How to remove the Mekotio Trojan from the operating system

What kind of malware is Mekotio?

Mekotio is malicious software, categorized as a banking Trojan. This malware specifically targets banking information. The Mekotio Trojan poses a significant threat to victims' finances and privacy. This malicious program endangers device and user safety and, therefore, it is crucial to remove Mekotio infections immediately upon detection.

More about the Mekotio Trojan

Typically, banking Trojans target online banking account credentials such as IDs, log-ins, passwords, etc. Bank account numbers, credit card details and other sensitive information are also of interest. The only purpose of malware is to generate revenue for the cyber criminals using them.

Therefore, the stolen data is often misused to make fraudulent transactions and online purchases, and is sold to third parties or otherwise misused for financial gain. Therefore, Mekotio infections can lead to significant monetary loss, serious privacy issues and even identity theft. Some Trojans of this type target other information stored in or accessed through infected devices.

Compromising or particularly vulnerable content can be used by criminals for blackmail purposes. Other accounts, which do not directly deal with financial information, yet are commonly targeted, are emails, social networking and social media.

Through such accounts, cyber criminals can ask contacts/friends for loans and/or distribute malware by sharing infectious files, all under the guise of the genuine owner. If it is suspected or known that the Mekotio Trojan (or other malware) has already infected the system, use anti-virus software to eliminate it without delay.

Trojans in general

Zeus Sphinx, Lucifer, Cinobi and Guildma are some examples of other banking malware, however, Trojans can have a wide variety of functionalities.

Some can enable remote access and control over the infected device, cause chain infections (i.e. download/install additional malware), exfiltrate and/or extract information, etc. Regardless of how these malicious programs operate, their purpose is identical: to generate profit for the cyber criminals behind them.

How did Mekotio infiltrate my computer?

Mekotio malware has been observed being distributed via Coronavirus/COVID-19-themed spam campaigns. The term "spam campaign" defines a large scale operation, during which thousands of deceptive/scam emails are sent.

The Mekotio-spreading messages are in Spanish and presented as judicial notifications from "Ministerio de Sanidad, Consumo y Bienestar Social" (Spain's Ministry of Health), concerning a complaint. The emails state that several complaints regarding the recipient have been received, due to alleged violations of current regulations, which were issued due to the ongoing pandemic.

Therefore, the recipients may be fined up to one hundred euros for ignoring to wear mandatory face-masks. These messages contain malicious links, which when clicked, initiate the infection chain of Mekotio. In general, spam campaigns infect systems through dangerous files distributed during these operations.

The emails can contain links to malicious websites that host such content or download links to the files. Alternatively, the files can be attached to the messages. Malicious files can be in various formats (e.g. archives, executables, PDF and Microsoft Office documents, JavaScript, etc.) and when they are executed, run or otherwise opened, download/installation of malware begins.

This malicious software is also proliferated via illegal activation tools ("cracks"), bogus updates and untrusted download channels. Rather than activating licensed products, "cracking" tools often download/install malware.

Fake updaters cause infections by abusing flaws of outdated products and/or simply by installing malicious programs rather than the promised updates. Malware is often downloaded inadvertently from dubious sources such as unofficial and free file-hosting websites, Peer-to-Peer sharing networks and other third party downloaders.

How to avoid installation of malware

Do not open suspicious and/or irrelevant emails, especially those with any links or attachments found in them, as this can lead to high-risk infection. All downloads must be done from official and verified sources. It is also important to activate and update products with tools/functions provided by legitimate developers.

Illegal activation ("cracking") tools and third party updaters must not be used, as they are often employed to proliferate malware. To protect device and user safety, it is crucial to have a reputable anti-virus/anti-spyware installed and kept updated. Use this software for regular system scans and removal of detected/potential threats.

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.

Screenshot of the deceptive email distributing Mekotio Trojan:

Text presented in this email message:

Subject: Denuncia por Covid808674

 

9 Junio del 2020 Ministerio de Sanidad, Consumo y Bienestar Social
Notification Judicial por denuncia

 

Segun contempla el real decreto aprobado por el Gobierno, sanciona con multas de hasta cien euros para quien no cumpla la obligacion de llevar mascarilla en espacios cerrados y abiertos.

 

Hemos recibido varias denuncias de sus vecinos que indican que usted no cumple con las normas vigentes del uso de cubrebocas obligatorio hasta que finalize el estado de alarma por coronavirus.

 

El decreto regula la obligacion del uso de mascarillas para personas en la via publica, en espacios al aire libre y en cualquier espacio cerrado de uso publico o que se encuentre abierto al publico, siempre que no resulte posible garantizar el mantenimiento de una distancia física de seguridad de entre metro y meido y dos metros.

Informamos que usted cuenta con una Infraccion al Real decreto vigente Cubre bocas obligatorio

Descargar notification

Appearance of another spam email used to spread the Mekotio Trojan:

Text presented within:

Subject: Notifica dell'ammenda aperta 51555.

Dal 15 febbraio 2016 questo portale non è aggiornato in quanto le informazioni vengono pubblicate sul nuovo sito www.mit.gov.it.Questo portale è al momento online per le informazioni storiche ancora in corso di migrazione.

Ministero delle Infrastrutture e dei Trasporti

CORDIALI SALUTI
Notifica dell'ammenda aperta

O non si tratta di un sistema di rilevamento o di una multa di transito diretta a se o ao seu veicolo.

Per ulteriori informazioni, vedere i dettagli sul pulsante fattura di segulto
FATTURA P
Visualizza online
Attenzione
Per visualizzare le notifica, aprire su un sistema (Windows).
Italia.gov.it

Update 24 August 2020 - Research shows that there are multiple variants of Mekotio that are being developed simultaneously. Some variants have backdoor capabilities, and can be used to steal Bitcoins by replacing the Bitcoin wallet address in the clipboard with another used by cyber criminals.

Some variants can gather information such as firewall configuration, operating system information, and list of installed antivirus solutions. They can also take screenshots, simulate mouse and keyboard actions, restart the computer, update themselves, steal passwords saved on Chrome browsers, and restrict access to various banking-related web pages.

Another example of a spam email used to spread Mekotio trojan:

Text presented within:

Subject: Notifica - Processo Legale in Linea

PROCESSO LEGALE

Di seguito sono riportate le informazioni sul procedimento legale.11951195

( Stampa / visualizza )

Yet another example of a spam email spreading Mekotio trojan:

Text presented within:

Subject: Tesoreria General de la Republica - ( 649766495916 )

 

TGR
Tesorería General de la República

Estimado(A) Contribuyente

Tesoreria de la Republica (TGR) Leinforma queenxisten obligaciones, producto de una liquidacion tributaria que se encuentra impaga. Una liquidacion tributariacorresponde a la determinacion de diferencias de impuest o detectadas por el SII.

Le invitamos a regularizar esta situacion a traves de nuestro sitioweb, en el menu Recaudacion / Pagos / Impuestos Fiscales, a la brevedadposible, a fin evitar las molestias de un combro judicial, el cual entre otras acciones, puede implicar el embargo de bienes u otras medidasde apremio.

Puede descargas el informe generado por el SII en el seguinteenlace.

Descargarinforme detallado

Para mayor informacion, comuniquese con nosotros al 600 4000444 de lunes a viemes de 08:30 a 19:30 horas

Si ya realizo el pago, no considere el presente mensaje.

Yet another spam email spreading Mekotio trojan:

Text presented within:

Subject: Tenemos un anuncio urgente sobre la dosis extra de vacuna!

 

Ministerio de Sanidad
Estimado(a) ciudadano, correo eletrónico con caráter de urgencia.
 

Su número de suscripción 2066624-411.417 ha sido seleccionado para recibir una dosis adicional de vacunas contra el COVID-19 en los próximos días.
La elección de qué fabricante tomar es opcional según disponibilidad y debe realizarse en un plazo máximo de hasta 72 horas antes de la aplicación de la dosis.

Ahora vea su tarjeta con las instrucciones, el día y la hora. Estará disponible en nuestro portal hasta el 29 de marzo.

Si desea elegir la marca para la vacunación presencial, imprima el adjunto a continuación y acuda a cualquier puesto de salud con un documento personal con foto.

Tarjeta-Vacuna-2066624-411.417.

#YoMeVacunoSeguro © Ministerio de Sanidad

LATAM Airlines-themed spam email spreading Mekotion trojan:

Text presented within:

LATAM Airlines

 

LATAM PASS

¡Felicidades!
¡Acaba de ganar millas bonus de LATAM!

Estamos muy contentos de tenerlo como nuestro cliente especial y queremos agradecerle por elegir LATAM para sus viajes.

Cómo canjear sus millas bonus:

Descargue el formulario: Haga clic en el botón a continuación para descargar el formulario que debe completar.

[Click aquí]

Complete el formulario: Utilice la información solicitada. Asegúrese de que todos los campos estén completos y correctos.

Espere la confirmación: Después del envío, recibirá una confirmación por correo electrónico. Verifique su bandeja de entrada y, si es necesario, la carpeta de spam.

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

---

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

---

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

---

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

---

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 Mekotio malware, should I format my storage device to get rid of it?

This piece of malware can be removed by following the steps provided in the removal guide above. It is not necessary to format the storage device to eliminate Mekotio.

What are the biggest issues that malware can cause?

It depends on the type of malware. The presence of malware can lead to identity theft, financial losses, decreased computer performance, hijacked personal accounts, data encryption, etc.

What is the purpose of a malware?

This malware targets banking information. It may be used to steal online banking account credentials such as usernames, IDs, passwords, etc.

How did a malware infiltrate my computer?

Computers become infected after malicious files are opened. In some cases, it is not enough to open a file to cause computer infections (for example, malicious documents require macro commands to be enabled). It is known that Mekotio is distributed via malicious email attachments. Cybercriminals also use cracked software download pages and other unreliable sources for downloading software/files, fake updaters, and similar methods to trick users into executing malware.

Will Combo Cleaner protect me from malware?

Yes, Combo Cleaner can detect and eliminate almost all known malware infections. It is important to know that high-end malware can hide deep in the system. For this reason, computers infected with malware of this kind must be scanned fully (using a full scan option).