File scan report
Verdict Safe
Is MSPAINT.
Zero detections across 76 engines, clean sandbox behaviour, and a CIRCL reference to a legitimate Windows system component.
Read the whole reasonShow less
Strong evidence · Listed in a database of known software.
Treat as a benign system component. No further action required unless the file appears outside expected Windows directories.
Good practice2 tips
We found nothing harmful in this file.
Use it only as part of a program you got from the developer's own website.
Keep your antivirus and Windows updates switched on.
No scanner can promise a file is 100% safe.
Reads the latest antivirus results for this file's hash. Nothing is uploaded.
Antivirus results
0 of 72 flagged
- Flagged 0
- No detection 72
- No result 4
- Code signing Unsigned
- Test run Completed
- First seen 6y ago
Chapter 02
Why we think so
0 points against it and 4 in its favour, checked against the scan evidence.
The reasoning behind this verdict
All 72 antivirus engines that checked it returned clean results with 17 major antivirus engines explicitly marking it harmless. Sandbox execution showed only techniques common in legitimate software and no malicious indicators. The CIRCL hit points to a known Windows WinSxS mspaint component rather than malware.
The file presents a textbook clean profile: complete absence of malicious detections, no offensive MITRE techniques, and no malicious sandbox or network signals. The external CIRCL reference explicitly maps the sample to a legitimate Microsoft Windows component path. Medium prevalence over five years further supports that this is a known benign DLL rather than a new or rare threat. Lack of signing is the only minor caveat, but it is outweighed by the unanimous engine consensus and clean behavioural record.
What We Detected
Zero malicious detections from 76 engines, including 17 major antivirus engines that explicitly reported the file as clean. No YARA or MalwareBazaar hits. Sandbox analysis recorded only four techniques common in legitimate software and no offensive MITRE activity.
Threat Behavior
No contacted malicious domains or hosts. No dropped malicious files it created. The single sandbox run produced only standard Windows system program markers and registry activity consistent with normal DLL loading.
What To Do Now
The file can be considered safe for normal use. If this DLL appeared unexpectedly on a system, verify its location against the legitimate Windows WinSxS path referenced in the CIRCL record.
Where this verdict could be wrong1 caveat
- File is unsigned with no signer history, which could indicate a sideloaded or renamed DLL in some contexts, but the complete absence of detections and clean sandbox behaviour outweigh this.
These are the assessment's weak points. If you believe one applies to your file, report the verdict and we'll re-review it.
- Zero malicious engine detections
- Clean sandbox verdict
- CIRCL reference to legitimate Windows component
- Medium prevalence over 2235 days
6 sources checked · 5 complete · 1 not needed or not applicable. See every source
Chapter 03
What it did in our test
It ran in our isolated test environment; no test environment rated what it did as risky.
Test run summary
Capture complete- 4sandbox rule tags
- 4spawned processes
- 0network contacts
- 7filesystem & mutex artifacts
What this file did when executed
This file was run in a sandbox and its runtime behaviour was observed.
Techniques observed in the sandbox
4MITRE ATT&CK techniques the sandbox mapped. Highlighted ones are rare in normal software; the others are common in legitimate programs too.
- T1027· Obfuscated code
- T1027.002· Obfuscated code
- T1218.011
- T1497.001· Sandbox evasion
Observed activity
Processes started
4Programs the file ran, with their command lines.
rundll32.exe"C:\Windows\System32\rundll32.exe" "C:\Users\<USER>\Desktop\readme.dll",#1loaddll32.exeC:\Windows\System32\loaddll32.exe loaddll32.exe "C:\Users\user\Desktop\attachment.dll"cmd.exeC:\Windows\SysWOW64\cmd.exe cmd.exe /C rundll32.exe "C:\Users\user\Desktop\attachment.dll",#1rundll32.exeC:\Windows\SysWOW64\rundll32.exe rundll32.exe "C:\Users\user\Desktop\attachment.dll",#1
Files
2Files the file created, changed or deleted.
- Written
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows Security Health\Logs - Written
\Device\ConDrv\\Connect
Mutexes
5Named locks a program uses so only one copy runs; malware families often reuse them.
\BaseNamedObjects\Local\SM0:2312:304:WilStaging_02\BaseNamedObjects\Local\SM0:2312:120:WilError_03\BaseNamedObjects\Local\ZonesCacheCounterMutex\BaseNamedObjects\Local\ZonesLockedCacheCounterMutex\Sessions\1\BaseNamedObjects\Local\SessionImmersiveColorMutex
Sandbox background — not the file
2The analysis machine's own processes and connections, recorded in every run.
- VM process
conhost.exeC:\Windows\System32\conhost.exe C:\Windows\system32\conhost.exe 0xffffffff -ForceV1 - VM process
SecurityHealthService.exeC:\Windows\System32\SecurityHealthService.exe C:\Windows\system32\SecurityHealthService.exe
Chapter 04
Technical details
None of the 72 antivirus engines that checked it flag it; no publisher signature.
Sources checked
Every check behind this verdict
6 sources checked · 5 complete · 1 not needed or not applicable. Complete means the check returned a usable result; it does not mean the file is safe.
File fingerprint
- Last analyzed
- Jul 9, 2026, 10:25 AM UTC
- SHA-256
717e1378945bd09c89b1b1503c01ced9b09670192bd4b8f2c04e28d0326db6af- SHA-1
d104301df525a5e87b28a4d16eebfc9dcf63a979- MD5
960bcff3f9b22d725c62c340d5ea5cdf
About this file
MSPAINT.EXE is a Win32 DLL file of 2.5 MB.
- Type and size
- Win32 DLL · 2.5 MB
- Signer
- UnsignedNo code signature.
- First seen
- May 26, 2020On VirusTotal.
- Submitted by
- 46 distinct sources
- Packer
- None detected
- Entropy
- 7.16 of 8
First scanned
Antivirus consensus
0 of 72 engines flagged this file
4 of the 76 engines returned no result for this file (file type not supported, or the scan did not finish), so they did not check it.
- Tier-118 engines0flagged
- Tier-236 engines0flagged
- Low-trust18 engines0flagged
View all 76 engine results
- AcronisClean
- AhnLab-V3Clean
- AlibabaClean
- alibabacloudClean
- ALYacClean
- Antiy-AVLClean
- APEXClean
- ArcabitClean
- AvastClean
- Avast-MobileNo result
- AVGClean
- AviraClean
- BaiduClean
- BitDefenderClean
- BitDefenderFalxNo result
- BkavClean
- CAT-QuickHealClean
- ClamAVClean
- CMCClean
- CrowdStrikeClean
- CTXClean
- CylanceClean
- CynetClean
- DeepInstinctClean
- DrWebClean
- ElasticClean
- EmsisoftClean
- ESET-NOD32Clean
- F-SecureClean
- FortinetClean
- GDataClean
- GoogleClean
- GridinsoftClean
- huorongClean
- IkarusClean
- JiangminClean
- K7AntiVirusClean
- K7GWClean
- KasperskyClean
- KingsoftClean
- LionicClean
- MalwarebytesClean
- MaxSecureClean
- McAfeeDClean
- MicrosoftClean
- MicroWorld-eScanClean
- NANO-AntivirusClean
- PaloaltoClean
- PandaClean
- RisingClean
- SangforClean
- SentinelOneClean
- SkyhighClean
- SophosClean
- SUPERAntiSpywareClean
- SymantecClean
- SymantecMobileInsightNo result
- TACHYONClean
- tehtrisClean
- TencentClean
- TrapmineClean
- TrellixENSClean
- TrendMicroClean
- TrendMicro-HouseCallClean
- TrustlookNo result
- VaristClean
- VBA32Clean
- VIPREClean
- VirITClean
- ViRobotClean
- WebrootClean
- XcitiumClean
- YandexClean
- ZillyaClean
- ZoneAlarmClean
- ZonerClean
Section entropy & packers
No high-entropy executable section or known packer signature was detected. Data and resource sections can still have high entropy without indicating packed code.
How widely this file has been seen
Moderate prevalence — neither rare nor common. No strong prior applies.
Chapter 05
Questions & answers
Short answers to the 6 questions people ask most about this file.
Is MSPAINT.EXE safe?
What is MSPAINT.EXE?
How many antivirus engines detected MSPAINT.EXE?
What is the SHA-256 hash of MSPAINT.EXE?
Is it safe to use MSPAINT.EXE?
How up to date is this analysis of MSPAINT.EXE?
Community
Member reviews and reports for this exact file hash.