Setupsetup.exe Virus ⛏️ (Coin Miner Trojan) Removal

Written by Robert Bailey
Setupsetup.exe process comes from a harmful program that can accurately be identified as a coin miner trojan virus. That malware type uses your hardware to mine cryptocurrencies, primarily – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your system roughly unusable as a result of high CPU use.
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What is Setupsetup.exe process?

Setupsetup.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus

As I have actually pointed out in the introduction, Setupsetup.exe is a coin miner trojan virus. The names of the .exe file can be diverse, however, the consequences are usually the identical. Since coin miners focus on cryptocurrency mining, they utilize all available hardware capacity of your desktop to perform this operation. This malware does not pay attention to the fact that you probably need to use your computer for other tasks – it will consistently use over 80% of your CPU power.

Setupsetup.exe Windows Process

Setupsetup.exe – Very high CPU and GPU usage

Besides CPU utilization, some of the coin miners additionally utilize GPU power for their tasks. In that situation, you will struggle also to see the mouse cursor moving – GPU is often used on 100%. It is not as vital as CPU for system work, so Setupsetup.exe coin miner viruses do not waste time on trifles and utilize it all. It sometimes can cause sad results.

Shortly about cryptocurrency mining

Crypto mining is a term that means the operation of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a integral element of any project based on the blockchain technology. Since this action takes a lot of calculations, a strong computer is needed. Exactly, the GPU is better for this purpose, because they have more cores available. Cryptocurrency mining farms are usually constructed of tens and hundreds of video cards to conduct their activity effectively. Such computer systems are not usable for “classic” purposes, like gaming or web browsing. 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

  • Microsoft Defender is stopped;
  • CPU and GPU is loaded at 80-90% exactly after the system start
  • Cooling fans are running at high speed and create a lot of noise
  • A single process in Task Manager consumes all CPU and GPU power
  • How dangerous is the Setupsetup.exe miner?

    Coin miners does not deal damage to your files. However, they make a lot of unpleasant things with the whole system

    Initially, Setupsetup.exe malware makes your system overloaded. It is not able to run your applications now, as all CPU power is consumed by a virus. That malware does not care for your demands, 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 suffer from exceptionally slow performance. Pages can open for years, any kind of logins will likely take about a minute – just a horror story for a person who works online.

    Setupsetup.exe Technical Summary.

    File Name Setupsetup.exe
    Type Trojan Coin Miner
    Detection Name Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner
    Distribution Method Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc.
    Similar behavior Lolbtg.exe, Weather.exe, Prime.exe
    Removal Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Setupsetup.exe removal.

    “Visible” harm is not a solitary negative activity coin miners do to your PC. Setupsetup.exe coin miner also deals damage to your OS. To conduct all malevolent operations properly, it wrecks the protection components of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware stops it to prevent detection. If you open the HOSTS file, you will likely see a ton of new notes – they are brought in by this trojan miner to connect your PC to a malicious cryptomining network. All these adjustments are about to be thrown back to the original in the process of computer recovery.

    Hardware effects of coin miner activity

    Besides making your computer slow, performing at peak level for long times can cause damage to your machine and increase electricity expenses. PC components are designed 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 quite hard to crack. Meanwhile, graphic cards have big and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily cracked if affected while working, for instance, by the user much before the coin-miner injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the unusually high load caused by Setupsetup.exe virus can easily lead to graphic processing unit failure3. GPUs are also tend to have fast wearing when used for crypto mining. It is surely an unwanted case when the performance of your GPU decreases on 20-30% only after several weeks of being used in such a way.

    How did I get Setupsetup.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 common malevolent programs among “major” malware. Adware frequently functions as a carrier for Setupsetup.exe malware infiltration: it shows you the banners, which include a link to malware downloading. Sure, this abstract “malware” can belong to any kind – another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. But the statistics show that approximately 30% of all malware spread with the malicious banners are coin miners – and Setupsetup.exe is just one of them.4

    Unwanted banners adware

    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 untrustworthy site as a part of a program. Users that spread hacked versions of favored programs (which do not demand the license key) have small chances to get paid. Thus, there is a huge lure to add in malware to the final package of the hacked app and acquire a coin for every setup. Before blaming these individuals for hacking and also malware distribution, ask yourself – is it alright to avoid purchasing the program in such a way? It is more affordable to pay $20-$30 at once than to pay a much bigger sum for antivirus program and new parts for your desktop.

    How to remove the Setupsetup.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 requires making use of special program. Appropriate antivirus should have high efficiency at scanning and be lightweight – in order to make no problems with utilization even on weak systems. Furthermore, it is better to have on-run security in your security solution – to stop the virus even before it starts. Microsoft Defender lacks these elements for various reasons. That’s why I’d suggest you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that objective. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a great choice that fits all of the specified qualities.5

    Prior to the malware removal, it is important to reboot your system into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Setupsetup.exe miner consumes a lot of CPU power, it is needed 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.

    Boot into Windows Safe Mode

    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.

    windows safe mode boot option with command prompt

    When your PC is in Safe Mode, all third-party software, along with the majority of non-critical Windows components, are not launched with the system start. That allows you to clean the computer without dealing with high CPU usage of the coin miner.

    Remove Setupsetup.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.

    GridinSoft Anti-Malware free trial

    After activating your free trial, start Full scan. It may last up to 10 minutes. You may use the PC as usual.

    Scanning in GridinSoft Anti-Malware

    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.

    GridinSoft Anti-Malware after the scan process

    Now, you are good to go. Reboot your PC into a normal Windows mode and use just as there was nothing malicious.

    Remove Setupsetup.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner

    Name: Setupsetup.exe

    Description: The Setupsetup.exe is a Trojan Coin Miner that uses the infected computer’s sources to mine electronic money without your authorization. This Setupsetup.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

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    References

    1. Read about why Monero and DarkCoin are so popular amongst cybercriminals.
    2. Detailed explanation of how does cryptomining work.
    3. About unwanted effects for GPUs in the process of cryptomining.
    4. Read more about various malware type on Cybersecurity Glossary.
    5. Our review on GridinSoft Anti-Malware.

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    About the author

    Robert Bailey

    I'm Robert Bailey, a passionate Security Engineer with a deep fascination for all things related to malware, reverse engineering, and white hat ethical hacking.

    As a white hat hacker, I firmly believe in the power of ethical hacking to bolster security measures. By identifying vulnerabilities and providing solutions, I contribute to the proactive defense of digital infrastructures.

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