What is crss.exe? Should I remove it?

Crss.exe is a file that could indicate a Trojan infection

Crss.exe is a background process that users might encounter running in the background – it can be visible within the Task Manager or other process monitoring application windows. While this entry might mean that your computer has been infected with a Trojan, it is important to check whether the Crss.exe is not Csrss.exe, since the latter is a legitimate Windows Client Server Runtime Process, which is essential for every Windows machine.

Nonetheless, Crss.exe Trojan injection can cause devastating consequences, as cybercriminals might start monitoring your online activities and stealing credit card or other sensitive data. Besides, it also can open a backdoor on your machine, which would allow malicious actors to download and execute more malicious files on your machine.

Name Crss.exe
Type Trojan, malware
Location If the file is malicious it will be present in one of the following folders: User/Windows/Temp
Distribution Most Trojans spread via multiple methods, such as spam email attachments, exploits, software cracks, malicious scripts
Dangers  Installation of other malware, sensitive information disclosure to unknown parties, monetary losses, identity theft, etc. 
Symptoms While in most cases Trojans do not show any visible signs of infection as they are programmed to be stealthy, system crashes, errors, BSOD's browser redirects, and similar suspicious PC behavior can occur
Elimination Perform a full system scan with powerful anti-malware software – we recommend using SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner
System fix In case you had a virus on your system, it might not work as previously after the infection is terminated. Thus, if you are having stability issues after the virus is removed, you can use a PC repair tool FortectIntego to fix these issues

If you are wondering f your computer is infected with the Crss.exe virus, you should not delay and scan the device with powerful anti-malware software – it could detect all the unwanted and malicious files at once. However, some malware can actually disable or corrupt your security software to be able to penetrate the device fully. In such a case, you should first start looking for Crss.exe Trojan infection symptoms.

Some users complained that they see several instances of Crss.exe running on their Windows. While some may be convinced that this immediately means that their machines are infected, it might not be the case – there are several methods to find out. If anything, Crss.exe virus removal should be done as soon as possible if it is present on the machine.

First of all, reading the description of the file can be very useful. For that, you should press Ctrl + Shift + Esc and open the Task Manager. Find the Crss.exe instance, right-click, and select Properties. In the General tab, you should be able to see a description and location of the file.

If the description is as one below, you should be extremely concerned, is it most likely means you are infected:

  • Windows Registry Security
  • Controlled Resource System Service
  • Win32 Network Driver
  • System Config Manager

Besides, if the file is located in C:\User, C:\Windows, %AppData% or %Temp% folders, it is another indication of malware infection. In such a situation, you should remove Crss.exe without thinking twice, as it can greatly compromise your online safety and result in such consequences like financial loss, identity theft, and much more. After you terminate the infection, you can use FortectIntego to repair virus damage and avoid unwanted system crashes or errors.

However, if the file is actually called Csrss.exe and is located in C:\Windows\System32 folder, you are likely to be safe, it is a process used by Windows and is completely legitimate. IT is also normal to see a few instances of it running in the background. Nonetheless, high CPU or Memory usage of the file might also indicate a virus infection.

All in all, you should access Safe Mode and perform a full system scan to ensure that your machine is virus-free. If several security apps show your machine is clean, you should not be concerned about the Csrss.exe running in the background.

Practice safe online browsing to prevent Trojan and other malware infections

Regular computer users typically are quite careless when it comes to their online security. Considering that most viruses are programmed in a way to be stealthy during their operation, they can run on systems for weeks or even months until they are detected. In the meantime, users can get their banking accounts compromised, or money was stolen. Besides, personal data is being sold on the dark web constantly, and it proved to be a lucrative business to cybercriminals.

Therefore, it is important to ensure that your machine is secure and virus free. To not allow malware in, you should take precautionary measures that would reduce the probability of an infection. Here are a few tips from security experts:

  • Never open spam email attachments that ask to use macro feature;
  • Do not click on embedded links within suspicious emails;
  • Download and install powerful anti-malware software with real-time protection feature;
  • Keep you system and installed programs up to date;
  • Use strong passwords for all your accounts;
  • Backup your most important files on a separate medium.

Crss.exe Trojan removal

As previously mentioned, you can remove Crss.exe Trojan with the help of powerful anti-malware software. Nonetheless, the virus might attempt to disable the installed security program and still keep running in the background. Therefore, perform additional checks with the tips we provided above – the location of the file can also serve as a good indication of whether it is malicious.

You should also not remove Crss.exe if it is, in fact, Csrss.exe, even if several instances are running in the background, as it is completely normal behavior. If you attempt to shut down a legitimate Windows process, your system might crash immediately. Therefore, access Safe Mode and perform a full system scan using powerful anti-malware software.

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What to do if failed?
If you failed to fix virus damage using Fortect Intego, submit a question to our support team and provide as much details as possible.
Fortect Intego has a free limited scanner. Fortect Intego offers more through scan when you purchase its full version. When free scanner detects issues, you can fix them using free manual repairs or you can decide to purchase the full version in order to fix them automatically.
Alternative Software
Different software has a different purpose. If you didn’t succeed in fixing corrupted files with Fortect, try running SpyHunter 5.
Alternative Software
Different software has a different purpose. If you didn’t succeed in fixing corrupted files with Intego, try running Combo Cleaner.
About the author
Linas Kiguolis
Linas Kiguolis - Expert in social media

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