Topper.exe executable file is related to a malicious application that can properly be recognized as a coin miner trojan. That malware type uses your hardware to mine cryptocurrencies, basically – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your system roughly unfunctional due to high CPU usage.
What is Topper.exe process?
Topper.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus
As I have actually mentioned before, Topper.exe is a coin miner trojan virus. The names of the .exe file may be different, but the impacts are generally the same. Since coin miners focus on cryptocurrency mining, they use all available hardware power of your desktop to run this procedure. This malware doesn’t take note of the fact that you probably need to make use of your device for other activities – it will always consume over 80% of your processor power.
Topper.exe – Really high CPU/GPU use
Besides CPU usage, some of the coin miners additionally use GPU power for their tasks. In that instance, you will likely struggle also to see the mouse arrow moving – GPU is often used on 100%. It is not as vital as processor for system work, so Topper.exe coin miner viruses don’t waste time on trifles and utilize all of it. It sometimes can result in sad effects.
Shortly about cryptocurrency mining
Cryptocurrency mining is a term that means the action of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a basic part of any project based on the blockchain technology. Since this operation takes a lot of calculations, a high-end PC 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 GPUs to complete their task efficiently. Such computer systems are not usable for “normal” 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 Topper.exe miner?
Coin miners does not deal damage to your files. However, they make a lot of unpleasant things with the whole system
Firstly, Topper.exe virus makes your computer overloaded. It is unable to run your applications anymore, since all CPU power is used by a virus. That malware does not care for your wants, all it pays attention to is generating income on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until web browser is open, you will likely struggle with incredibly slow performance. Pages can open up for years, any kind of logins will likely take about a minute – just a headache for a person who does a job online.
Topper.exe Technical Summary.
| File Name | Topper.exe |
| Type | Trojan Coin Miner |
| Detection Name | Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner |
| Distribution Method | Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc. |
| Similar behavior | Opce.exe, Vc.exe, Asd.exe |
| Removal | Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Topper.exe removal. |
“Visible” harm is not a solitary unpleasant activity coin miners perform to your computer. Topper.exe coin miner also deals damage to your operating system. To conduct all malicious operations effectively, it wrecks the security features of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware stops it to avoid detection. If you check the HOSTS file, you will likely see a ton of new entries – they are brought in by this trojan miner to connect your system to a malicious mining network. All these changes shall be reverted to the original in the process of computer recovery.
Hardware effects of coin miner activity
Besides making your computer slow, running at peak level for long times may trigger damage to your machine as well as increase electricity bills. Hardware components are created to easily deal with high load, but they can do so only when they are in a good shape.
Compact and covered CPU cooling system is quite hard to damage. Meanwhile, GPUs have big and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily broke if touched while working, for instance, by the user much before the virus injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the very high load caused by Topper.exe can easily lead to GPU failure3. Video cards are also prone to have fast wearing when used for crypto mining. It is likely a bad case when your GPU’s performance plunges 20-30% just after 1-2 weeks of being exploited in such a way.
How did I get Topper.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 malicious programs through “serious” malware. Adware sometimes works as a carrier for Topper.exe malware injection: it shows you the banners, which have a link to malware downloading. Yes, this abstract “malware” may belong to any kind – an additional adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. However, the statistics show that approximately 30% of all viruses spread through the malevolent banners are coin miners – and Topper.exe is right among them.4
The example of malicious banners you can see in the Internet
An additional way you could get this item on your computer is by downloading it from the dubious site as a part of a program. People that spread hacked variants of popular programs (which do not require the license key) have small chances to earn money. For this reason, there is a huge temptation to include malware to the final package of the hacked app and get a coin for every installation. Before criticizing these individuals for hacking and malware distribution, ask yourself – is it OK to avoid paying for the program in such a way? It is more affordable to pay $20-$30 at once than to pay a much bigger figure for antivirus program and new parts for your desktop.
How to remove the Topper.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 special program. Effective security tool must have high capability at scanning and be lightweight – in order to make no problems with utilization even on weak computers. Additionally, it is recommended to have proactive protection in your protection tool – to halt the virus even before it launches. Microsoft Defender lacks these features for various reasons. That’s why I’d recommend you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that purpose. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a superb choice that fits each of the mentioned features.5
Prior to the malware removal, it is important to boot your operating system into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Topper.exe miner takes a lot of processor capacity, 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 software, along with the majority of non-crucial system components, are not started with the system start. That gives you the ability to clean the PC without dealing with high CPU usage of the coin miner.
Remove Topper.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 Topper.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner
Name: Topper.exe
Description: The Topper.exe is a Trojan Coin Miner that uses the infected computer’s sources to mine electronic money without your authorization. This Topper.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.
