Yes, DavidR that was exactly it, just after re-boot after installing the latest program/definitions update. I am using the pro version of avast, if it helps any.
I did google the file, but did not get much info other than a minor chance of it being malware, but a major chance of the file being part of Gigabyte's Easy Tune6 utility (which I had once installed but had uninstalled quite some time back).