Websock.exe Virus Removal

This article can help you to remove Websock.exe Virus. The step by step removal works for every version of Microsoft Windows.

If you discovered the Websock.exe process in your Task Manager, the news is bad. Your computer is infected with a Trojan horse. It is one of the worst types of parasites you may cross paths with. The Trojan enters your computer unnoticed and wreaks havoc on it. Consider yourself lucky. You know what kind of parasite you are dealing with. You can take action against it. Yet, other victims are not so “fortunate.” Trojans are stealthy. They can spend weeks, even months, undetected. The more time these infections remain active, the more troubles they cause. The Websock.exe virus has all characteristics of a Trojan horse, plus some extras. This virus is a coin miner. It uses complicated algorithms to “scan” the Internet, and thus, “find” crypto coins. To carry out its malicious business, it consumes an enormous amount of computer resources. An enormous amount. This is not a joke. The Trojan needs a powerful graphics card and a good CPU. You will notice that your machine generates a lot of heat. This is not a coincidence. The virus is running its malicious processes. They are overtaking your machine. If your cooling system is not efficient enough, bad things will happen. If you do not remove the infection, it will eventually ruin your hardware. Websock.exe has no place on your computer. It affects your entire system. It can add entries in your system registry, corrupt files and even create hidden copies of itself. You can try to remove the Trojan manually, just follow our detailed removal guide. Keep in mind, however, that you must be precise. If you delete the wrong file, you will end up with the Blue Screen of Death. Therefore, we recommend you to use a trustworthy anti-virus application.

How did I get infected with?

The Websock.exe virus did not materialize by magic. This parasite travels the Web via torrents, software bundles, spam email attachments, and malvertising. A little extra caution, however, can prevent these techniques from succeeding. This is your computer after all. Don’t be lazy, do your due diligence. Download your software from reliable sources only. Whenever you are installing an app, opt for the Advanced installation option in the Setup Wizard. Only under the Advance installation will you be able to see whether additional apps are about to be installed. If that’s the case, examine the list of extras carefully. These third-party apps, more often than not, are malicious. Read the Terms and Conditions and do some online research. If you spot anything out of the ordinary, abort the installation immediately. Your PC’s security is in your hands. The most commonly used virus distribution techniques are undoubtedly the spam emails. Do not open letters from strangers. Very the sender first. You can simply enter the questionable email address into some search engine, if it was used for shady business, someone must have complained online. Yet, this method is not flawless. Double-check everything. The crooks tend to write on behalf of well-known companies and organizations. If you receive a letter from such organization, go to their official website. You can find their authorized email addresses there. Compare them with the one you have received a message from. If they don’t match, delete the pretender immediately.

Why is this dangerous?

The Websock.exe virus does not hesitate before it takes over your entire system. It makes modifications as it sees fit. Your preferable settings will get altered. The virus can install and remove application can add unwanted tools and cause your programs to stop working. It can affect your real life too. The mining process requires a lot of electricity. And this means only one thing, your computer will start to radiate a lot of heat. If your cooling system is not good enough, your CPU and graphics card will overheat and eventually die. Plus, your electricity bill will double even triple. The mining process is beneficial if you are not using your own equipment and resources. The crooks are getting rich and you are paying for them. The Websock.exe virus is not a joke. Do not underestimate this parasite. Remove it immediately. Keep in mind that the Trojan horses were originally used to spy on its victims. Even though the Websock.exe Trojan is mainly used for coin mining, it may as well spy on you. Can you imagine the consequences if the hackers get in possession of sensitive information about you? The virus may steal your passwords, usernames, credit card details, etc. Your PC is infected with a serious virus. Take action against the parasite now! The sooner it is gone, the better!

Manual Websock.exe Removal Instructions

The Websock.exe infection is specifically designed to make money to its creators one way or another. The specialists from various antivirus companies like Bitdefender, Kaspersky, Norton, Avast, ESET, etc. advise that there is no harmless virus.

If you perform exactly the steps below you should be able to remove the Websock.exe infection. Please, follow the procedures in the exact order. Please, consider to print this guide or have another computer at your disposal. You will NOT need any USB sticks or CDs.

STEP 1: Track down Websock.exe related processes in the computer memory

STEP 2: Locate Websock.exe startup location

STEP 3: Delete Websock.exe traces from Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer

STEP 4: Undo the damage done by the virus

STEP 1: Track down Websock.exe related processes in the computer memory

• Open your Task Manager by pressing CTRL+SHIFT+ESC keys simultaneously
• Carefully review all processes and stop the suspicious ones.

• Write down the file location for later reference.

Step 2: Locate Websock.exe startup location

Reveal Hidden Files

• Open any folder
• Click on “Organize” button
  
• Choose “Folder and Search Options”
• Select the “View” tab
• Select “Show hidden files and folders” option
• Uncheck “Hide protected operating system files”
• Click “Apply” and “OK” button

Clean Websock.exe virus from the windows registry

• Once the operating system loads press simultaneously the Windows Logo Button and the R key.

• A dialog box should open. Type “Regedit”

• WARNING! be very careful when editing the Microsoft Windows Registry as this may render the system broken.

Depending on your OS (x86 or x64) navigate to:

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run] or
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run] or
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run]

• and delete the display Name: [RANDOM]

• Then open your explorer and navigate to: %appdata% folder and delete the malicious executable.

Clean your HOSTS file to avoid unwanted browser redirection

Navigate to %windir%/system32/Drivers/etc/host

If you are hacked, there will be foreign IPs addresses connected to you at the bottom. Take a look below:

Step 4: Undo the possible damage done by Websock.exe

This particular Virus may alter your DNS settings.

Attention! this can break your internet connection. Before you change your DNS settings to use Google Public DNS for Websock.exe, be sure to write down the current server addresses on a piece of paper.

To fix the damage done by the virus you need to do the following.

• Click the Windows Start button to open the Start Menu, type control panel in the search box and select Control Panel in the results displayed above.
• go to Network and Internet
• then Network and Sharing Center
• then Change Adapter Settings
• Right-click on your active internet connection and click properties. Under the Networking tab, find Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4). Left click on it and then click on properties. Both options should be automatic! By default it should be set to “Obtain an IP address automatically” and the second one to “Obtain DNS server address automatically!” If they are not just change them, however if you are part of a domain network you should contact your Domain Administrator to set these settings, otherwise the internet connection will break!!!

 

• Check your scheduled tasks to make sure the virus will not download itself again.

How to Permanently Remove Websock.exe Virus (automatic) Removal Guide

Please, have in mind that once you are infected with a single virus, it compromises your whole system or network and let all doors wide open for many other infections. To make sure manual removal is successful, we recommend to use a free scanner of any professional antimalware program to identify possible virus leftovers or temporary files.