Is ntkrnlmp.exe safe?
The verified Microsoft-signed executable drew no detections from 75 engines, while runtime observation found no offensive techniques or malicious sandbox conclusion.
No engine among 75 flagged this verified Microsoft-signed executable, including all 17 tier-1 engines. One sandbox recorded no offensive techniques or malicious conclusion, although the reputation of its single direct-IP contact was not checked completely.
d90c69cfa925d42037…b97e396fdde2f2Recommended next actions
Before running
Run it only when it came from the developer's official site or another source you independently trust.
If you already ran it
Keep normal device protection enabled and stop if the file behaves unexpectedly.
Intelligence
The saved assessment, checked against the scan evidence and recorded coverage.
The reasoning behind this verdict
This section explains the evidence supporting the verdict and keeps conflicting or missing signals visible.
No engine among 75 flagged this verified Microsoft-signed executable, including all 17 tier-1 engines. One sandbox recorded no offensive techniques or malicious conclusion, although the reputation of its single direct-IP contact was not checked completely.
All 75 engines were free of malicious or suspicious detections, and the 17 tier-1 engines reported no detection. The executable carries a verified Microsoft Windows signature that matches the claimed publisher, with no brand conflict. Five signer-matched historical samples also received benign assessments, reinforcing the publisher evidence. One completed sandbox run produced no malicious conclusion, no offensive techniques, and no dropped files. A low-severity heuristic noted direct communication with 162.159.36.2, but no complete host-reputation result is available; this isolated signal is outweighed by the signature, engine, and runtime evidence.
What We Detected
The sample was not flagged by any of 75 antivirus engines, and all 17 tier-1 engines reported no detection. Its code signature is verified as “Microsoft Windows,” signing.trustedPublisher.matched is true for Microsoft, and no brand mismatch was detected. Five signer-matched historical files also received benign assessments.
Threat Behavior
One completed sandbox run produced no malicious conclusion, no offensive MITRE techniques, no persistence indicators, and no dropped files. A low-severity heuristic recorded direct contact with 162.159.36.2. Because contactedHosts is unavailable, no complete reputation result exists for that network contact, so it should not be described as either benign or malicious.
What To Do Now
The evidence strongly supports normal use when the file came through Windows Update, installation media, or another trusted Microsoft channel. If it appeared unexpectedly or outside a Windows system directory, verify the signature and compare its SHA-256 value before running it.
Where this verdict could be wrong2 caveats
- MalwareTips.Synth.DirectIpC2 fired at low severity after contact with 162.159.36.2; contactedHosts=null means no complete reputation result is available for that IP.
- externalIntel.circl is unavailable because its lookup failed, leaving that source without coverage.
These are the assessment's weak points. If you believe one applies to your file, report the verdict and we'll re-review it.
- 0/75 engines reported malicious or suspicious results.
- All 17 tier-1 engines reported no detection.
- Verified 'Microsoft Windows' signature with signing.trustedPublisher.matched=true.
- similarHashes contains 5/5 signer-matched prior 'safe' verdicts.
- behaviour.offensiveCount=0 and behaviour.hasMaliciousSandboxVerdict=false.
- Direct-IP contact with 162.159.36.2 triggered MalwareTips.Synth.DirectIpC2 at low severity.
- contactedHosts=null leaves the observed IP without a complete reputation cross-check.
- externalIntel.circl returned an error, reducing external reference coverage.
Use the file if it originated from a trusted Microsoft or Windows update channel. If its location or source is unexpected, retain endpoint protection and verify the Microsoft signature and SHA-256 hash before execution.
Coverage & freshness
Complete means the check returned a usable result. It does not mean the file is safe.
Antivirus
Complete0 of 75 engines flagged the file.
Sandbox
Complete1 isolated runtime environment contributed observations.
Network
Partial1 runtime contact was observed without a completed reputation cross-check.
YARA
Complete1 signature or behavior rule matched.
External intel
PartialIndependent reference checks were attempted but are incomplete.
Behavior
Plain-English impact first, then the observed runtime evidence.
Runtime flight recorder
Capture complete- 1isolated sandbox run
- 5MITRE ATT&CK techniques
- 1spawned processes
- 1network contacts
- 0filesystem & mutex artifacts
What this file did when executed
This file was detonated in 1 sandbox and its runtime behaviour was observed.
Adversary techniques mapped to the MITRE ATT&CK framework.
- 162.159.36.2
Detection & Forensics
Consensus, attribution, signatures, code structure, prevalence, and identity.
Evidence integrity
Chain of custody for the facts preserved in this report.
- 1rule hit recorded
- 0 / 75engines flagged
- 335sources in submission history
Why these facts are shown
Each statement identifies whether it was directly recorded or derived from saved scan facts.
- 01
0 of 75 antivirus engines flagged the file.
Verdict inputView chapterProvenanceObservedSourceAntivirus analysisObserved at - 02
One or more independent reference checks were incomplete or unavailable.
ProvenanceDerivedSourceExternal-intelligence coverageObserved at - 03
The file has a valid code signature from Microsoft Windows.
ProvenanceObservedSourceCode-signing metadataObserved at - 04
Scanned file: ntkrnlmp.exe — d90c69cfa925d42037ef1cdba3ff5b3f13cc14e16060938073b97e396fdde2f2
ProvenanceObservedSourceUploaded fileObserved at - 05
Observed process — "C:\Users\user\Desktop\file.exe"
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at - 06
Contacted host: 162.159.36.2 — Contact observed during runtime.
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at
Detection sources at a glance
The available sources did not agree on a named threat category.
Available reference checks returned no match, but at least one source was unavailable. This is not a clean result.
Signatures and behavior heuristics
Low-severity pattern matches — worth noting but not on their own cause for alarm.
The sample contacted an external IP address directly and no application domain was recorded. Direct-IP traffic also occurs in legitimate installers and infrastructure, so this is supporting context only and requires corroboration from host reputation and other runtime evidence.
Evidence162.159.36.2
0 of 75 engines flagged this file
View all 75 engine results
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
Lots of people are uploading this but it's recent — typical of newly-released legitimate software. Low prior for malware.
Fingerprint and provenance
- File name
- ntkrnlmp.exe
- Format
- Win32 EXE
- Code signing
- Signature valid: Microsoft Windows
- Size
- 12.5 MB
- Last analyzed
- Oct 4, 2026, 5:09 PM UTC
d90c69cfa925d42037ef1cdba3ff5b3f13cc14e16060938073b97e396fdde2f2Safety & FAQ
Complete recovery guidance and answers for the next decision.
What to do now
This file appears low risk based on the evidence available now.
- Recovery step 01
Run it only when it came from the developer's official site or another source you independently trust.
- Recovery step 02
A clean result reduces known risk, but it cannot guarantee that every new or targeted threat has been detected.
- Recovery step 03
Keep your antivirus and Windows updates switched on so you stay protected.
Safety FAQ
Direct answers grounded in the saved verdict and evidence in this report.
Is ntkrnlmp.exe safe?
What is ntkrnlmp.exe?
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Is ntkrnlmp.exe digitally signed?
What is the SHA-256 hash of ntkrnlmp.exe?
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Community
Member reviews and reports for this exact file hash.