Any malware exists with the only target – make money on you¹. And the developers of these things are not thinking about morality – they utilize all possible methods. Stealing your personal data, receiving the payments for the banners you watch for them, exploiting your CPU and GPU to mine cryptocurrencies – that is not the full list of what they do. Do you want to be a riding equine? That is a rhetorical question.

What does the notification with HackTool:PowerShell/CredentialTool.A detection mean?

The HackTool:PowerShell/CredentialTool.A detection you can see in the lower right corner is shown to you by Microsoft Defender. That anti-malware software is quite OK at scanning, however, prone to be basically unstable. It is unprotected to malware invasions, it has a glitchy interface and problematic malware removal capabilities. Therefore, the pop-up which says about the Credential Tool is rather just an alert that Defender has actually detected it. To remove it, you will likely need to use another anti-malware program.

The exact HackTool:PowerShell/CredentialTool.A infection is a very unpleasant thing. It digs into your system under the guise of something legitimate, or as a part of the application you have got on a forum. Therefore, it makes all possible steps to weaken your system. At the end of this “party”, it downloads other malicious things – ones which are choosen by cybercriminals who control this virus. Hence, it is impossible to predict the effects from Credential Tool actions. And the unpredictability is one of the most upleasant things when we are talking about malware. That’s why it is rather not to choose at all, and don’t let the malware to complete its task.

Threat Summary:

Is HackTool:PowerShell/CredentialTool.A dangerous?

As I have specified before, non-harmful malware does not exist. And HackTool:PowerShell/CredentialTool.A is not an exception. This virus modifies the system settings, edits the Group Policies and registry. All of these components are vital for correct system operating, even when we are not talking about system security. Therefore, the malware which Credential Tool contains, or which it will inject later, will try to get maximum revenue from you. Crooks can steal your personal data, and then push it on the Darknet. Using adware and browser hijacker functionality, built in HackTool:PowerShell/CredentialTool.A virus, they can make profit by showing you the banners. Each view gives them a penny, but 100 views per day = $1. 1000 victims who watch 100 banners per day – $1000. Easy math, but sad conclusions. It is a bad choice to be a donkey for crooks.