Wuauclt.exe Digital Miner

Wuauclt.exe is a Windows Auto Update process that checks the Microsoft website for software or hardware updates. Wuauclt.exe runs in the background of a system and is located in the C drive at C:\Windows\System32\wuauclt.exe. By default, the latter is a legitimate executable that is an integral part of Windows Update. However, the executable in question appears to have a dubious nature as it is pretty popular among cybercrooks.

A Devil in Disguise

A cryptocurrency miner is going by the same name — wuauclt.exe — that has been making the rounds lately. When installed on a targeted machine, the crypto miner takes advantage of the total processing power of the PC to bring digital coins to the hackers who planted the miner. The miner will load during system startup and work relentlessly for as long as your computer remains switched on, thus taking every last ounce of power left.

Separate the Wheat From the Chaff

Although the wuauclt.exe crypto miner is by no means a welcomed addition to any machine, it is pretty easy to differentiate between the legitimate process and the mining executable. The former resides in C:\Windows\System32\wuauclt.exe, while the latter — in a random Temp folder. Therefore, you could efficiently perform a Windows search for any duplicate wuauclt.exe files and their locations.  If you come across a coin miner running parallel to your Windows Update process, chances are it may have come to your PC as part of a Trojan or other piece of malware. Should that be the case, you should waste no time taking immediate action to regain control of your processor.