PUP.Optional.WinThruster

Short bio

PUP.Optional.WinThruster is Malwarebytes’ detection name for a potentially unwanted program (PUP) called WinThruster, which is published by Solvusoft.

The GUI of PUP.Optional.WinThruster

Symptoms

Users of affected computers may see this entry in their list of installed Programs and Features:

Installed PUP.Optional.WinThruster

and these icons on their desktop,in their taskbar, and in their start-menu:

icons PUP.Optional.WinThruster

and they may have seen these warnings during install:

Install instructions PUP.Optional.WinThruster

main screen PUP.Optional.WinThruster installer

EULA PUP.Optional.WinThruster

Type and source of the infection

System optimizers use exaggerated scan results and sometimes even intentional false positives to convince users that their systems have problems. Then they try to sell you their software, claiming it will remove these problems.
PUP.Optional.WinThruster is usually installed by the users themselves as a result of aggressive advertising.

website selling PUP.Optional.WinThruster

Protection

Malwarebytes protects users from PUP.Optional.WinThruster by using real-time protection.

Malwarebytes blocks PUP.Optional.WinThruster

Remediation

Malwarebytes can detect and remove PUP.Optional.WinThruster without further user interaction.

Please download Malwarebytes to your desktop.
Double-click mb3-setup-consumer-{version}.exe and follow the prompts to install the program.
Then click Finish.
Once the program has fully updated, select Scan Now on the Dashboard. Or select the Threat Scan from the Scan menu.
If another update of the definitions is available, it will be implemented before the rest of the scanning procedure.
When the scan is complete, make sure that all Threats are selected, and click Remove Selected.
Restart your computer when prompted to do so.

Malwarebytes removal log

A Malwarebytes log of removal will look similar to this:

Malwarebytes
www.malwarebytes.com

-Log Details-
Scan Date: 9/18/18
Scan Time: 8:46 AM
Log File: 81b53081-bb0e-11e8-aae7-00ffdcc6fdfc.json

-Software Information-
Version: 3.5.1.2522
Components Version: 1.0.441
Update Package Version: 1.0.6883
License: Premium

-System Information-
OS: Windows 7 Service Pack 1
CPU: x64
File System: NTFS
User: {computername}\{username}

-Scan Summary-
Scan Type: Threat Scan
Scan Initiated By: Manual
Result: Completed
Objects Scanned: 252096
Threats Detected: 57
Threats Quarantined: 57
Time Elapsed: 3 min, 14 sec

-Scan Options-
Memory: Enabled
Startup: Enabled
Filesystem: Enabled
Archives: Enabled
Rootkits: Enabled
Heuristics: Enabled
PUP: Detect
PUM: Detect

-Scan Details-
Process: 1
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\WinThruster.exe, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883

Module: 2
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\IsLicense50.dll, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\WinThruster.exe, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883

Registry Key: 13
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, HKLM\SOFTWARE\CLASSES\WOW6432NODE\CLSID\{D7C6C53B-C335-417f-ABB8-F5A157F92EA0}, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, HKLM\SOFTWARE\CLASSES\IsLicense50.IsLicenseMgr, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, HKLM\SOFTWARE\CLASSES\IsLicense50.IsLicenseMgr.1, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, HKLM\SOFTWARE\WOW6432NODE\CLASSES\CLSID\{D7C6C53B-C335-417F-ABB8-F5A157F92EA0}, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, HKLM\SOFTWARE\CLASSES\TYPELIB\{8D732308-066E-4E85-9D5C-4410EB6BFDBC}, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, HKLM\SOFTWARE\CLASSES\INTERFACE\{3C4ABAB8-F6D3-4BC3-922D-43715A228CC2}, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, HKLM\SOFTWARE\CLASSES\WOW6432NODE\INTERFACE\{3C4ABAB8-F6D3-4BC3-922D-43715A228CC2}, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, HKLM\SOFTWARE\WOW6432NODE\CLASSES\INTERFACE\{3C4ABAB8-F6D3-4BC3-922D-43715A228CC2}, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, HKLM\SOFTWARE\WOW6432NODE\CLASSES\TYPELIB\{8D732308-066E-4E85-9D5C-4410EB6BFDBC}, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, HKLM\SOFTWARE\CLASSES\WOW6432NODE\TYPELIB\{8D732308-066E-4E85-9D5C-4410EB6BFDBC}, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, HKLM\SOFTWARE\CLASSES\WOW6432NODE\CLSID\{D7C6C53B-C335-417f-ABB8-F5A157F92EA0}\InprocServer32, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, HKLM\SOFTWARE\WOW6432NODE\CLASSES\CLSID\{D7C6C53B-C335-417f-ABB8-F5A157F92EA0}\InprocServer32, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, HKLM\SOFTWARE\WOW6432NODE\MICROSOFT\WINDOWS\CURRENTVERSION\UNINSTALL\WinThruster_is1, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883

Registry Value: 0
(No malicious items detected)

Registry Data: 0
(No malicious items detected)

Data Stream: 0
(No malicious items detected)

Folder: 2
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\PROGRAM FILES (X86)\WINTHRUSTER, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\PROGRAMDATA\MICROSOFT\WINDOWS\START MENU\PROGRAMS\WINTHRUSTER, Quarantined, [1466], [182299],1.0.6883

File: 39
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\USERS\PUBLIC\DESKTOP\WINTHRUSTER.LNK, Quarantined, [1466], [260282],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_pl.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\help.ico, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\IsLicense50.dll, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_ar.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_cs.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_da.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_de.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_el.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_en.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_es.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_fi.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_fr.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_hu.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_it.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_ja.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_ko.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_nl.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_no.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_pt-br.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_pt.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_ro.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\local_ru.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_sv.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_tr.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_zh-cn.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Local_zh-tw.xml, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\PerformanceMonitor.exe, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\Post _Scan_Notification_English.wav, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\unins000.dat, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\unins000.exe, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\unins000.msg, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\WinThruster.exe, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\WinThruster.ini, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\DOCUMENTS AND SETTINGS\PUBLIC\Desktop\WinThruster.lnk, Quarantined, [1466], [182298],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\WinThruster\Uninstall WinThruster.lnk, Quarantined, [1466], [182299],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\WinThruster\WinThruster.lnk, Quarantined, [1466], [182299],1.0.6883
PUP.Optional.WinThruster, C:\USERS\{username}\DESKTOP\SETUP_WINTHRUSTER_2018.EXE, Quarantined, [1466], [461226],1.0.6883

Physical Sector: 0
(No malicious items detected)

WMI: 0
(No malicious items detected)


(end)

Add an exclusion

Should users wish to keep this program and exclude it from being detected in future scans, they can add the program to the exclusions list. Here’s how to do it.

The Exclusions tab includes a list of items to be excluded from scans. The items may include files, folders, websites, or applications that connect to the Internet, as well as previously detected exploits.

To access the exclusions in Malwarebytes:

Click on the Settings tab in the left pane.
Click on the Exclusions tab.
Click the Add Exclusion button.
Select the exclusion type Exclude a File or Folder and use the Browse button to select the main folder for the software that you wish to keep.
Repeat this for any secondary folder(s) that belong to the software.
If you want to allow the program to connect to the Internet, for example to fetch updates, add an exclusion of the type Exclude an application that Connects to the Internet and use the Browse button to select the file you wish to grant access.

Traces/IOCs

You may see these entries in FRST logs:

(Solvusoft) C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster\WinThruster.exe
C:\Users\Public\Desktop\WinThruster.lnk
C:\Users\{username}\AppData\Roaming\WinThruster
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\WinThruster
C:\Program Files (x86)\WinThruster
(Solvusoft ) C:\Users\{username}\Desktop\Setup_WinThruster_2018.exe

WinThruster (HKLM-x32\...\WinThruster_is1) (Version: 1.3.5.138 - Solvusoft) <==== ATTENTION