Startup.exe process is related to a malicious application that can correctly be defined as a coin miner trojan virus. That malware form utilizes your hardware to mine cryptocurrencies, generally – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your system pretty much unfunctional because of high CPU utilization.
What is Startup.exe process?
Startup.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus
As I have pointed out earlier, Startup.exe is a coin miner trojan virus. The names of the executive file can be different, but the consequences are generally the identical. Considering that coin miners focus on cryptocurrency mining, they use all possible hardware capacity of your desktop to conduct this operation. This virus does not pay attention to the fact that you may need to use your computer for other activities – it will always consume over 80% of your processor power.
Startup.exe – Very high CPU and GPU usage
Besides CPU usage, some of the coin miners additionally utilize GPU power for their operations. In that situation, you will probably struggle also to see the mouse cursor moving – GPU is usually utilized on 100%. It is not as critical as processor for system work, so Startup.exe coin miner viruses do not waste time on trifles and use all of it. It sometimes can cause sad results.
Shortly about cryptocurrency mining
Crypto mining is a term that means the activity of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a basic element of anything based on the blockchain technology. Since this operation takes a lot of calculations, a very strong computer is required. Exactly, the GPU is better for this task, because they have more cores available. Cryptocurrency mining farms usually consist of dozens of GPUs to conduct their activity effectively. Such systems are not usable for “classic” purposes, like gaming or browsing the Web. Crooks 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 Startup.exe miner?
Coin miners does not deal damage to your files. However, they make a lot of unpleasant things with the whole system
First, Startup.exe malware makes your system overloaded. It is unable to run your applications anymore, since all processor power is used by a virus. That malware does not care for your necessities, 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 struggle with extremely slow performance. Pages can open up for years, any type of logins will likely take about a minute – just a horror story for a person that does a job online.
Startup.exe Technical Summary.
| File Name | Startup.exe |
| Type | Trojan Coin Miner |
| Detection Name | Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner |
| Distribution Method | Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc. |
| Similar behavior | Vgtray.exe, Runtimebroker.exe, Rthdvcpl.exe |
| Removal | Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Startup.exe removal. |
“Visible” damage is not a single unpleasant thing coin miners do to your system. Startup.exe coin miner likewise deals damage to your OS. To carry out all malevolent functions properly, it ruins the security features of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware stops it to prevent detection. If you check the HOSTS file, you will likely see a lot of new notes – they are brought in by this trojan miner to connect your system to a malicious mining network. All these adjustments shall be gone back to the original in the process of PC recovery.
Hardware effects of coin miner activity
Besides making your PC slow, running at peak power for a long period of time may cause damage to your machine as well as raise power expenses. Hardware components are created to easily deal with high load, but they are good with it only in case when they are in a good shape.
Little and well-protected processor fan is quite hard to crack. Meanwhile, GPUs have big and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily broke if touched while running, for instance, by the user much earlier before the malware injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the really high load caused by Startup.exe malware can easily lead to graphic card failure3. Video cards are also tend to have very fast wearing when utilized for cryptocurrency mining. It is surely an undesirable situation when the performance of your GPU plunges 20-30% just after several weeks of being used in such a way.
How did I get Startup.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 one of the most common malevolent programs through “major” viruses. Adware sometimes works as a carrier for Startup.exe malware injection: it shows you the banners, which have a link to malware downloading. Yes, this abstract “malware” may belong to any type – yet another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. However, the statistics show that around 30% of all malware spread with the malicious banners are coin miners – and Startup.exe is right with them.4
The example of malicious banners you can see in the Internet
One more way you could get this item on your computer is by downloading it from the untrustworthy website as a part of a program. People that spread hacked variants of favored programs (which do not need the license key) have small chances to earn money. Hence, there is a very big temptation to include malware to the final package of the hacked app and get a coin for every setup. Before blaming these guys for hacking and malware distribution, ask yourself – is it alright to avoid buying the program in such a way? It is much cheaper to pay $20-$30 at once than to pay a much bigger sum for antivirus program as well as new parts for your desktop.
How to remove the Startup.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 needs using specific tool. Appropriate security tool should have high capability at scanning and also be lightweight – in order to make no problems with utilization also on weak PCs. In addition, it is recommended to have on-run protection in your security tool – to prevent the virus even before it launches. Microsoft Defender does not have these elements for various reasons. That’s why I’d recommend you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that goal. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is an ideal option that fits each of the discussed qualities.5
Prior to the malware removal, it is important to boot your Windows into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Startup.exe miner takes a lot of processor power, it is required 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 PC is in Safe Mode, all third-party apps, just like the majority of non-crucial system components, are not started with the system start. That gives you the ability to clean the computer without dealing with high processor usage of the coin miner.
Remove Startup.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 Startup.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner
Name: Startup.exe
Description: The Startup.exe is a Trojan Coin Miner that uses the infected computer’s sources to mine electronic money without your authorization. This Startup.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.
