Update 08/18/2026

Geekom has shared its official response about the matter. The company acknowledged that the flagged driver was an outdated file that remained available on legacy pages. Per the brand, only the old files are affected and this issue doesn't affect pre-installed drivers or the operating system that come with Geekom's mini PCs. The flagged legacy files have been removed, and Geekom advises users who have downloaded the file to run a complete scan with Windows Defender or other trusted anti-malware tool.

Original report as follows

Like any other mini PC manufacturer, Geekom offers driver support for its offerings, but it seems that users shouldn’t fully trust the drivers available on the company’s website. As a Reddit user reports, the official driver archive intended for multiple models contains an executable that gets flagged as malware.

Of course, not every malware flag tends to be accurate, but the scan results are more or less the same on VirusTotal, FileScan, and MetaDefender. The executable that’s being flagged is found in the LAN driver folder, and it’s a PCIe driver that’s the same for multiple mini PCs, including the Geekom A8, AE8 (16/1TB curr. $585.65 on Amazon) , A87, AE7, and AX8 Pro.

This isn’t the first time a mini PC manufacturer has been put under the spotlight for malware-related issues. As we covered back in February 2024, Acemagic was also flagged for factory-installed spyware, and the company eventually acknowledged that a batch of its shipments was compromised.

Geekom’s case is different, as the suspicious executable is being distributed through the company’s own website. Geekom has yet to respond, but it would be a good idea not to download any sort of drivers from third-party or OEM bundles.

Instead, the safest option is to let Windows install drivers or download them directly from the component manufacturer’s website. For instance, the flagged LAN driver executable is available on RealTek’s official website.

Abid Ahsan Shanto - Senior Tech Writer - 2968 articles published on Notebookcheck since 2023

Abid's journey as a technophile began when he first assembled his PC. Since then, his insatiable curiosity has driven him to delve into every aspect of this rapidly evolving technological landscape. And as a tech reporter, he prioritizes transparency, accuracy, and unbiasedness.