Works.exe process comes from a malicious program that can properly be recognized as a coin miner virus. That malware type utilizes your PC components to mine cryptocurrencies, generally – Monero or DarkCoin1. It makes your system pretty much unfunctional because of high CPU usage.
What is Works.exe process?
Works.exe is a malicious process created by coin miner virus
As I have pointed out in the introduction, Works.exe is a coin miner virus. The names of the .exe file can be different, but the effects are usually the identical. Because coin miners aim at cryptocurrency mining, they use all available hardware capacity of your PC to perform this operation. This malware doesn’t take note of the fact that you may want to make use of your machine for other activities – it will continuously take over 80% of your processor power.
Works.exe – Really high CPU/GPU usage
Besides CPU usage, some of the coin miners also make use of GPU power for their operations. In that situation, you will likely struggle even to see the mouse cursor moving – GPU is usually utilized on 100%. It is not as essential as processor for system work, so Works.exe coin miner viruses don’t waste time on trifles and utilize it all. It sometimes may lead to unhappy effects.
Shortly about cryptocurrency mining
Cryptocurrency mining means the operation of calculating the transaction block hash. That is a integral element of any project based on the blockchain technology. Since this action takes a lot of calculations, a very strong computer is needed. Exactly, the video card is better for this purpose, because they have more cores available. Cryptomining farms are usually constructed of dozens of GPUs to conduct their activity effectively. Such systems are not usable for “general” purposes, like gaming or web browsing. Crooks who gain money via this coin miner use someones’ PCs instead, even if they are used for the regular activity.2
List of the typical coin miner symptoms
How dangerous is the Works.exe miner?
Coin miners does not deal damage to your files. However, they make a lot of unpleasant things with the whole system
Initially, Works.exe malware makes your system overloaded. It is unable to run your applications now, since all processor power is used by a virus. That malware does not care for your necessities, all it focuses on is making money on you. Even if you are patient, and you waited until web browser is open, you will likely experience extremely slow performance. Pages can open up for years, any kind of logins will likely take about a minute – just a nightmare for a person who does a job online.
Works.exe Technical Summary.
| File Name | Works.exe |
| Type | Trojan Coin Miner |
| Detection Name | Trojan:Win32/CoinMiner |
| Distribution Method | Software bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites etc. |
| Similar behavior | Rundll32.exe, Msedge.exe, Ntoskrnl.exe |
| Removal | Download and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Works.exe removal. |
“Visible” damage is not a single unpleasant activity coin miners perform to your computer. Works.exe coin miner likewise deals damage to your operating system. To execute all malicious operations correctly, it ruins the security features of your system. You will likely see your Microsoft Defender disabled – malware halts it to prevent recognition. If you open the HOSTS file, you will likely see a ton of new notes – they are brought in by this trojan miner to connect your PC to a malicious cryptomining network. All these changes shall be reverted to the original in the process of system recovery.
Hardware effects of coin miner activity
Besides slowing down your computer, performing at peak level for a long period of time can trigger damage to your device as well as increase power costs. Hardware elements are designed to easily get along with high load, but they can do so only when they are in a good shape.
Compact and well-protected CPU fan is not very easy to crack. Meanwhile, GPUs have big and easy-to-access rotors, which can be easily broke if affected while working, for instance, by the user much before the virus injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the really high load caused by Works.exe virus can easily lead to graphic processing unit failure3. Video cards are also prone to have fast wearing when used for cryptocurrency mining. It is surely an undesirable situation when the performance of your video card decreases on 20-30% just after several weeks of being used in such a way.
How did I get Works.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” viruses. Adware frequently functions as a carrier for Works.exe malware infiltration: it shows you the banners, which include a link to malware downloading. Sure, this abstract “malware” can belong to any kind – another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. However, the statistics show that around 30% of all viruses spread through the malicious banners are coin miners – and Works.exe is just among them.4
The example of malicious banners you can see in the Internet
Another way you could get this thing on your PC is by downloading it from the dubious web page as a part of a program. People that spread hacked versions of popular programs (which do not need the license key) have small chances to make money. For this reason, there is a huge lure to add in malware to the final package of the hacked app and get a coin for each setup. Prior to blaming these individuals for hacking and malware spreading, ask yourself – is it OK to avoid paying for the program in this manner? It is more affordable to pay $20-$30 at once than to pay a much greater figure for antivirus software as well as new parts for your desktop.
How to remove the Works.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 using specific software. Proper anti-malware program must have high capability at scanning and also be lightweight – in order to create no problems with utilization also on weak computers. On top of that, it is better to have proactive security in your security solution – to halt the virus even before it launches. Microsoft Defender does not have these functions for different reasons. That’s why I’d advise you to use a third-party anti-malware program for that reason. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a great choice that fits each of the discussed qualities.5
Prior to the malware removal, it is important to boot your Windows into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Works.exe miner takes a lot of processor capacity, it is required 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.
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, just like the majority of non-critical Windows components, are not launched with the system start. That gives you the ability to clean the PC without dealing with high processor usage of the coin miner.
Remove Works.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 Works.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner
Name: Works.exe
Description: The Works.exe is a Trojan Coin Miner that uses the infected computer’s sources to mine electronic money without your authorization. This Works.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.
