How to remove a trojanized Tor browser

What is trojanized Tor browser?

Tor is the name of a legitimate web browser, which allows users to browse the web with as much privacy as possible, however, there is a trojanized version that is designed by cyber criminals and used to steal cryptocurrency. This malicious version is based on, and very similar to, an official Tor browser version (7.5).

Cyber criminals proliferate it using two unofficial download web pages: torpoect[.]org and tor-browser[.]org. People who install Tor downloaded from these web pages install a trojanized version. We strongly advise against using this version - uninstall it immediately.

More about the trojanized Tor browser

The address of the official Tor download page is torproject[.]org, which is very similar to that of the trojanized version (torpoect[.]org). When opened, the rogue website informs people that their Tor browser is out-of-date, even when it is not. This page leads to tor-browser[.]org.

Both torpoect[.]org and tor-browser[.]org claim that they distribute official the Tor browser with an interface in Russian. Research shows that these websites were promoted on various Russian forums relating to internet privacy, Darknet markets, cryptocurrencies, etc.

This trojanized version prevents users from updating it, since any update would be to a legitimate version of Tor (and thus criminals would no longer be able to misuse it). The trojanized Tor browser injects different content and scripts on each visited website. It does this through a Command & Control (C&C) server.

These scripts can modify visited website content and be used to steal details on forms, hide original content, add new content, display fake messages, and so on. Cyber criminals use the Trojanized browser mainly to steal cryptocurrency by changing wallet addresses to those owned by them.

In this way, users can inadvertently transfer cryptocurrency to cyber criminals. In summary, most people who use this trojanized version to make cryptocurrency transactions experience financial loss by sending cryptocurrency to cyber criminals. At the time of research, developers of this trojanized version had already stolen over $40,000 in Bitcoins.

Similar programs in general

There are many programs and websites that may seem official but are actually used for various malicious purposes. Cyber criminals use them to generate revenue in a number of ways.

Typically, they steal personal details (including logins, passwords), use them to proliferate other malware (Trojans, ransomware, etc.), and perform other actions that cause victims problems relating to privacy, browsing safety, finances, data loss, and so on.

How did trojanized Tor browser infiltrate my computer?

This trojanized Tor browser is distributed through the torproject[.]org and tor-browser[.]org websites that are promoted on various Russian forums. Do not download software from unofficial websites, using Peer-to-Peer networks such as torrent clients, eMule, third party downloaders, or other sources of this kind.

Cyber criminals often use these sources/tools to distribute malicious software. They present it as legitimate, official and so on. Once a malicious file is downloaded and opened, it infects the computer with high-risk malware. In this case, users install a trojanized Tor web browser.

Malicious programs are also spread using spam campaigns, Trojans, and unofficial software update and activation tools. Cyber criminals often proliferate malware by sending malicious files through emails. In most cases, they attach Microsoft Office documents, PDF documents, JavaScript files, archives such as ZIP, RAR, executable files such as .exe, and so on.

Malware is installed when recipients download and open these files. Trojans are malicious programs that cause damage only when they are already installed. They then install other malware. Fake updaters usually infect systems by installing malicious software rather than updating installed programs, or by exploiting bugs/flaws of outdated software installed on the computer.

Unofficial activation tools are programs that supposedly activate paid (licensed) software free of charge, however, they often do not activate software and simply install malware.

How to avoid installation of malware

The best way to download files and/or programs is to use official websites and direct download links. None of the other sources mentioned above can be trusted. Emails that are received from unknown/suspicious addresses should not be trusted, especially if they contain an attachment.

Do not open attachments that are presented in such emails without being sure that it is safe to do so. Update all installed software using implemented functions or tools provided by official software developers. Other (unofficial) updaters can be used to proliferate malware. The same applies to software activation.

Do not use unofficial ('cracking') tools - these are illegal and often lead to installation of malicious software. Have a reputable anti-virus or anti-spyware suite installed and scan the operating system with it regularly. 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.

Another download page (tor-browser[.]org) of a trojanized Tor browser:

Installer of the trojanized Tor browser:

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)

I have downloaded and installed a trojanized Tor web browser, should I format my storage device to get rid of it?

No, this browser can be removed using antivirus software or manually.

What are the biggest issues that malware can cause?

Malware can be designed to steal sensitive information (e.g., credit card details, login information, social security numbers, etc.), encrypt files, mine cryptocurrency, add computers to botnets, inject additional malware, and more.

What is the purpose a trojanized Tor browser?

This browser injects various content and different scripts on pages opened with it. Injected scripts can modify visited pages. Modified websites can be used to steal details on forms, add or hide content, show fake messages, and more. It is known that this trojanized browser is used mainly to steal cryptocurrency (by swapping crypto wallets).

How did I install a trojanized Tor web browser?

The trojanized Tor browser is promoted on torpoect[.]org and tor-browser[.]org (and possibly other) pages. Those pages are promoted on various Russian forums. Users install it after using an installer downloaded from those pages.

Will Combo Cleaner protect me from malware?

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