe |
| Type | Trojan Coin Miner |
| Detection Name | Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner |
| Distribution Method | Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc. |
| Similar behavior | Lineinst.exe, Minerhash.exe, Zecminer64.exe |
| Removal | Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Runme.exe removal. |
“Visible” harm is not a single bad thing coin miners do to your computer. Runme.exe coin miner likewise deals damage to your OS. To conduct all malevolent operations properly, it wrecks the protection mechanisms of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware stops it to avoid recognition. If you open the HOSTS file, you will likely see a number of new notes – they are added by this trojan miner to connect your system to a malicious mining network. All these adjustments shall be gone back to the initial state in the process of PC recovery.
Hardware effects of coin miner activity
Besides making your computer slow, running at peak level for long times may trigger damage to your machine and increase electricity expenses. Hardware components are designed to easily get along with high load, but they can do so only in case when they are in a good shape.
Little and well-protected CPU fan is hard to broke. Meanwhile, graphic cards have large and easy-to-access rotors, which can be easily broke if affected while working, for instance, by the user much before the malware injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the very high load caused by Runme.exe can easily lead to GPU failure3. Graphic cards are also prone to have very fast wearing when used for crypto mining. It is likely an undesirable situation when the performance of your graphic card plunges 20-30% only after 1-2 weeks of being used in such a way.
How did I get Runme.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 malicious programs through “serious” malware. Adware sometimes functions as a carrier for Runme.exe malware infiltration: it shows you the banners, which include a link to malware downloading. Yes, this abstract “malware” can belong to any kind – another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. However, the statistics say that approximately 30% of all malware spread through the malevolent banners are coin miners – and Runme.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 thing on your PC is by downloading it from the dubious site as a part of a program. Users who spread hacked variants of popular programs (which do not require the license key) have small chances to make money. Thus, there is a huge lure to include malware to the final package of the hacked application and receive a coin for every setup. Prior to criticizing these guys for hacking and malware spreading, ask yourself – is it okay to avoid purchasing the program in such a way? It is much cheaper to pay $20-$30 at once than to pay a much bigger figure for antivirus software as well as new parts for your computer.
How to remove the Runme.exe miner from my PC?
The best way to get rid of this coin miner virus is to use anti-malware software
Removing such a virus needs using special tool. Proper antivirus must have high performance at scanning and also be lightweight – in order to create no problems with utilization even on weak systems. Furthermore, it is recommended to have proactive protection in your protection tool – 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 objective. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a perfect option that fits all of the mentioned features.5
Prior to the virus removal, it is important to reboot your system into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Runme.exe miner consumes 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 computer is in Safe Mode, all third-party software, along with the majority of non-critical operating system 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 Runme.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 Runme.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner
Name: Runme.exe
Description: The Runme.exe is a Trojan Coin Miner that uses the infected computer’s sources to mine electronic money without your authorization. This Runme.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.
