Windows 10: Is Wextract.exe a virus?

I have recently come across a file on network that has the hash 8E4AB33EB49B8DFAE025C7FACCC31B9236DD311A46BC20CFD4763F6AB2B8E465.

This hash according to open source belongs to Wextract.exe and was produced by Microsoft although the file is not signed. The original Wextract file is obviously legitimate but this particular file is called by a different name and on virustotal, is reported by a handful of vendors Including Microsoft as malicious. The vendors list it as a potentially unwanted program. I am just concerned that in this case the file may be referred to as malicious becuase of the behavior carried out by the legitimate version. The link below shows the VT results for the hash:

https://www.virustotal.com/gui/file...b9236dd311a46bc20cfd4763f6ab2b8e465/detection


Can someone please confirm:

1 If the above hash belongs to the legitimate version of Wextract?

2 Are all Microsoft files digitally signed?


Many thanks


[Original Title: Wextract.exe]

:)

 

NESHTA.A VIRUS REMOVED BUT .EXE NOT WORKING

Hi Khaled,

It is possible that you .exe is not working due to corrupted system files or account. To assist you better, kindly answer the following questions:

• Does this happen with a specific application or with all of your application?
• Have you tried creating a new admin account to check if the issue also with new account or only with the current account?

In the meantime, we suggest that you follow the steps in this article on how
to create a new admin account.

Let us know if you need further assistance.

 

Malware tprdpw64.exe after installing 7zip

Thank you for the reply and the suggestions. However neither link provided a working solution. I followed each set of instructions step by step, to the T, but the viruses are still there.

I killed the processes with Rkill as instructed, and it found and ended the malware process `tprdpw64.exe`. It, however, did nothing
about the adware `svcvmx` & `svcvmx client` processes. After doing so I downloaded and installed Zemana, as instructed, and let it do a full system scan. Might I add that this took over
10 hours to complete, as I have 1,396,541 files on my PC, so this whole thing wasted nearly half a day of my time with no results.

Zemana detected the malware virus `tprdpw64.exe` located at "C:\WINDOWS\System32\tprdpw64.exe"
(among other, smaller "threats"), and labeled it as malware. After it finished the scan, it said it has placed all files into quarantine, including `tprdpw64.exe`.
However, when checking the quarantine list `tprdpw64.exe` is
not listed. I then decided to have Zemana remove the files in the
quarantine list from my system and then rebooted my PC. It removed them all successfully, except for `tprdpw64.exe`
which is still on my system, and still runs (I can still see it in task manager after rebooting). So the 10+ hours of waiting were all for nothing.

I then used Zemana's "drag-and-drop" feature to re-scan just `tprdpw64.exe`
(in order to not have to wait 10+ hours again). It scanned it, and now says the file is not a threat (but it clearly is).

I then proceeded to step 2, using AdwCleaner to remove the adware. This did not work in the slightest. AdwCleaner did not detect the adware virus at all, and thus did nothing about it. I still cannot remove the viruses manually, either. However for some
reason, the adware `svcvmx` & `svcvmx client` processes no longer seem to run (my PC has been on for about an hour, and the processes
have yet to startup). However, even so the files are still on my file system and would like to delete them.

EDIT

I have just searched my registry, looking for any possible signs of tprdpw64 being listed, and there was nothing there.

 

One of my exe files is blocked in Windows but there is no explanation why

Hi Frank B.,

Corrupt registry settings or some third party product (or virus) can change the default configuration for running EXE files. This may lead to failed operation when you try to run EXE files. Having said that, you may want to turn off the
Controlled folder access in Windows Defender and see if it makes any difference. You can follow the steps below:

1. Open Windows Defender Security Center.
   
2. Select Virus & threat protection.
   
3. Click Virus & threat protection settings.
4. Scroll down to Mange Controlled folder access then toggle it
   Off.

If you have additional questions, or if the issue persists after the troubleshooting steps above, please let me know by replying to this thread. This way, I'll get notified and respond back to you as soon as I can.