Windowsactiondialog.exe Virus ⛏️ (Coin Miner Trojan) Removal

Written by Robert Bailey
Windowsactiondialog.exe executable file comes from a malevolent program that can correctly be defined as a coin miner trojan virus. That malware type utilizes your PC components to mine cryptocurrencies, basically – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your system almost nonfunctional because of high CPU usage.
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What is Windowsactiondialog.exe process?

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

As I have mentioned earlier, Windowsactiondialog.exe is a coin miner virus. The names of the .exe file may be different, however, the effects are usually the same. Considering that coin miners aim at cryptocurrency mining, they use all possible hardware power of your desktop to conduct this process. This malware does not take note of the fact that you probably need to make use of your machine for other activities – it will constantly take over 80% of your CPU power.

Windowsactiondialog.exe Windows Process

Windowsactiondialog.exe – Really high CPU as well as GPU use

Besides CPU consumption, some of the coin miners also use GPU power for their tasks. In that situation, you will struggle even to see the mouse arrow moving – GPU is usually used on 100%. It is not as essential as CPU for system work, so Windowsactiondialog.exe coin miner viruses don’t waste time on trifles and utilize all of it. It often may lead to bad 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 action takes a lot of calculations, a strong computer is required. Exactly, the GPU is better for this task, because they have more cores available. Cryptomining farms are usually constructed of dozens of graphic cards to conduct their activity effectively. Such computer systems are not usable for “normal” purposes, like gaming or browsing the Web. Fraudsters who make profit 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

  • Extremely bad performance
  • CPU/GPU cooler fan creates a lot of noise
  • High temperature of the device (for laptops)
  • 80-90% consumption of CPU/GPU resources by an unknown process
  • Microsoft Defender is not working
  • How dangerous is the Windowsactiondialog.exe miner?

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

    First, Windowsactiondialog.exe virus makes your system overloaded. It is not able to run your applications now, as all processor power is consumed by a virus. That malware does not care for your needs, all it focuses on is generating income on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until web browser is open, you will likely struggle with extremely slow performance. Pages will open for years, any kind of logins will take about a minute – just a horror story for a person that does a job online.

    Windowsactiondialog.exe Technical Summary.

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

    “Visible” harm is not a solitary negative thing coin miners do to your system. Windowsactiondialog.exe coin miner also deals damage to your operating system. To perform all malevolent functions correctly, it wrecks the protection features of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware halts it to avoid recognition. If you check the HOSTS file, you will likely see a ton of new entries – they are added by this coin miner to connect your PC to a malicious mining network. All these changes are about to be reverted to the original in the process of system recovery.

    Hardware effects of coin miner activity

    Besides making your computer slow, running at peak level for a long period of time may trigger damage to your machine as well as raise power bills. Hardware elements are designed to easily get along with high load, but they are good with it only in case when they are in a good shape.

    Compact and well-protected CPU cooling system is quite hard to crack. Meanwhile, GPUs have large and easy-to-access rotors, which can be easily cracked if touched while running, for example, by the user much earlier before the coin-miner injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the really high load caused by Windowsactiondialog.exe can easily lead to GPU failure3. Video cards are also prone to have fast wearing when used for crypto mining. It is likely an undesirable case when the performance of your GPU decreases on 20-30% only after 1-2 weeks of being used in such a way.

    How did I get Windowsactiondialog.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 prevalent malevolent programs among “serious” malware. Adware often functions as a carrier for Windowsactiondialog.exe malware injection: it shows you the banners, which contain a link to malware downloading. Sure, this abstract “malware” may belong to any type – yet another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. But the statistics show that about 30% of all viruses spread with the malicious banners are coin miners – and Windowsactiondialog.exe is just with them.4

    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 dubious site as a part of a program. Users that spread hacked variants of popular programs (which do not require the license key) have small chances to earn money. Hence, there is a very big lure to add malware to the final package of the hacked application and receive a coin for each setup. Before blaming these individuals for hacking and also malware distribution, ask yourself – is it alright to avoid purchasing the program in this manner? It is much cheaper to pay $20-$30 at once than to pay a much bigger figure for antivirus program as well as new parts for your PC.

    How to remove the Windowsactiondialog.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 making use of special software. Appropriate security tool should have high capability at scanning and also be lightweight – in order to make no problems with usage even on weak PCs. Furthermore, it is better to have on-run security in your security tool – to prevent the virus even before it starts. Microsoft Defender does not have these functions for various factors. That’s why I’d recommend you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that purpose. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a superb option that fits all of the mentioned features.5

    Before the virus removal, it is important to reboot your operating system into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Windowsactiondialog.exe miner consumes a lot of CPU capacity, it is needed 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.

    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-crucial Windows components, are not started with the system start. That allows you to clean the computer without dealing with high CPU usage of the coin miner.

    Remove Windowsactiondialog.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 Windowsactiondialog.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner

    Name: Windowsactiondialog.exe

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