I'm using Windows 11 on an HP laptop and I'm having serious issues with high CPU usage. Even after resetting my computer twice, the problem persists. About two weeks ago, I downloaded some sketchy files that I didn't really think much about at the time. Since then, my laptop has been lagging, and when I checked the task manager, the CPU usage was spiking between 50-90% even when the computer was idle.
I suspected a virus, so I ran a scan with Malwarebytes and found a ton of coin miners on my system, which I deleted. However, after resetting my computer while keeping my personal files, the CPU usage issue came back after a while. I did a deeper scan later, which detected over 160 coin miners again! I ended up factory resetting my laptop, which cleared all my files, but the lag has returned, albeit a bit less severe. I'm confused about how malware could survive the resets. Can anyone help me figure this out?
1 Answer
It sounds like your resets might be reinstating the same infected recovery image. To solve this, I recommend creating a clean install USB from Microsoft’s official site using another computer. Boot from the USB, and when you get to the drive screen, delete all partitions before reinstalling Windows. This will wipe out the hidden recovery image and remove any lingering malware. Make sure to update Windows fully afterward and scan any external drives before reconnecting them.
Thanks for the tip! Just to clarify, do you think memory issues could contribute to this CPU problem? A friend mentioned that high memory usage might affect CPU performance since mine seems pretty high.