What is teefer.vxd? Should I remove it?

Teefer.vxd – a part of the third-party firewall program that may cause troubles

Teefer.vxd is a Virtual Device Driver which belongs to Sygate Personal Firewall software or Sygate Teefer Driver created for Windows operating systems – Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000/XP. This file is usually located in C:\Windows\System32\drivers folder and is installed together with the third-party software and is not an essential component of Windows. Thus, it can be removed at any time, although that would corrupt the normal operation of the program.

Teefer.vxd is associated with the application helper files and helps it to function properly and adds extra functionality. This file does not run in the background but can be downloaded as a separate file. Nevertheless, security experts recommend never to download such drivers from third-party websites as they can demand money to be paid for it, or can be malicious altogether. 

Teefer.vxd is a compressed file, which renders it potentially dangerous. Security researchers warn that malware can be injected into legitimate-looking files and then deceptively installed on the targeted machine. Please beware of the following symptoms on your computer:

• Increased CPU or/and GPU usage. This usually indicates the presence of crypto-miner. Crypto-miners are installed on targeted machines without notice to perform various tasks on the machine to solve complicated math problems, which results in cryptocurrency mining. Nevertheless, the obtained money goes straight into hackers' pockets, and users' hardware might end up even breaking.
• Frequent system crashes. If you are constantly bothered by various stop errors and system crashes – it can indicate that your system is infected with malware. This is because viruses are capable of make severe changed to the system and disrupt its normal operation.
• Inaccessible security software. If you cannot access the security software, it is highly likely that a trojan horse is preventing it. Reboot your PC in Safe Mode with Networking and launch FortectIntego or other anti-malware tool from there.
• The overall slow performance of the device. Malware can not only affect the operation speed of the computer but as well internet speed. Thus, if you noticed that simple web pages take a long time to load and your PC is struggling to work, take action and scan your device.

We do not recommend Teefer.vxd removal if the anti-malware software does not find anything suspicious after the scan. Nevertheless, users should always be careful when it comes to unknown files.

Ways malware is distributed

As we already mentioned, the official driver files get installed together with the software. However, the malicious versions always enter computers using some trickery. The most prominent malware distribution method is spam emails. These cleverly written messages can sometimes trick even the most computer-savvy individuals. Therefore, nobody is safe online, although safe internet browsing practices can prevent most of the infections.

Therefore, we recommend users not casually open spam email attachments or links that are presented inside. Just one click and you can end up with dangerous malware installed on your machine, such as Satan ransomware or TrickBot banking malware. Malicious attachments can come in different formats, including .PDF, .doc, .vxd, and many others. Thus, be vigilant and learn to spot phishing emails before your machine is compromised.

Safely eliminate Teefer.vxd malware from your device

You should not perform Teefer.vxd removal if the file is legitimate. Although it would compromise the operation of the associated software, it can still be done. Thus, if you want to get rid legitimate file, you can delete it via Add/Remove programs.

If the file is malicious, however, you should not tamper with system files and remove Teefer.vxd virus using anti-malware tool, such as FortectIntego or SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner. As we already mentioned, if the cyber threat prevents security software from starting, enter Safe Mode with Networking and perform a full system scan.