Servicehost.exe executable file is related to a malevolent program that can properly be recognized as a coin miner virus. That malware type uses your PC components to mine cryptocurrencies, generally – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your personal computer pretty much unfunctional due to high CPU usage.
What is Servicehost.exe process?
Servicehost.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus
Servicehost.exe – Extremely high CPU/GPU use
Besides CPU usage, some of the coin miners also make use of GPU power for their operations. In that case, you will likely struggle even to see the mouse cursor moving – GPU is often used on 100%. It is not as important as CPU for system work, so Servicehost.exe coin miner viruses don’t waste time on trifles and use it all. It often may result in bad consequences.
Shortly about cryptocurrency mining
List of the typical coin miner symptoms
How dangerous is the Servicehost.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, Servicehost.exe malware makes your computer overloaded. It is unable to run your applications anymore, since all CPU power is consumed by a virus. 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 browser is open, you will likely suffer from exceptionally slow performance. Pages will open up for years, any kind of logins will likely take about a minute – just a headache for a person who works online.
Servicehost.exe Technical Summary.
| File Name | Servicehost.exe |
| Type | Trojan Coin Miner |
| Detection Name | Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner |
| Distribution Method | Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc. |
| Similar behavior | Mfemms.exe, Mmsshost.exe, Rstmwservice.exe |
| Removal | Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Servicehost.exe removal. |
“Visible” damage is not a solitary negative thing coin miners do to your PC. Servicehost.exe coin miner likewise deals damage to your OS. To execute all malicious operations correctly, it wrecks the protection features of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware stops it to avoid recognition. 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 thrown back to the original in the process of PC recovery.
Hardware effects of coin miner activity
Besides slowing down your PC, performing at peak power for a long period of time can trigger damage to your machine and raise power expenses. PC 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.
Small and covered CPU cooling system is quite hard to crack. Meanwhile, graphic cards have large and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily broke if touched while spinning, for instance, by the user much earlier before the malware injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the very high load caused by Servicehost.exe can easily lead to GPU failure3. Video cards are also prone to have increased wearing when utilized for crypto mining. It is likely an unwanted case when your GPU’s performance plunges 20-30% just after several weeks of being used in such a way.
How did I get Servicehost.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 untrustworthy website as a part of a program. Users that spread hacked variants of well-known programs (which do not need the license key) have small chances to get paid. For this reason, there is a huge lure to add in malware to the final package of the hacked application and get a coin for each installation. Prior to criticizing these guys for hacking and malware distribution, 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 sum for antivirus software as well as new parts for your computer.
How to remove the Servicehost.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 computer is in Safe Mode, all third-party apps, just like the majority of non-critical Windows 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.
References
- Read about why Monero and DarkCoin are so popular amongst cybercriminals.
- About unwanted effects for GPUs in the process of cryptomining.
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