How to remove Remcos RAT

What is Remcos RAT

Remcos RAT (Remote Control and Surveillance) is a Remote Access Trojan that has been actively used by cybercriminals since its first appearance in 2016. Marketed as a legitimate tool for remote administration by its developer, Breaking Security, Remcos has been widely abused for malicious purposes. It allows attackers to gain backdoor access to an infected system, enabling them to perform a variety of actions without the user’s knowledge or consent. Remcos RAT is a powerful and stealthy malware that poses significant risks to infected systems. Its ability to evade detection and maintain persistence makes it a formidable threat. However, by following best practices for prevention and employing a comprehensive approach to removal, organizations and individuals can mitigate the risks associated with Remcos and protect their systems from compromise.

How Remcos RAT infected your system

Remcos typically infiltrates systems through phishing campaigns, where it is embedded in malicious attachments or links sent via email. These emails often masquerade as legitimate communications, containing invoices, order confirmations, or other business-related documents to trick users into executing the malware. The malware may be hidden in ZIP files disguised as PDFs, or within Microsoft Office documents that employ malicious macros to unpack and deploy the malware upon opening. To evade detection, Remcos employs techniques such as process injection or process hollowing, allowing it to operate within legitimate processes. It also establishes persistence mechanisms to run in the background, making it difficult for users and some antivirus solutions to detect its presence. Command and control (C2) communication is encrypted, and the use of Distributed DNS enables the creation of multiple domains for C2 servers, further complicating detection and mitigation efforts.

1. Download Remcos RAT Removal Tool
2. Use Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool to remove Remcos RAT
3. Use Autoruns to remove Remcos RAT
4. Files, folders and registry keys of Remcos RAT
5. Other aliases of Remcos RAT
6. How to protect from threats, like Remcos RAT

Remove Remcos RAT manually

Manual removal of Remcos RAT by inexperienced users may become a difficult task because it does not create entries in Add/Remove Programs under Control Panel, does not install browser extensions, and uses random file names. However, there are pre-installed instruments in the Windows system, that allow you to detect and remove malware without using third-party applications. One of them is Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool. It comes with Windows Update in Windows 11, 10, 8. 8.1. For older operating system you can download it here: 64-bit version | 32-bit version.

Remove Remcos RAT using Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool

1. Type mrt in the search box near Start Menu.
2. Run mrt clicking on found item.
3. Click Next button.
4. Choose one of the scan modes Quick scan, Full scan, Customize scan (Full scan recommended).
5. Click Next button.
6. Click on View detailed results of the scan link to view the scan details.
7. Click Finish button.

Remove Remcos RAT using Autoruns

Remcos RAT often sets up to run at Windows startup as an Autorun entry or Scheduled task.

1. Download Autoruns using this link.
2. Extract the archive and run Autoruns.exe file.
3. In Options menu make sure there are checkboxes near Hide Empty Locations, Hide Microsoft Entries, and Hide Windows Entries.
4. Search for suspicious entries with weird names or running from locations like: C:\{username}\AppData\Roaming.
5. Right-click on suspicious entry and choose Delete. This will prevent the threat to run at startup.
6. Switch to Scheduled Tasks tab and do the same.
7. To remove files themselves, click on suspicious entries and choose Jump to Entry…. Remove files or registry keys found.

Remove files, folder and registry keys of Remcos RAT

Remcos RAT files and folders


{randomname}.exe


Remcos RAT registry keys


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Aliases of Remcos RAT

How to protect from threats, like Remcos RAT, in future

Standard Windows protection or any decent third-party antivirus (Norton, Avast, Kaspersky) should be able to detect and remove Remcos RAT. However, if you got infected with Remcos RAT with existing and updated security software, you may consider changing it. To feel safe and protect your PC from Remcos RAT on all levels (browser, e-mail attachments, Word or Excel scripts, file system) we recommend a leading provider of internet security solutions – BitDefender. Its solutions both for home and business users proved to be one of the most advanced and effective. Choose and get your BitDefender protection via the button below: