If your computer has started running like a turtle, the graphics card is making noise like a fan at maximum, and the CPU is constantly loaded at 80-90%, chances are you've been visited by an uninvited guest – a PC miner. This is a malicious program that secretly uses your machine's resources to mine cryptocurrency in the background. And the worst part is – regular antivirus software often can't handle this threat.

What's actually happening? A PC miner is a type of Trojan virus. It infiltrates the Windows system and begins to operate silently, utilizing the CPU, graphics card, and RAM. While you're watching a movie or writing an email, the virus is mining crypto for its creator. The result – your hardware degrades at an accelerated rate, especially if it's a laptop. Some laptops can fail literally within a few hours of such load.

There are two main types of this threat. The first is cryptojacking. This is a script embedded directly into a website. When you visit an infected page, the script activates and starts using your computer's power. Antivirus doesn't detect it because the program isn't loaded onto the disk – it exists only in the browser's memory. The second type is a classic PC miner in the form of a file or archive. Such a virus is installed covertly and runs every time the computer is turned on. Sometimes it just mines, and other times it also drains your wallets.

How to tell if you're infected? Watch for these signs. The GPU starts making a hellish noise and becomes hot – check the load with GPU-Z. Is your computer slowing down? Open Task Manager and look at the CPU load. If it's over 60% without any apparent reason – this is a warning sign. Other symptoms include rapid RAM consumption, browsers working sluggishly, strange processes in Task Manager with names like asikadl.exe, increased internet usage, files disappearing without your permission.

How to get rid of it? The first step is to run a good antivirus and perform a full system scan. Then run CCleaner or an equivalent tool to clean junk files. After that, restart your computer. But keep in mind: new miners are getting smarter. They may add themselves to the trusted programs list so that antivirus doesn't touch them. Or they simply disable themselves when they see Task Manager.

If the simple method didn't work, dig deeper. Open the registry (Win+R, then regedit), press Ctrl+F, and search for suspicious process names. Delete everything found and restart. The second option is to check the Task Scheduler (Win+R, taskschd.msc). In the scheduler library, look for tasks that run on startup. If you see anything strange – disable it, then delete. For more thorough cleaning, use Dr. Web or AnVir Task Manager.

How to protect yourself from PC miners in the future? Here's what you should do. Install and regularly update antivirus software. Scan all downloaded files before opening. Work online with antivirus and firewall enabled. Avoid visiting dubious sites without SSL certificates – look for https in the address. Add dangerous sites to your hosts file using lists from GitHub. Disable JavaScript in your browser if possible – this reduces the risk of browser mining, though it may break some site displays. In Chrome, enable built-in anti-mining protection in privacy settings. Set a strong password on your router and disable remote access. Don't give other users permission to install programs. Use AdBlock or uBlock to filter ads and potentially dangerous code.

Another tip: reinstall a clean Windows image every 2-3 months if you notice signs of infection. And before removing viruses, create a system backup – just in case something goes wrong. By the way, never run programs as administrator unless necessary. If a miner gains admin rights, removing it will be much harder. In short, be more careful online, and a PC miner won't bother you.