aMuleC: what it is and how to remove it
aMuleC is a potentially unwanted peer-to-peer sharing program which is closely related to Winsnare. It supports eDonkey Network, created by Jed McCaleb and Sam Yagan in the 2000s .
Facts checked October 6, 2026. Removal steps tested on Windows 11 (26H2) and checked against Microsoft's and the browser makers' current documentation. Sections marked as our earlier report are the original text: they describe the threat as it was then and have not been reviewed since. The 2026 status, the removal steps and the questions are current.
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AMuleC: summary
| Distribution | Third-party websites, bundling |
|---|---|
| Name | aMuleC |
| Type | P2P client, potentially unwanted program |
| Dangers | Might be used to spread malware |
| Uninstall | You can uninstall the app by following our manual guide below or using powerful security software |
| Detection names | No Microsoft detection name is known |
| Removal | Scan the PC with security software to find and remove the malware and anything installed with it. Fortect scans Windows for malware and repairs the system files and settings it damaged. Remove it nowTo use the full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Fortect. The scan is free. |
Show 6 more facts
| Damage | Not recorded in the old report |
|---|---|
| Symptoms | An unknown program in Installed apps |
| Evidence | 6 write-ups by security sites; details still limited |
| Program | AMuleC |
| First seen | 11 June 2021 |
| Facts checked | 6 October 2026 |
Is aMuleC safe? Why it is flagged
From our report of Jun 2021 · not reviewed since
aMuleC is a peer-to-peer app that causes lots of problems on the Internet
aMuleC is a potentially unwanted peer-to-peer sharing program which is closely related to Winsnare.
It supports eDonkey Network, created by Jed McCaleb and Sam Yagan in the 2000s . The main problem caused by the app is unwanted notifications that can be displayed on Chrome, Firefox, and Explorer. However, there is a full list of additional problems related to this application.
Back in the day, users knew only eDonkey-supporting software, such as eMule, zMule, and a bunch of other programs. Over time, their popularity decreased. However, you can still download various versions from the Internet. Unfortunately, not all of these versions are equally secure, and this one you should keep away from.
Please, keep in mind that this app is different from aMule 2.3.2, which is a legitimate software sharing application. Besides, beware that most peer-to-peer sharing networks cannot be dissociated from various cyber risks.
However, programs created by questionable authors can greatly increase the risk you are dealing with. You can never know that the so-called peers on the network are trustworthy and that you are not taking part in malware distribution.
You can find aMuleC on your computer without downloading it. Its developers have been very active while trying to sneak this software onto users' computers using deceptive distribution techniques, such as bundling. Beware that there is a wide list of programs that can cause the appearance of this PUP on your computer.
If you have already found this app on your computer without downloading it, we highly recommend you take care of PUP removal. It should be done without much consideration.
From our report of Jun 2021 · not reviewed since
Additional issues caused by the software
Before we head to the elimination guide, though, we would like to explain additional issues caused by this PUP.
Once it finds itself on your computer, it starts causing commercial notifications during your browsing sessions. Some of these ads can be fake messages, misleading popups, and similar alerts that need to be ignored. To sum up, this program is ad-based, and that is why it has been labeled as a "virus."
In addition to various ads, you can also notice redirects to unreliable websites, slowdowns on your computer, and similar issues. Some websites may fail to load properly due to the server's inability to support all the extra ads that are injected, or worse; the browser may crash completely.
It may also start deteriorating the quality of your web browsing experience. Some websites may fail to load properly due to the server's inability to support all the extra ads injected, or worse, the browser may crash completely.
If you have been struggling with this program which is deteriorating the quality of your web browsing experience, we can only suggest you remove this app from the system. It is not difficult to achieve if you follow the uninstall guide given in the guidelines below this article.
From our report of Jun 2021 · not reviewed since
More from our earlier report on aMuleC
- If your system was infected with malware, you should remove it and then fix virus damage with
How aMuleC got installed
From our report of Jun 2021 · not reviewed since
You can find aMuleC download links promoted on various shady websites.
Nevertheless, the most common way used by this program to reach the potential user is software bundling. This software distribution technique involves spreading several applications altogether.
Authors of questionable applications find bundling as an especially convenient way to distribute their products because such a method does not always require direct approval from the user. The only way to change such an unfavorable situation is to choose advanced installation settings whenever installing new software on the computer.
How to uninstall aMuleC
How to remove aMuleC
Uninstall the bundle first, then everything it added:
- programs
- extensions
- changed browser settings
Step 1: Uninstall aMuleC
AMuleC is removed like any other program, from the list of installed apps. In Windows 11 that is Settings > Apps > Installed apps, in Windows 10 Settings > Apps > Apps & features, and in both you can also use Control Panel > Programs and Features.
Select aMuleC, click Uninstall and follow the uninstaller to the end. Then look at the entries just above and below it when the list is sorted by date: bundled programs install at the same minute.
Full procedure with screenshots: Uninstall a program or app in Windows On uGetFix
Step 2: Remove it from startup
Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager and select Startup apps (Windows 11) or the Startup tab (Windows 10). Disable entries you do not recognise, especially ones with no publisher or with a name that copies a Windows component.
Right-click an entry and choose Open file location to see where it runs from: programs in
%AppData%or%Temp%deserve a closer look. Some entries are not listed there but in the registry Run keys, which the procedure below shows how to check.Full procedure with screenshots: Stop apps from opening at startup On uGetFix
Step 3: Delete the folders left behind
Uninstalling often leaves the program's folders, and some threats reinstall themselves from them.
Press Windows + R, type
%LocalAppData%and press Enter, then do the same for%AppData%and %ProgramData%, and look for folders named after aMuleC, its publisher or created on the day the problem started. Delete those folders, and check C:\Program Files and C:\Program Files (x86) too.If Windows says a file is in use, end it in Task Manager or delete the folder after a restart in Safe Mode. The folders are the same in Windows 11 and Windows 10.
Full procedure with screenshots: Remove what malware leaves behind in Windows
Step 4: Scan the PC, then run the offline scan
A scan finds the parts of aMuleC that the manual steps cannot see. In Windows Security > Virus & threat protection > Scan options, start a Full scan and quarantine what it reports.
Follow it with Microsoft Defender Antivirus (offline scan) > Scan now, which restarts the PC and checks the disk while Windows and the malware are not running.
It takes about 15 minutes and works the same in Windows 11 and Windows 10. If either scan finds something, run the full scan again after removal until it comes back clean.
Windows 11: Windows Security > Virus & threat protection > Scan options. Full procedure with screenshots: Run a Microsoft Defender Offline scan
Instructions for each browser and system
The detailed steps for every browser and system this guide covers. Open the one you use.
Uninstall from Windows
To remove the app from Windows, follow the guide provided below. Make sure you remove all entries related to this program.
Uninstall from Windows 10/8:
- Type Control Panel into the Windows search box and open the result.
- Under Programs, select Uninstall a program.
Uninstall from Windows 7/XP:
- Click on Windows Start > Control Panel (Windows XP users should click on Add/Remove Programs).
- In Control Panel, select Programs > Uninstall a program.
Remove the unwanted program:
- In the Programs and Features window, look for any recently installed suspicious entries, select them, and click Uninstall.
- If User Account Control appears, click Yes to confirm, then complete the removal.
Remove from Google Chrome
Delete malicious extensions from Google Chrome:
- Open Google Chrome, click on the Menu (three vertical dots at the top-right corner) and select More tools > Extensions.
- In the newly opened window, you will see all the installed extensions. Uninstall all suspicious extensions related to the unwanted program by clicking Remove.
Clear cache and web data from Chrome:
- Click on Menu and pick Settings.
- Under Privacy and security, select Clear browsing data.
- Select Browsing history, Cookies and other site data, as well as Cached images and files.
- Click Clear data.
Change your homepage:
- Click menu and choose Settings.
- Look for a suspicious site in the On startup section.
- Click on Open a specific or set of pages and click on three dots to find the Remove option.
Reset Google Chrome:
If the previous methods did not help you, reset Google Chrome to eliminate all the unwanted components:
- Click on Menu and select Settings.
- In the Settings, scroll down and click Advanced.
- Scroll down and locate Reset and clean up section.
- Now click Restore settings to their original defaults.
- Confirm with Reset settings.
Remove from Microsoft Edge
Delete unwanted extensions from MS Edge:
- Select Menu (three horizontal dots at the top-right of the browser window) and pick Extensions.
- From the list, pick the extension and click on the Gear icon.
- Click Remove.
Clear cookies and other browser data:
- Click on the Menu (three horizontal dots at the top-right of the browser window) and select Settings > Privacy, search, and services..
- Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear.
- Select Cookies and other site data and Cached images and files. (apart from passwords, although you might want to include Media licenses as well, if applicable) and click on Clear.
Restore new tab and homepage settings:
- Click the menu icon and choose Settings.
- Then find On startup section.
- Click Remove next to any suspicious startup page.
Reset MS Edge if the above steps did not work:
- Press on Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager.
- Click on More details arrow at the bottom of the window.
- Select Details tab.
- Now scroll down and locate every entry with Microsoft Edge name in it. Right-click on each of them and select End Task to stop MS Edge from running.
Delete extensions from MS Edge (Chromium):
- Open Edge and click select Settings > Extensions.
- Delete unwanted extensions by clicking Remove.
Clear cache and site data:
- Click on Menu and go to Settings.
- Select Privacy, search and services.
- Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear.
- Under Time range, pick All time.
- Select Clear now.
Reset Chromium-based MS Edge:
- Click on Menu and select Settings.
- On the left side, pick Reset settings.
- Select Restore settings to their default values.
- Confirm with Reset.
- This will disable extensions and reset startup pages but will not delete bookmarks, saved passwords, or browsing history.
Remove from Mozilla Firefox (FF)
To fix Mozilla Firefox, make sure that there are no undesirable components related to this app. Make sure you double check all extensions, add-ons, toolbars and other components.
Remove dangerous extensions:
- Open Mozilla Firefox browser and click on the Menu (three horizontal lines at the top-right of the window).
- Select Add-ons.
- In here, select the unwanted extension and click Remove.
Reset the homepage:
- Click three horizontal lines at the top right corner to open the menu.
- Choose Settings.
- Under Home, set your preferred homepage and new tab settings.
Clear cookies and site data:
- Click Menu and pick Settings.
- Go to Privacy & Security section.
- Scroll down to locate Cookies and Site Data.
- Click on Clear Data...
- Select Cookies and Site Data and Temporary cached files and pages, then click Clear.
Reset Mozilla Firefox
If clearing the browser as explained above did not help, reset Mozilla Firefox:
- Open Mozilla Firefox browser and click the Menu.
- Go to Help and then choose Troubleshooting Information.
- Under Give Firefox a tune up section, click on Refresh Firefox...
- Once the pop-up shows up, confirm the action by pressing on Refresh Firefox.
Delete from Safari
Remove dangerous extensions:
- Open Safari, click Safari in the menu at the top-left of the screen, and select Preferences.
- Go to the Extensions tab, look for any suspicious entries, and click Uninstall to remove them.
Clear history and website data:
- Click Safari in the menu and pick Clear History.
- Set Clear to all history and confirm with Clear History.
Reset Safari:
- Click Safari in the menu and select Preferences > Advanced.
- Enable Show Develop menu in menu bar.
- From the menu bar, click Develop and select Empty Caches.
Delete from macOS
Remove the unwanted application:
- From the menu bar, select Go > Applications.
- In the Applications folder, look for any suspicious entries, then drag them to Trash (or right-click and pick Move to Trash).
Delete leftover files and folders:
- Select Go > Go to Folder.
- Enter /Library/Application Support and remove any suspicious folders related to the unwanted program.
- Repeat the same check in the /Library/LaunchAgents and /Library/LaunchDaemons folders, deleting any suspicious entries.
- Finally, empty the Trash to permanently remove the leftovers.
Choose a proper web browser and improve your safety with a VPN tool
Online spying has got momentum in recent years and people are getting more and more interested in how to protect their privacy online.
One of the basic means to add a layer of security - choose the most private and secure web browser. Although web browsers can't grant full privacy protection and security, some of them are much better at sandboxing, HTTPS upgrading, active content blocking, tracking blocking, phishing protection, and similar privacy-oriented features.
However, if you want true anonymity, we suggest you employ a powerful VPN - it can encrypt all the traffic that comes and goes out of your computer, preventing tracking completely.
Lost your files? Use data recovery software
While some files located on any computer are replaceable or useless, others can be extremely valuable.
Family photos, work documents, school projects - these are types of files that we don't want to lose. Unfortunately, there are many ways how unexpected data loss can occur:
- power cuts
- Blue Screen of Death errors
- hardware failures
- crypto-malware attack
- even accidental deletion
To ensure that all the files remain intact, you should prepare regular data backups. You can choose cloud-based or physical copies you could restore from later in case of a disaster. If your backups were lost as well or you never bothered to prepare any, can be your only hope to retrieve your invaluable files.
From our report of Jun 2021 · not reviewed since
Remove aMuleC
It is not difficult to remove the app from the system.
As we have already mentioned, it is just an unwanted program which causes annoying ads on your computer. However, you should be very attentive if you decided to use the manual removal technique. Keep in mind that, in this case, you will have to find all components that are related to the program manually.
If you have been reading with difficulties while trying to perform aMuleC removal on your computer, you should switch from our step-by-step guide to the automatic removal option. There are several programs provided right below that are capable of helping you with this PUP.
Questions about aMuleC
What is aMuleC and why is it on my PC?
AMuleC is a program that was installed on the PC, most likely together with something else you downloaded. Free software sites and many installers add extra programs on setup pages with pre-ticked boxes, so the extra install looks like your choice even though nobody read the page.
Check the install date in Settings, Apps, Installed apps: the program you installed that day is the probable carrier. If you do not need aMuleC, uninstall it. If it belongs to your hardware or to a program you use, search its exact name and publisher first, because drivers and their tools can have unfamiliar names.
AMuleC came back after I uninstalled it. Why?
Something else is reinstalling it. Common causes are a second program from the same publisher, a scheduled task that downloads it again, or a browser extension that keeps prompting for it. Sort Installed apps by install date and uninstall each entry from the same day that you did not choose.
Then open Task Scheduler and look in the Task Scheduler Library for tasks with updater-style names that you do not recognise. Check Startup apps in Task Manager too. If aMuleC still returns, start Windows in Safe Mode, uninstall it there and run a Microsoft Defender offline scan, which looks for loaders that ordinary scans can miss.
How do I know if I need aMuleC?
Ask three questions. Did you install it on purpose? Have you ever opened it?
Does anything you use depend on it? If the answers are no, you do not need it. The sign that brought you here, AMuleC in the list of installed apps, suggests it arrived without a clear choice.
Programs bundled with free software rarely do anything their host program needs. Uninstall it, restart, and see whether anything you rely on stops working. If nothing does, which is the usual outcome, you can forget about it.
Is aMuleC why my PC is slow?
It can be one reason. Programs of this kind often start with Windows, run updaters in the background and keep a process open all the time.
The sign reported, AMuleC in the list of installed apps, means at least one such program is active. Open Task Manager, sort by CPU, memory and network, and see whether aMuleC or a related process is near the top.
If it is, removing it will help. If not, the slowdown has another cause, but removing a program you never chose is still worth doing. A restart after removal shows the difference best.
Is my privacy at risk because of aMuleC?
A little, not dramatically. Unwanted programs tend to report what you install, which sites you visit or how you use the program back to their publisher. That data is sold or used for ads.
The sign people noticed, AMuleC in the list of installed apps, is consistent with such a program, and nothing reported suggests access to your files, camera or passwords.
Remove it, delete its leftovers and clear the browser data if it touched the browser. From then on, keep Potentially unwanted app blocking switched on in Windows Security, which stops many of these programs before they install.
Why does aMuleC reinstall itself?
Programs like aMuleC are often installed with an updater or a companion app whose job is to keep them present. When you uninstall the main program, the helper downloads it again at the next scheduled run or restart.
Find the helper by sorting Installed apps by date and by checking Task Scheduler and Services for entries with the same name or publisher. Remove them all, then delete leftover folders. Turning on Potentially unwanted app blocking in Windows Security also stops many reinstall attempts.
Do I need special software to remove aMuleC?
No. Windows has everything needed:
- Installed apps for the uninstall
- the Startup list and Task Scheduler for what restarts it
- Windows Security for a scan afterwards
The steps in this guide take about fifteen minutes. A dedicated tool is a convenience when you would rather not check each place yourself or when the program keeps coming back.
Whatever you use, finish by confirming that AMuleC in the list of installed apps is gone after a restart, and avoid downloading removal tools from pages that promote them through scary warnings.
Is aMuleC harmful?
It is unwelcome rather than destructive, based on what has been reported: AMuleC in the list of installed apps. Unwanted programs like this slow Windows down, use your connection, show offers or change settings, and they make money for their publisher at your expense. The bigger concern is what arrived with them.
Bundled installers often add two or three programs at once, and some of those change the browser or install updaters that fetch more software later. Remove aMuleC, then sort Installed apps by date and remove anything else from the same day. A full scan in Windows Security afterwards confirms that nothing more serious came along.
AMuleC has no uninstall option. What now?
Some unwanted programs leave no entry in Installed apps on purpose. Find the program's files instead:
- open Task Manager while AMuleC in the list of installed apps is visible
- right-click the process
- choose Open file location
End the process, then look in that folder for an uninstall file. If there is none, delete the folder after checking that it holds nothing you need.
Before deleting, remove the startup entry and any scheduled task that points to it, otherwise it may be recreated. A restart and a full scan in Windows Security finish the job and catch files stored elsewhere.
Will Fortect remove aMuleC?
Fortect scans Windows for malware and unwanted programs and repairs the system files and settings they change, and its free scan shows what it finds on your PC before you decide anything.
For aMuleC, follow the plan above as well: the browser steps take back permissions and settings that no scanner treats as a threat, and uninstalling the program that brought it removes the source.
Run Microsoft Defender's full scan and, if anything was found, its offline scan as a second opinion. If the symptoms are gone after the plan and both scans are clean, there is nothing more to do.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Peer-to-peer file sharing (read October 6, 2026)
- Wikipedia: eDonkey network (read October 6, 2026)
- FTC: How to recognize, remove and avoid malware (read October 6, 2026)
- Microsoft Learn: Microsoft Defender Offline (read October 6, 2026)
- Microsoft Learn: How Microsoft names malware (read October 6, 2026)