Unauthorized Background Cryptocurrency Miner (High CPU/GPU)

What is HIGH-CPU-CRYPTOMINER?

This diagnosis identifies background mining scripts or binaries running under spoofed system process names (e.g. lsass.exe, svchost.exe), causing high CPU/GPU resource utilization, thermal throttling, and severe system slowdown.

Common Causes

• Malicious utility bundles or drive-by scripts from unverified websites.
• Compromised web browser extensions running background script loops.

Step-by-Step Fix Guide

• 1
  Check Task Manager for unusually high-utilization processes executing from Temp or AppData directories.

  Start with "Check Task Manager for unusually high-utilization processes executing from Temp or AppData directories." — this resolves HIGH-CPU-CRYPTOMINER in the majority of reported cases and is the fastest path to stability.

• 2
  Terminate suspicious processes using Taskkill or Resource Monitor.

  If the first step didn't fully resolve the issue, "Terminate suspicious processes using Taskkill or Resource Monitor." targets the next most common root cause. Follow the on-screen instructions carefully and restart your PC afterward.

• 3
  Download and execute a full clean scan using Microsoft Safety Scanner (MSERT).

  For persistent HIGH-CPU-CRYPTOMINER occurrences, "Download and execute a full clean scan using Microsoft Safety Scanner (MSERT)." addresses less common but documented causes. This step may require administrator privileges.

Commands & Diagnostics

Frequently Asked Questions