How do I remove "jucheck.exe"?

October 24, 2012 5:37 AM

How do I get rid of the virus (?) jucheck.exe which keeps popping up on my computer, telling me to update Java (which I know is already up to date)?

I'm running Windows 7, 64bit, and Google searches for help on this haven't been useful yet. Some sites suggest this is normal but others say it's malicious.

I've got antivirus, firewall etc. and they all say everything's OK. I've also downloaded SUPERAntiSpyware (free) and it can't find anything wrong. And yet, the jucheck.exe thing still happens! Any and all help welcomed!

posted by thetarium to Computers & Internet (9 answers total)

Haha, this just started happening to me too. It's not a virus, though. Can remove it from the startup program list via msconfig
posted by MangyCarface at 5:40 AM on October 24, 2012

I always turn off automatic updates in the Control Panel but that fucker keeps coming back. I would run msconfig.exe and services.msc (which gives a little more control over disabling background services than msconfig) to try to turn it off for good. Note that this might leave you vulnerable if there are any Java security issues in the future, and manually installing an update will reactivate automatic updates.
posted by stopgap at 6:50 AM on October 24, 2012

You don't really need Java. How about uninstalling it entirely?
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 6:51 AM on October 24, 2012

This fixed it for me.
posted by neda at 6:54 AM on October 24, 2012

It's normal, dude. I was actually just tasked with finding a way to turn it off for the PCs in my organization. For a normal home user, I'd suggest opening the Java control panel (which'll be located somewhere like C:\Program Files (x86)\Java\jre6\bin and be called "javacpl.exe") AS AN ADMINISTRATOR, then turning off automatic updates under there.
posted by julthumbscrew at 6:54 AM on October 24, 2012

It's not a virus, it's a Java Update Check. It looks for the latest version of the Java virtual machine, put out by Oracle.

If you're interested in security, you have basically three options:

1) Disable or otherwise uninstall the Java virtual machine.

2) Shut off jucheck.exe.

3) Let jucheck.exe check for updates to the Java virtual machine, in which security flaws are regularly found.

The middle road, not updating Java but just leaving it running, is the least secure.
posted by adipocere at 7:11 AM on October 24, 2012

Just for some background, the sites saying jucheck.exe is a virus are likely perpetuating the chain-mail hoax that surfaced about a decade ago that tricked unsuspecting users into deleting it. Although that's not to say all jucheck.exe's are clean, as malware can often masquerade as any type of file. I suggest submitting it to VirusTotal just to be sure. If it comes up clean, it's simply returning there during Java updates.

Also a lot of the sites you visited may also have had their own exploit packs or malware. I highly recommend My Web of Trust to see if a site is safe before clicking on it. (not running as a local administrator is also a huge step towards preventing malware....I have instructions in my profile that I'm planning on updating shortly)
posted by samsara at 10:52 AM on October 24, 2012

Thanks for all the responses - I've currently done the easiest option from the list above, julthumbscrew's suggestion. If this doesn't solve it for me in the long term, I'll try some of the other fixes! Thanks also for reminding me to be more careful about malware and the like.
posted by thetarium at 3:03 AM on October 25, 2012

Just remember, when you turn off Java updates...you make your PC vulnerable to malware exploits (that's kind of the original joke in getting people to remove jucheck.exe...the scare of malware leads to MORE malware)....or in other words you'll fall behind on security updates unless you keep up on versions manually. I recommend looking into Secunia PSI as it'll keep track of versions and also auto-update other 3rd party browser addons as well.
posted by samsara at 5:27 AM on October 25, 2012