Multiple instances of Chrome slowing down my PC

My PC slows right down and sometimes hangs completely for up to 10 minutes.  When this happens, I go to the Task Manager (which itself takes up to a minute to appear after pressing CTRL+ALT+DELETE) and see 6 to 10 instances of Chrome running.  I kill them all, and start again, then my PC is OK again for a while.  But at some point, the Chrome instances will stack up again.  

When I look in Task Manager, I can see that these processes are growing in memory size very quickly, by the second.

I've read online that this is a virus/malware, and one that the Anti-virus/malware software doesn't detect.  I've also read a glowing recommendation for Bleeping Computer in terms of getting help to fix this - so here I am!  Thanks in anticipation.

(I've attached a screengrab of my Task Manager taken just now.  I've already had to go through one process of killing instance of Chrome this morning.  The PC is running OK at the moment, but it will only be a matter of time before I have to go to the Task Manager and kill off all the Chrome again).

Edited by hamluis, 29 July 2017 - 06:56 AM.
Moved from Win 7 to Am I Infected - Hamluis.

Chrome starts a new process for each opened tab. There may be other issues such as adware or malware.

Also see info in this link...​Stop Chrome from Running In the Background After You Close It

Use the programs below to clean, remove adware and remove malware.

Use CCleaner to remove Temporary files, program caches, cookies, logs, etc. Use the Default settings. No need to use the

Registry Cleaning Tool...risky. Pay close attention while installing and UNcheck offers of toolbars....especially Google.

After install, open CCleaner and run by clicking on the Run Cleaner button in the bottom right corner.

CCleaner - PC Optimization and Cleaning - Free Download

• download Malwarebytes to your desktop.
• Double-click mb3-setup-1878.1878-3.0.6.1469.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.
• The Scan log is available throughout History ->Application logs. Please post it contents in your next reply.

Download AdwCleaner by Xplode onto your desktop.

• Close all open programs and internet browsers.
• Double click on adwcleaner.exe to run the tool.
• Click on Scan button.
• When the scan has finished click on Clean button.
• Your computer will be rebooted automatically. A text file will open after the restart.
• Please post the contents of that logfile with your next reply.
• You can find the logfile at C:\AdwCleaner[S1].txt as well.

• download Junkware Removal Tool to your desktop.
• Shut down your protection software now to avoid potential conflicts.
• Run the tool by double-clicking it. If you are using Windows Vista, 7, or 8; instead of double-clicking, right-mouse click JRT.exe and select "Run as Administrator".
• The tool will open and start scanning your system.
• Please be patient as this can take a while to complete depending on your system's specifications.
• On completion, a log (JRT.txt) is saved to your desktop and will automatically open.
• Post the contents of JRT.txt into your next message

Edited by buddy215, 30 July 2017 - 05:38 AM.

Thank you so much for this advice.  I am working through it right now.  I will post the logs as requested in subsequent replies.

Malwarebytes log:

Adw log:

Got rid of some nasty adware.

Eset will take an hour or more to run based on your computer's resources, size of data files and whether it has full use of the computer's resources.

So, plan accordingly.

Download and run the FREE online scanner from Free Virus Scan | Online Virus Scan from ESET | ESET

• Place a checkmark in YES, I accept the Terms of Use, then click Start. Wait for ESET Online Scanner to load its components.
• Select Enable detection of potentially unwanted applications.
• Click Advanced Settings, then place a checkmark in the following:
  • Remove found threats
  • Scan archives
  • Scan for potentially unsafe applications
  • Enable Anti-Stealth technology
• Click Start to begin scanning.
• ESET Online Scanner will start downloading signatures and scan. Please be patient, as this scan can take quite some time.
• When the scan is done, click List threats (only available if ESET Online Scanner found something).
• Click Export, then save the file to your desktop.
• Click Back, then Finish to exit ESET Online Scanner.

• download Security Check by glax24 and save the file to the Desktop
• Run the tool by accepting all the Security prompts
• when complete the tool will produce a log file C:\SecurityCheck\SecurityCheck.txt and also copy the contents to the Clipboard
• Simply Paste the log to your reply

ESET Scanner found these:

Security Check by glax24 log:

Well buddy215, your advice thus far has been monumental.  I don't remember my computer running as well as this for many years.  No doubt there's more advice to come - maybe about ongoing security configurations etc, but for everything so far - a huge thank you!

A lot of crapola removed...good that has had positive effect.

Suggest uninstalling Spybot and McAfee programs. They should be listed in your list of installed programs.

Other than that...if you are not getting any error notices...not unusual after removing so much crapola...then I think you

are good to go.

You're welcome....happy surfin'

Hello again,

Unfortunately, we seem to be back at square one.  My PC started slowing down again a couple of days after our last exchange in this topic, and now it hangs sometimes for 3-5 minutes at a time, with multiple large instances of Chrome needing to be terminated via Task Manager.

The Malwarebytes trial (which has a day to go) keeps blocking some website called "online-metrix" everytime I go to an online banking log-in page, which is extremely worrying.  

I've run the CCCleaner and Malwarebytes scans again several times, but no threats are found.

Your advice would be appreciated.

Not sure if you have acquired some new malware or something was missed in earlier scans. Best to resolve by starting a new

topic in the malware removal forum by following the directions below. You may want to run another scan using Eset Online scanner before

starting the new post....but don't do it after creating the FRST logs.

Please follow the instructions in the Malware Removal and Log Section Preparation Guide starting at Step 6.

• If you cannot complete a step, then skip it and continue with the next.
• In Step 6 there are instructions for downloading and running FRST which will create two logs.

When you have done that, post your logs in the Virus, Trojan, Spyware, and Malware Removal Logs forum, NOT here, for assistance by the Malware Response Team.

Start a new topic, give it a relevant title and post your log(s) along with a brief description of your problem, a summary of any anti-malware tools you have used and a summary of any steps that you have performed on your own. If you cannot produce any of the required logs...start the new topic anyway. Explain that you followed the Prep. Guide, were unable to create the logs, and describe what happened when you tried to create them. A member of the Malware Removal Team will walk you through, step by step, on how to clean your computer.

After doing this, please reply back in this thread with a link to the new topic so we can close this one.

DO NOT bump your new topic. Wait for a response from one of the Team Members.

After following all the excellent advice in this earlier thread:

https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/t/652860/multiple-instances-of-chrome-slowing-down-my-pc/#entry4308378

Mod Edit:  No logs, merged with AII topic linked above - Hamluis.

...my PC operated really well, back to lightning speed for a couple of days.  Then very quickly, it got really sluggish again, and I could only relieve (temporarily) the situation by launching the Task Manager and killing off the multiple instances of Google Chrome, some of which were pretty large in size.

I am now, in accordance with advice in the last post of that thread, starting a new support thread, and first just running ESET Scanner again.  I will post any results below:

Edited by hamluis, 18 August 2017 - 05:05 AM.

Link to the new topic:

https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/t/654645/pc-slow-often-hanging-and-multiple-large-instances-of-chrome/