How to remove Hancitor from the operating system

What kind of malware is Hancitor?

Hancitor is a high-risk trojan-type virus. Developers proliferate this malware using various spam email campaigns such as Here Is Your Fax Email Virus, AT&T Invoice Email Virus, and many others.

After successful infiltration, Hancitor introduces other malware to infect the system. Therefore, this malware opens 'backdoors' for other viruses to infiltrate.

Hancitor in detail

As mentioned above, Hancitor is proliferated using spam email campaigns. Developers send thousands of deceptive email messages that encourage users to open attached documents. These attached files are malicious - they stealthily install Hancitor into the system. This is where the chain infection begins.

By opening the malicious attachments, users inadvertently allow Hancitor to enter their computers. Immediately after infiltration, Hancitor executes scripts that install other trojans (for example, Pony). Infiltrated malware is very dangerous. Most of these viruses gather sensitive information, such as saved logins/passwords, website URLs visited, keystrokes, and so on.

Cyber criminals might gain access to personal accounts (banks, social networks, and so on). In this way, they can steal victims' identities and perform malicious tasks, such as online purchases, money transfers, and so on. Therefore, the presence of malware distributed by Hancitor can lead to serious privacy issues and significant financial loss.

If you have recently opened any suspicious attachments, there is high a probability that your computer is infected. Therefore, scan it with a reputable anti-virus/anti-spyware suite and eliminate all detected threats.

Similarities with other Trojans

There are dozens of trojan-type viruses proliferated using email spam campaigns (for example, Adwind, Emotet, TrickBot, and FormBook), however, only small percentage proliferate other viruses and, in most cases, they distribute ransomware.

Trojans commonly record sensitive information and save it on remote servers - they pose a significant threat to your privacy and computer safety and must be removed immediately.

How did Hancitor infiltrate my computer?

As mentioned above, Hancitor promotioncampaigns typically distributes malicious Microsoft Office documents. Immediately after opening these files, users are asked to enable macro commands, however, in doing so, they inadvertently grant malicious attachments permission to download and install Hancitor into the system.

Although this malware distribution method is simple and effective, it is not flawless. Note that malicious files are only able to download malware if they are opened using tools from the Microsoft Office suite.

For example, if a .doc file is opened using any program other than MS Word, the malware will not be downloaded. In addition, Hancitor targets the Microsoft Windows Operating System only and, therefore, users or other platforms do not have to worry.

How to avoid installation of malware?

Lack of knowledge and careless behavior are the main reasons for computer infections. The key to safety is caution. Therefore, pay close attention when browsing the Internet. We strongly recommend that you carefully analyze each email attachment received. Files that are irrelevant or have been sent by a suspicious/unrecognizable email address should never be opened.

These emails should be deleted without reading. Furthermore, have a legitimate anti-virus/anti-spyware suite installed and running - these programs delete malicious files before they perform any actions. If you believe that your computer is already infected, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate infiltrated malware.

Spam campaign distributing Hancitor trojan:

Malicious attachment distributing Hancitor trojan:

Another email spam campaign used to spread Hancitor trojan:

Text presented within this email:

DocuSign
Please review and sign this document.
REVIEW DOCUMENT
Dear Recipient,
Please sign this invoice
It is an electronically created notice.
This message keeps a secure link to DocuSign. Do not share this link with other people.
Alternative Signing Method
Please visit DocuSign.com, click on 'Access Documents', enter the security code: 080E7ACAF4
About Our Service
Sign invoice electronically in just few clicks. It's risk-free. Whether you are at work, home or even across the globe -- Our service gives a professional solution for Digital Operations .
Questions concerning an Invoice?
In case you need to edit an invoice or have questions , please contact the sender directly.
If you cannot see an invoice, see the Help page on our support .
This message was sent to you by DocuSign Electronic Signature Service.

Malicious MS Word attachment ("invoice.doc") that injects Hancitor:

Update April 16, 2020 - Due to the recent outbreak of Coronavirus (COVID-19) infection cyber criminals are taking advantage of the situation and starting various email spam/scam campaigns to spread malware, extract money from unsuspecting users and perform other malicious actions. Hancitor is not an exception.

Here's an example of scam emails that are presented as notifications from Humana Inc. Emails encourage users to open attached files which inject Hancitor into the system. Note that Humana Inc. has nothing to do with this spam campaign - crooks simply use names of various companies and governmental organizations to create the impression of legitimacy.

Screenshot of the malicious attachment (Microsoft Excel document) distributed using this spam campaign:

Another malicious MS Word document used to inject Hancitor malware:

Another example of MS Word document used to spread Hancitor trojan:

How to remove malware manually?

Most trojan infections can be removed by running a full system scan with Combo Cleaner. The full manual procedure below is for cases where automatic removal failed, where you want to verify a scan caught everything, or where the threat has multiple persistence points.

Tools you'll need

Combo Cleaner Antivirus 7-days free trial

Recommended primary scanner. VB100 certified. The 7-day free trial is available.

Microsoft Defender Offline Free · built-in

Built into Windows. Boots to a clean environment to catch rootkits.

Process Explorer Free

From Microsoft Sysinternals. Better than Task Manager - shows full paths and signatures.

Autoruns Free

From Microsoft Sysinternals. Lists every place malware can persist on your system.

Microsoft Safety Scanner (MSERT) Free

Official Microsoft on-demand scanner. Always-current signatures - expires every 10 days.

Phase 1~ 5 min

Contain - limit the damage

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1

Disconnect from the network

30 secNo tool needed

Unplug your Ethernet cable and turn off Wi-Fi. If you're on a laptop, the airplane-mode key works fastest.

Why this matters

Many trojans exfiltrate data - saved browser passwords, banking sessions, screenshots - and accept remote commands. Cutting the network stops both immediately. Keep it disconnected until Phase 4.

2

Boot into Safe Mode with Networking

3 min

Safe Mode loads a minimal set of drivers and stops most malware from auto-running. "With Networking" lets you download tools - re-enable Wi-Fi only after you've booted in.

Windows 11

Open Settings → System → Recovery. Click Restart now next to Advanced startup.

Your computer will restart into the "Choose an option" menu. Click Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup Settings → Restart. After the second reboot, press 5 or F5.

Windows 10

Click the Windows logo, hold Shift, click the Power icon and choose Restart. In the Choose an option screen, click Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup Settings → Restart. Press F5.

Windows 8

Go to the Start Screen, type Advanced, select Settings → Advanced startup options → Restart now → Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup settings → Restart → F5.

Note: Windows 8 reached end-of-life in January 2023 - running on it puts you at much higher risk of reinfection.

Windows 7

Click Start → Shut Down → Restart → OK. As the system boots, press F8 repeatedly until the Windows Advanced Options menu appears, then choose Safe Mode with Networking.

Note: Windows 7 reached end-of-life in January 2020 - running on it puts you at much higher risk of reinfection.

Phase 2~ 15 min

Identify - find what's hiding

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3

Inspect running processes with Process Explorer

Tool: Process Explorer5 min

Download Process Explorer from Microsoft Sysinternals. Run it as Administrator. Click Options → Verify Image Signatures and View → Lower Pane View → DLLs.

Sort by "Verified Signer." Anything unsigned running from %AppData%, %LocalAppData%, %Temp%, or %ProgramData% is suspicious. Right-click → Properties to see the full image path. Right-click → "Search Online" to look up unfamiliar process names.

Why not just Task Manager

Task Manager hides full file paths, doesn't show digital signatures, and groups processes in ways that make malware easy to miss. Process Explorer is the same tool Microsoft engineers use.

4

Map every persistence point with Autoruns

Tool: Autoruns 14.x10 min

Download Autoruns. Right-click Autoruns.exe and choose Run as administrator - without elevation, Autoruns can't inspect protected registry hives.

In the menu, open Options → Hide Microsoft Entries and Options → Hide Empty Locations, then click Refresh.

Modern trojans don't just live in startup. Walk through these tabs and look for unsigned or unfamiliar entries:

• Logon - classic Run/RunOnce keys
• Scheduled Tasks - frequent hiding spot, especially tasks with PowerShell, MSHTA, or rundll32 actions
• Services - unsigned services in non-Microsoft folders
• WMI - Event Subscriptions are a stealthy persistence mechanism (MITRE T1546.003)
• Image Hijacks - Image File Execution Options "Debugger" abuse
• AppInit - DLLs loaded into every GUI process
• Browser plug-ins - unsigned add-ons across all installed browsers

Pro tip

Right-click any suspicious entry → "Jump to Image" to see the actual file. Right-click → "Search Online" opens VirusTotal for the file hash. Don't delete yet - just write down the file paths and entry names. We'll remove them after the scans.

5

Check the hosts file and DNS settings

3 minBuilt into Windows

Trojans often redirect bank, antivirus, and update domains to attacker-controlled servers by editing the hosts file or DNS settings.

Hosts file: Open Notepad as Administrator and open C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts. Legitimate entries are commented with #. Any uncommented IP-to-domain mapping is suspicious - especially redirects for microsoft.com, windowsupdate, or your bank.

DNS settings: Open Command Prompt as Administrator and run ipconfig /all. Confirm your DNS servers point to your ISP, your router, or a known public resolver (Cloudflare 1.1.1.1, Google 8.8.8.8). Then open Settings → Network & internet → [your adapter] → DNS server assignment and verify both DNS and DNS over HTTPS (DoH) settings haven't been hijacked.

Why this matters

A clean PC with hijacked DNS is still a compromised PC. You'll think you're at chase.com and you'll be at the attacker's clone.

Phase 3~ 60-90 min

Remove - three scans, one cleanup

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No single antivirus catches everything. The order below is intentional: offline scan first (catches rootkits before Windows fully loads), then on-demand scanners on the running system, then manual cleanup of anything they missed.

6

Run Microsoft Defender Offline

Tool: Built into Windows15 min

Reboot to normal Windows. Open Windows Security → Virus & threat protection → Scan options. Select Microsoft Defender Antivirus (offline scan) and click Scan now. Your computer will restart into a stripped-down environment and scan before the full operating system loads.

Why this comes first

Rootkits and bootkits hide from any scanner running on the same Windows session that's already infected. A pre-boot offline scan sees the disk before the malware can hide itself.

Recommended antivirus

Combo Cleaner

VB100 certified. Includes anti-trojan, registry/persistence scanning, anti-spyware in one pass. The 7-day free trial is available.

Download Combo Cleaner

7

Run Combo Cleaner full system scan

Tool: Combo Cleaner20-40 min

Install Combo Cleaner and run a full system scan (not the quick scan). Let it complete fully, review the detected threats, and apply the recommended actions. Combo Cleaner will quarantine known trojans and registry persistence.

8

Run Microsoft Safety Scanner as a second-opinion scan

Tool: Microsoft Safety Scanner15 min

Download Microsoft Safety Scanner (MSERT.exe), Microsoft's free on-demand tool. The binary expires every 10 days, which means every download has the latest signatures. Run a full scan after Combo Cleaner to catch anything one engine alone might miss.

Why a second scan

Different scanning engines catch different threats. Running an additional Microsoft scan after Combo Cleaner is the single most underused verification step in malware removal.

9

Manually remove anything still listed in Autoruns

Tool: Autoruns10 min

Reopen Autoruns. Anything you flagged in Step 4 that's still present hasn't been caught by the automated scans. For each remaining suspicious entry: right-click → Delete in Autoruns (this removes the persistence registration), then navigate to the file path and delete the actual file. Empty the Recycle Bin.

Important

Some malware files reappear after deletion because something else on the system recreates them. If you delete a file and it returns within minutes, you have a remaining persistence point that Autoruns didn't show - usually a service or scheduled task running under SYSTEM. Re-run the scans from Steps 6-8 or proceed to a clean install (see end of guide).

Phase 4~ 15 min

Recover - restore browsers and security

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10

Reset browsers and clear notification permissions

5 min

Trojans and adware frequently hijack browsers - change the default search engine, install rogue extensions, or grant themselves notification permissions to keep displaying scam pop-ups even after the malware is gone.

• Chrome: visit chrome://settings/reset and click "Restore settings to their original defaults." Then visit chrome://settings/content/notifications and remove any unfamiliar sites.
• Edge: visit edge://settings/reset. Then check edge://settings/content/notifications.
• Firefox: open about:support and click Refresh Firefox (Firefox uses "Refresh," not "Reset"). Then check Settings → Privacy & Security → Permissions → Notifications.

Review installed extensions in each browser and remove anything you don't recognize, especially extensions you didn't install yourself.

11

Re-enable Defender, Tamper Protection, and update everything

10 min

Many trojans disable security software. Open Windows Security → Virus & threat protection → Manage settings and confirm Real-time protection, Cloud-delivered protection, and Tamper Protection are all turned on. Tamper Protection prevents malware from disabling Defender silently.

Then run Windows Update (Settings → Windows Update → Check for updates) and update your browsers and applications. The infection vector that let the trojan in originally usually involves outdated software.

Phase 5~ 15 min + 7 days

Verify & secure

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12

Change passwords from a clean device

20 min⚠ Critical

If the trojan was an info-stealer (Lumma, RedLine, Vidar, and similar are extremely common), assume every password saved in your browser is compromised. Change them from a different, known-clean device - your phone is fine if it's not infected.

Recommended order:

1. Primary email first - it's the recovery hub for everything else
2. Banking and financial accounts
3. Password manager master password (if you use one)
4. Social media, shopping, and remaining accounts

Where available, enable phishing-resistant multi-factor authentication (passkeys / FIDO2 hardware keys / authenticator apps) - SMS-based MFA is bypassable by sophisticated attackers.

13

Verify the clean and monitor for 7 days

5 min + 1 week monitoring

Reconnect to the network and run one final full scan with Combo Cleaner. Open Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and switch to the Startup apps tab - confirm nothing suspicious has reappeared.

Over the next 7 days, watch for symptom recurrence: unexpected high CPU usage, unknown processes returning, browser redirects, or pop-ups. If anything returns, you missed a persistence point and the procedure needs to be repeated - or you may have a deeper compromise that requires a clean install.

When to clean install Windows instead

Manual removal isn't always the right answer. Reinstalling Windows from scratch is the only way to be 100% certain when:

• The malware reappears after every removal attempt
• A bootkit or UEFI rootkit was detected (this class of threat sits below the operating system and survives a normal Windows reinstall)
• A confirmed credential-theft trojan ran with administrator privileges (Lumma, RedLine, Vidar) - the system likely has multiple unknown payloads
• The PC is used for online banking, business email, or anything where partial doubt isn't acceptable

A clean install is a 30-60 minute process: Windows 11 reinstall via Settings → System → Recovery → Reset this PC → Remove everything → Cloud download. Back up documents to external storage first, scan the backup with Combo Cleaner before restoring it, and reinstall applications fresh - never restore them from a backup of the infected system.

Important: Manual removal requires advanced computer skills. If you're not confident identifying system files from malicious files, run an automated scan with Combo Cleaner and Windows Defender and stop there - that path catches the vast majority of consumer trojans without the risk of breaking Windows by deleting the wrong file.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

My computer is infected with Hancitor malware, should I format my storage device to get rid of it?

This malware can be removed from the operating system without formatting the storage device. It can be achieved by following the steps provided in our malware removal guide.

What are the biggest issues that malware can cause?

Cybercriminals can use malware to steal identities, drain financial accounts (or steal money in other ways), cause further infections, encrypt files, and more. It depends on the type of malware (its capabilities).

What is the purpose of Hancitor malware?

Hancitor operates as a backdoor malware. It is used to infect computers with additional malware (e.g., ransomware, cryptocurrency miners).

How has the Hancitor malware infiltrated my computer?

It is known that threat actors use email to deliver Hancitor. They send emails containing malicious MS Office documents to trick users into infecting computers with Hancitor. This malware infects computers after enabling macros commands in malicious documents. In other cases, malware is distributed via fake installers for cracked software, untrustworthy sources for downloading software/files, fake updaters, and certain Trojans.

Will Combo Cleaner protect me from malware?

Yes, Combo Cleaner can detect and remove almost all known malware from computers. High-end malware usually hides deep in the operating system. Therefore, a computer must be scanned fully (using a full system scan) to remove high-end malware.