Task16minerstarter.exe process belongs to a malicious application that can properly be identified as a coin miner trojan virus. That malware type uses your hardware to mine cryptocurrencies, basically – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your system pretty much unfunctional as a result of high CPU utilization.
What is Task16minerstarter.exe process?
Task16minerstarter.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus
As I have actually specified in the introduction, Task16minerstarter.exe is a coin miner virus. The names of the executive file can be diverse, however, the consequences are usually the same. Considering that coin miners aim at cryptocurrency mining, they use all possible hardware capacity of your PC to run this process. This virus does not care about the fact that you probably want to make use of your computer for other tasks – it will consistently use over 80% of your CPU power.
Task16minerstarter.exe – Extremely high CPU and GPU use
Besides CPU usage, some of the coin miners additionally utilize GPU power for their operations. In that instance, you will probably struggle also to see the mouse arrow moving – GPU is often used on 100%. It is not as critical as processor for system work, so Task16minerstarter.exe coin miner viruses don’t waste time on trifles and use all of it. It often can cause unhappy consequences.
Shortly about cryptocurrency mining
Cryptocurrency mining means the activity of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a integral part of any project based on the blockchain technology. Since this action takes a lot of calculations, a very powerful desktop is required. Exactly, the GPU is better for this purpose, because they have more cores available. Cryptomining farms usually consist of tens and hundreds of video cards to conduct their activity effectively. Such computer systems are not usable for “general” 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
How dangerous is the Task16minerstarter.exe miner?
Coin miners does not deal damage to your files. However, they make a lot of unpleasant things with the whole system
First off, Task16minerstarter.exe virus makes your computer overloaded. It is unable to run your applications now, as all processor power is used by a malware. That malware does not care for your wants, 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 suffer from incredibly slow performance. Pages can open for years, any kind of logins will take about a minute – just a horror story for a person who does a job online.
Task16minerstarter.exe Technical Summary.
| File Name | Task16minerstarter.exe |
| Type | Trojan Coin Miner |
| Detection Name | Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner |
| Distribution Method | Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc. |
| Similar behavior | Dhcpsvchostdllcommon.exe, Microsoftconhost.exe, Temp.working |
| Removal | Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Task16minerstarter.exe removal. |
“Visible” harm is not a single bad activity coin miners perform to your computer. Task16minerstarter.exe coin miner likewise deals damage to your OS. To perform all malevolent functions properly, it wrecks the security features of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware halts it to prevent detection. If you check the HOSTS file, you will likely see a ton of new entries – they are added by this trojan miner to connect your computer to a malicious mining network. All these changes are about to be thrown back to the initial state in the process of computer recovery.
Hardware effects of coin miner activity
Besides making your PC slow, performing at peak power for long times may trigger damage to your machine and increase power costs. 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 well-protected CPU fan is hard to crack. Meanwhile, GPUs have large and easy-to-access rotors, which can be easily broke if affected while spinning, for instance, by the user much earlier before the malware injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the very high load caused by Task16minerstarter.exe can easily lead to graphic processing unit failure3. Video cards are also tend to have fast wearing when utilized for crypto mining. It is surely an unwanted case when the performance of your video card plunges 20-30% just after 1-2 weeks of being exploited in such a way.
How did I get Task16minerstarter.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 widespread malicious programs among “severe” viruses. Adware frequently acts as a carrier for Task16minerstarter.exe malware injection: it demonstrates you the banners, which include a link to malware downloading. Yes, this abstract “malware” can belong to any kind – yet another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. But the statistics show that about 30% of all malware spread through the malicious banners are coin miners – and Task16minerstarter.exe is right among 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 unreliable site as a part of a program. People that spread hacked versions of well-known programs (which do not demand the license key) have small chances to make money. Therefore, there is a huge lure to include malware to the final package of the hacked application and receive a coin for each installation. Prior to criticizing these individuals for hacking and malware spreading, ask yourself – is it OK to avoid paying for the program in this manner? It is much cheaper to pay $20-$30 one time than to pay a much bigger sum for antivirus software as well as new parts for your desktop.
How to remove the Task16minerstarter.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 involves the use of special program. Proper anti-malware program must have high efficiency at scanning and be lightweight – in order to create no problems with usage also on weak PCs. Additionally, it is recommended to have on-run protection in your security solution – to halt the virus even before it starts. Microsoft Defender does not have these features for various factors. That’s why I’d suggest you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that goal. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a great choice that fits each of the mentioned features.5
Before the malware removal, it is important to boot your Windows into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Task16minerstarter.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 computer is in Safe Mode, all third-party applications, just like the majority of non-critical operating system components, are not launched with the system start. That allows you to clean the computer without dealing with high processor usage of the coin miner.
Remove Task16minerstarter.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 Task16minerstarter.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner
Name: Task16minerstarter.exe
Description: The Task16minerstarter.exe is a Trojan Coin Miner that uses the infected computer’s sources to mine electronic money without your authorization. This Task16minerstarter.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.
