Thunderboltservice.exe Virus ⛏️ (Coin Miner Trojan) Removal

Written by Robert Bailey
Thunderboltservice.exe executable file is related to a malicious application that can accurately be recognized as a coin miner trojan virus. That malware type utilizes your PC components to mine cryptocurrencies, generally – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your computer pretty much unusable because of high CPU utilization.
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What is Thunderboltservice.exe process?

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

As I have actually specified previously, Thunderboltservice.exe is a coin miner trojan. The names of the .exe file can be diverse, but the impacts are generally the same. Because coin miners focus on cryptocurrency mining, they use all available hardware power of your desktop to run this operation. This virus does not care about the fact that you probably want to make use of your PC for other tasks – it will continuously consume over 80% of your CPU power.

Thunderboltservice.exe Windows Process

Thunderboltservice.exe – Really high CPU/GPU use

Besides CPU utilization, some of the coin miners additionally utilize GPU power for their operations. In that instance, you will likely struggle also to see the mouse cursor moving – GPU is often utilized on 100%. It is not as crucial as processor for system work, so Thunderboltservice.exe coin miner viruses don’t waste time on trifles and use it all. It often may lead to unhappy 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 strong PC is needed. Exactly, the graphic card is better for this purpose, because they have more cores available. Cryptocurrency mining farms usually consist of tens and hundreds of video cards to complete their task efficiently. Such computer systems are not usable for “classic” purposes, like gaming or web browsing. Fraudsters 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

  • 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 Thunderboltservice.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, Thunderboltservice.exe virus makes your PC overloaded. It is not able to run your applications anymore, since all CPU power is consumed by a malware. 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 browser is open, you will likely struggle with exceptionally sluggish efficiency. Pages can open for years, any sort of logins will take about a minute – just a nightmare for a person that does a job online.

    Thunderboltservice.exe Technical Summary.

    File NameThunderboltservice.exe
    TypeTrojan Coin Miner
    Detection NameTrojan:Win32/CoinMiner
    Distribution MethodSoftware bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc.
    Similar behaviorMicrosoftedgesh.exe, Ddvdatacollector.exe, Ddvcollectorsvcapi.exe
    RemovalDownload and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Thunderboltservice.exe removal.

    “Visible” damage is not a solitary negative activity coin miners do to your system. Thunderboltservice.exe coin miner likewise deals damage to your operating system. To carry out all malicious operations correctly, it ruins the security mechanisms of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware stops it to prevent recognition. If you open the HOSTS file, you will likely see a ton of new notes – they are added by this coin miner to connect your PC to a malicious mining network. All these adjustments shall be thrown back to the original in the process of system recovery.

    Hardware effects of coin miner activity

    Besides decreasing your system’s performance, running at peak level for a long period of time can cause damage to your device as well as raise electricity expenses. PC 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.

    Compact and covered processor fan is not very easy to damage. Meanwhile, graphic cards have big and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily cracked if touched while running, for example, by the user much earlier before the malware injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the unusually high load caused by Thunderboltservice.exe can easily lead to GPU failure3. Graphic cards are also tend to have very fast wearing when used for crypto mining. It is likely a bad situation when the performance of your graphic card plunges 20-30% only after several weeks of being exploited in such a way.

    How did I get Thunderboltservice.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 among “severe” malware. Adware often functions as a carrier for Thunderboltservice.exe malware infiltration: it demonstrates you the banners, which have a link to malware downloading. Yes, this abstract “malware” can belong to any type – another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. However, the statistics say that around 30% of all viruses spread with the malicious banners are coin miners – and Thunderboltservice.exe is just with them.

    Unwanted banners adware

    The example of malicious banners you can see in the Internet

    Another way you could get this item on your computer is by downloading it from the untrustworthy site as a part of a program. Users that spread hacked versions of popular programs (which do not need the license key) have small chances to get paid. Therefore, there is a huge temptation to include malware to the final package of the hacked application and get a coin for every setup. Prior to blaming these individuals for hacking and also malware spreading, ask yourself – is it alright 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 and new parts for your desktop.

    How to remove the Thunderboltservice.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 specific tool. Effective security tool should have high performance at scanning and be lightweight – in order to make no problems with utilization also on weak systems. On top of that, it is recommended to have proactive security in your protection solution – to prevent the virus even before it starts. Microsoft Defender lacks these elements for different reasons. That’s why I’d recommend you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that goal. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a great option that fits each of the mentioned qualities.4

    Prior to the malware removal, it is important to reboot your Windows into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Thunderboltservice.exe miner consumes a lot of CPU capacity, 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 apps, just like the majority of non-crucial system components, are not launched with the system start. That gives you the ability to clean the computer without dealing with high CPU usage of the coin miner.

    Remove Thunderboltservice.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 Thunderboltservice.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner

    Name: Thunderboltservice.exe

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