Lenovoutilityservice.exe Virus ⛏️ (Coin Miner Trojan) Removal

Written by Robert Bailey
Lenovoutilityservice.exe is a legitimate process associated with Lenovo Utility software. It is a software component designed to provide various system utilities and tools to enhance the performance and functionality of Lenovo laptops and desktops.

The Lenovoutilityservice.exe process runs in the background and monitors and manages various system utilities such as power management, network settings, and hardware diagnostics. It is also responsible for updating and maintaining Lenovo’s software components and drivers.

The process is typically located in the “C:\Program Files (x86)\Lenovo\Utility” folder and is digitally signed by Lenovo Group Limited, which ensures its authenticity and integrity. If you have a Lenovo computer and have installed Lenovo Utilities, the Lenovoutilityservice.exe process is a normal and necessary component of the software.

However, if you suspect that the Lenovoutilityservice.exe process on your computer may be malware, it is important to scan your system with an up-to-date antivirus program to check for any malicious files. You can also check the location and digital signature of the process to verify its authenticity. The legitimate Lenovoutilityservice.exe file should be in the “C:\Program Files (x86)\Lenovo\Utility” folder and digitally signed by Lenovo Group Limited.

It’s important to keep your antivirus software and operating system up-to-date to protect your computer from malware threats.

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If you have noticed that the Lenovoutilityservice.exe process is running from the temp folder, it will likely be a Trojan Miner. In this case, please follow the instructions below.

What is Lenovoutilityservice.exe Miner Process?

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

As mentioned, Lenovoutilityservice.exe can be a coin miner trojan virus. The names of the .exe file may be diverse, but the consequences are generally identical. Since coin miners focus on cryptocurrency mining, they utilize all available hardware capacity of your PC to conduct this operation. This malware doesn’t pay attention to the fact that you may want to use your machine for other tasks – it will continuously take over 80% of your processor power.

Lenovoutilityservice.exe Windows Process

Lenovoutilityservice.exe – High CPU as well as GPU usage

Besides CPU usage, some coin miners also use GPU power for their operations. In that instance, you will probably struggle also to see the mouse cursor moving – GPU is usually used on 100%. It is not as essential as the CPU for system work, so Lenovoutilityservice.exe coin miner viruses don’t waste time on trifles and utilize all of it. It often can cause unhappy results.

Shortly about cryptocurrency mining

Crypto mining means calculating the transaction block hash. That is a basic element of any project based on blockchain technology. Since this operation takes a lot of calculations, a strong computer is needed. The GPU is better for this purpose because they have more cores available. Cryptomining farms usually consist of dozens of GPUs to conduct their activity effectively. Such systems are not usable for “classic” gaming or web browsing. Crooks who profit via this coin miner use someone’s hardware instead, even if they are used for regular activity.1

List of the typical coin miner symptoms

  • Microsoft Defender is stopped;
  • CPU and GPU are loaded at 80-90% exactly after the system starts
  • 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 Lenovoutilityservice.exe miner?

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

    Initially, Lenovoutilityservice.exe virus makes your system overloaded. It cannot run your applications now since all CPU power is used by malware. That malware does not care for your demands. All it focuses on is generating income for you. Even if you are patient and wait until the browser opens, you will likely experience exceptionally sluggish performance. Pages will open for years. Any logins will take about a minute – just a headache for someone who works online.

    Lenovoutilityservice.exe Technical Summary.

    File NameLenovoutilityservice.exe
    TypeTrojan Coin Miner
    Detection NameTrojan:Win32/CoinMiner
    Distribution MethodSoftware bundling, Intrusive advertisement, redirects to shady sites, etc.
    Similar behaviorUdclientservice.exe, Smartsense.exe, Editor.exe
    RemovalDownload and install GridinSoft Anti-Malware for automatic Lenovoutilityservice.exe removal.

    “Visible” harm is not a solitary negative activity coin miners perform on your computer. Lenovoutilityservice.exe coin miner likewise damages your operating system. Executing all malicious operations properly, wrecks the security components 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 several new entries – this coin miner adds them to connect your system to a malicious crypto mining network. All these adjustments are about to be gone back to the original in the process of system recovery.

    Hardware effects of coin miner activity

    Besides slowing down your PC, performing at peak power for an extended period may trigger damage to your device and increase power costs. PC elements are created to deal with high load easily, but they are good with it only in cases when they are in good shape.

    Small and covered CPU fan is quite hard to break. Meanwhile, GPUs have big and easy-to-access fans, which can be easily broken if affected while spinning, for example, by the user much before the coin-miner injection. Malfunctioning cooling system, together with the unusually high load caused by the Lenovoutilityservice.exe virus, can easily lead to GPU failure2. GPUs are also prone to wear very fast when used for cryptocurrency mining. It is surely an undesirable case when the performance of your GPU plunges 20-30% only after 1-2 weeks of being exploited in such a way.

    How did I get the Lenovoutilityservice.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 widespread malicious programs among “serious” viruses. Adware often functions as a carrier for Lenovoutilityservice.exe malware infiltration, demonstrating the banners linked to malware downloads. Sure, this abstract “malware” can belong to any type – yet another adware, spyware, rogue or backdoor. But the statistics say that around 30% of all viruses spread with the malevolent banners are coin miners – and Lenovoutilityservice.exe is right with them.

    Unwanted banners adware

    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 unreliable web page as a part of a program. People that spread hacked versions of favored programs (which do not require the license key) have small chances of earning money. Thus, there is a vast lure to include malware to the final package of the hacked app and acquire a coin for every installation. Before blaming these individuals for hacking and malware distribution, ask yourself – is it alright to avoid paying for the program in such a way? It is much cheaper to pay $20-$30 one time than to pay a much more significant sum for an antivirus program and new parts for your computer.

    How to remove the Lenovoutilityservice.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 a special program. An effective anti-malware program must have high scanning performance and be lightweight – to create no problems with usage on weak PCs. On top of that, it is better to have proactive protection in your security solution – to stop the virus even before it launches. Microsoft Defender does not have these elements for different reasons. That’s why I recommend using a third-party anti-malware program for that goal. GridinSoft Anti-Malware is a great option that fits each of the mentioned features.3

    Before the virus removal, it is important to boot your Windows into Safe Mode with Networking. Since Lenovoutilityservice.exe miner consumes a lot of processor capacity, stopping it before launching the security program is required. Otherwise, your scan will last for years, even though the GridinSoft program is lightweight.

    Booting the PC into Safe Mode with Networking

    Press the Start button, choose Power and click 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 system is in Safe Mode, all third-party software and most non-crucial Windows components are not started with the system start. That allows you to clean the system without dealing with the high CPU usage of the coin miner.

    Remove Lenovoutilityservice.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 the 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 normal Windows mode and use it just as if there was nothing malicious.

    Remove Lenovoutilityservice.exe Virus ⛏️ Trojan Coin Miner

    Name: Lenovoutilityservice.exe

    Description: If you suspect that the Lenovoutilityservice.exe process on your computer may be malware, it is important to scan your system with an up-to-date antivirus program to check for any malicious files. You can also check the location and digital signature of the process to verify its authenticity. The legitimate Lenovoutilityservice.exe file should be in the "C:\Program Files (x86)\Lenovo\Utility" folder and digitally signed by Lenovo Group Limited.

    Operating System: Windows

    Application Category: Trojan

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    References

    1. Detailed explanation of how does cryptomining work.
    2. About unwanted effects for GPUs in the process of crypto mining.
    3. 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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