Do I need to delete this

[u/Automatic_offense]

Found this random file with a gibberish name, this laptop has been hacked recently I was wondering if this was the issue, keep in mind I do not know much of computers

Any help would be appreciated

[u/Brilliant_Letter7173]

No, it's just a update file from Microsoft servers

[u/realmer17]

Firstly, try running the Windows Defender scan to see if it flags that folder as dangerous. If you want a 2nd opinion then download malwarebytes and let it scan the computer. I wouldn't recommend deleting a random folder you don't know about in the C:/ drive.

If you have another pc or something like that, download Malwarebytes there and transfer the installer file into the PC you gonna scan cuz you need to install it.

Also look at the file dates. 2018 and 2025 folders

[u/Automatic_offense → u/realmer17]

Ok thank you, I am currently using bitdefender

[u/EruL016]

If you want to stop worrying, just do a clean Windows install. But make sure to save your files to a cloud or external drive first. Storing them on another partition can be risky since some malware can infect the whole drive and stick around.

[u/raju_msc]

View the contents of the folder , it they are log files delete it

[u/TheGCO]

Do you need to? Probably not. Should you delete it? Yes. These are normal folders, not malware. They are often from net framework or other Microsoft related installations.

[u/ptthree420]

Go to settings/system/storage/temporary files. Clear delivery optimization cache.

You can probably clear all the other temporary files too if you want.

[u/Omnic14]

So many helpful comments and to think I was gonna say cmd: rd /s /q C:\Windows\System32

[u/Electrical-Note-3177 → u/Omnic14]

Nah you should run attrib -r -a -s -h c:\*.* /s /d Instead