Windowsdriver.exe executable file is related to a harmful application that can correctly be defined as a coin miner trojan virus. That malware form uses your PC components to mine cryptocurrencies, generally – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your computer pretty much unfunctional as a result of high CPU usage.
What is Windowsdriver.exe process?
Windowsdriver.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus
Windowsdriver.exe – Extremely high CPU and GPU use
Besides CPU consumption, some of the coin miners also use GPU power for their tasks. In that case, you will likely struggle even to see the mouse cursor moving – GPU is often utilized on 100%. It is not as crucial as processor for system work, so Windowsdriver.exe coin miner viruses don’t waste time on trifles and utilize all of it. It often can result in bad results.
Shortly about cryptocurrency mining
List of the typical coin miner symptoms
How dangerous is the Windowsdriver.exe miner?
Coin miners does not deal damage to your files. However, they make a lot of unpleasant things with the whole system
Firstly, Windowsdriver.exe virus makes your computer overloaded. It is not able to run your applications now, as all processor power is used by a malware. That malware does not care for your necessities, 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 suffer from incredibly slow efficiency. Pages will open up for years, any type of logins will take about a minute – just a headache for a person who does a job online.
Windowsdriver.exe Technical Summary.
| File Name | Windowsdriver.exe |
| Type | Trojan Coin Miner |
| Detection Name | Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner |
| Distribution Method | Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc. |
| Similar behavior | Ground.exe, Adasdasdae.exe, Energy.exe |
| Removal | Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Windowsdriver.exe removal. |
“Visible” harm is not a single unpleasant thing coin miners perform to your personal computer. Windowsdriver.exe coin miner likewise deals damage to your operating system. To execute all malevolent functions successfully, it wrecks the security features of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware stops it to avoid recognition. If you check the HOSTS file, you will likely see a ton of new notes – they are brought in by this coin miner to connect your system to a malicious mining network. All these adjustments are about to be thrown back to the initial state in the process of PC recovery.
Hardware effects of coin miner activity
Besides slowing down your PC, running at peak power for a long period of time may cause damage to your machine as well as raise electricity costs. Hardware components are created to easily get along with high load, but they can do so only when they are in a good shape.
Small and covered CPU cooling system is hard to crack. Meanwhile, GPUs have big 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 very high load caused by Windowsdriver.exe malware can easily lead to GPU failure3. Graphic cards are also tend to have fast wearing when used for cryptocurrency mining. It is likely a bad case when the performance of your video card plunges 20-30% just after several weeks of being exploited in such a way.
How did I get Windowsdriver.exe coin miner virus?
Coin miners are spread through different ways, but their main sources are malicious banners and programs from dubious sources
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 dubious web page as a part of a program. Users that spread hacked versions of well-known programs (which do not require the license key) have small chances to get paid. For this reason, there is a very big lure to include malware to the final package of the hacked app and acquire a coin for each installation. Prior to criticizing these individuals for hacking and also malware distribution, ask yourself – is it OK to avoid buying the program in this manner? It is more affordable to pay $20-$30 at once than to pay a much greater figure for antivirus program as well as new parts for your computer.
How to remove the Windowsdriver.exe miner from my PC?
The best way to get rid of this coin miner virus is to use anti-malware software
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 apps, along with the majority of non-critical Windows components, are not launched with the system start. That gives you the ability to clean the system without dealing with high CPU usage of the coin miner.
References
- Read about why Monero and DarkCoin are so popular amongst cybercriminals.
- About unwanted effects for GPUs in the process of cryptomining.
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