Viruses

Also known as Geodo, Emotet is labeled as a banking trojan that was detected to infiltrate Windows systems. It was first researched by cyber experts in 2014 as a virus designed to steal sensitive information from users. The time development went on, Emotet experienced a couple of feature changes. For instance, apart from running surveillance over the data, it acquired the feature of injecting additional malware and other banking trojans to infected machines. Emotet forces its victims to undergo massive privacy issues and deterioration in system performance. Because such malware has to run a lot of non-native processes and send collected data to external servers, it is forced to eat a lot of system resources as well. This is why your PC performance can be affected so much leading to freezes, lags, and various other problems making normal usage simply impossible. Emotet has done a lot of attacks which made Department of Homeland Security write it on the list of the most damaging and costly malware for governments, organizations, and individuals ever existed.

If you found your files have new .hamster extension and no longer accessible, then you are infected with a virus called Hamster Ransomware. Infections of this type hack your PC settings to run through encryption of data. They also apply some visual changes to make victims spot the result of infection. After successful encryption, you will see a file like 1.pdf change to 1.pdf.hamster and reset its default icon to blank. The virus will also create a text note called How To decrypt.txt. As stated in the note, Hamster Ransomware penetrated your network and blocked access to most of the data. In order to get it back, victims are instructed to contact cyber criminals with their assigned ID and purchase the tool for decryption. It is important that victims reach out to malware developers using TOX messenger, which should be installed in case of absence. The frauds also advise you to contact them within 72 hours since the attack. This way, the price for complete data recovery will be reduced. It is also mentioned the attackers will tell how they infiltrated your system and what can be done to fix the existing vulnerability in the future.

Hospitalhelper is the name of another ransomware infection. Although it is new, the virus copies traits of other popular versions. File encryption, new extension, and ransom note are the main changes brought by Hospitalhelper. For instance, a file like 1.pdf will change to something like this 1.pdf.hospitalhelper.5BB-DE6-0CC and reset its shortcut icon. While .hospitalhelper is a constant extension, 5BB-DE6-0CC represents random combination of letters reflecting a victim's ID. After your files have been altered this way, access to them will be no longer available. Hospitalhelper also creates a text note called !!! ALL YOUR FILES ARE ENCRYPTED !!!.TXT that contains ransom instructions.

Scott.Armstrong is a ransomware virus that encrypts sensitive files by appending the .LOCKED extension. This is meant to highlight the blocked data and catch the attention of infected victims. For example, a file like 1.pdf will change to 1.pdf.LOCKED and reset its original icon. After this, users will no longer be able to access their data as previously. Rigth at the end of encryption, the virus triggers a pop-up window called HOW_TO_RECOVER_MY_FILES.hta to open. It also creates a separate text note (HOW_TO_RECOVER_MY_FILES.txt) containing detailed instructions on how to return your data. The text note instructs victims to install the qTox private messenger and contact developers using the provided TOX-ID. Alternatively, you may also establish contact with cybercriminals through e-mail by sending your Key Identifier, which is attached in the note. You are also allowed to send up to 3 files together with the Key ID to get them decrypted for free. These files should be less than 5MB each, non-archived, and do not contain any valuable information (e.g. databases, backups, large excel sheets, etc.). Based on the message content, it is clear that Scott.Armstrong puts more emphasis on infecting company networks to export bigger amounts of ransom.

Willow encrypts personal data using cryptographic ciphers, alters file extensions to .willow and demands 500$ payment to reset the assigned changes. All of these traits categorize it as ransomware. A sample of encrypted data would look something like this 1.pdf.willow. The files will lose their original shortcut icons as well. Willow Ransomware also changes desktop wallpapers and creates the READMEPLEASE.txt text note. Both wallpapers and text note display the same ransom instruction that victims should follow to recover the data. It is said victims should pay 500$ in BTC to the attached Bitcoin address unless they want to lose their files forever. It is also mentioned third-party decryptors will not be able to remove ciphers applied to files by Willow. Unfortunately, this is nothing, but true as many ransomware infections use high-grade encryption algorithms and store their keys on online servers. For this reason, manual decryption very often appears to be impossible. We do not recommend you pay the required ransom because there is a risk to get scammed eventually. Extortionists hold fame for dumping their victims and not sending any decryption tools even after receiving the money.

Also known by the name of Rontokbro, Brontok is a banking worm that sweeps through the system in search of valuable information. The virus entrenches deep inside of your system and waits until some banking information is entered by users during the session. It can access any segment of your system and surveil whatever you do. The gathered information may therefore be sold or even used to scam you eventually. Usually, default Windows Defender detects the virus and reports Worm:Win32/Brontok was found. Unfortunately, the capacity of Windows Antivirus is not enough to avert Brontok penetrating the system. the worm prevents victims from updating certain security software, visiting antimalware websites, and modifying Windows Explorer folder options. It is also possible users will not be able to use some Windows features like Task Manager, Registry Editor, or Command Prompt. These tools can be used to terminate Brontok's activity, which is why it blocks access to them. All of these changes complicate the deletion of Brontok worm significantly. If you do not have the necessary knowledge to do it, it is better to entrust this challenge to instructions written by professionals.

Mallox is the name of a ransomware virus able to encrypt all valuable data stored on a PC. The file-encryptor uses strong encryption algorithms to assign unique ciphers and deny further access to data. It also attaches the new .mallox extension meant to highlight the blocked data. To illustrate, a file like 1.pdf will change to 1.pdf.mallox and reset its original icon. Note that removing the .mallox extension will not help you open the file as long as it is encrypted. After successful encryption, the virus opens and places a text note called RECOVERY INFORMATION.txt onto your desktop that contains ransom instructions. The file says only unique decryption software will be able to access your data. In order to get it, users should send an e-mail letter with their personal ID to cybercriminals. Then, victims will be given further instruction on how to purchase the decryption tool. It is also mentioned there is a possibility to test free file decryption by sending a few encrypted samples that do not contain valuable data. Before you start thinking about recovery options, we have to inform you about the risks of paying the ransom. Many cybercriminals fool their victims and do not send any decryption instruments even after receiving the money.

Also known as Hakbit, Thanos is a ransomware group that develops a number of file-encrypting infections. It was first discovered by GrujaRS, an independent security researcher specializing in ransomware. The virus has quite a long genealogy tree with lots of different versions using AES algorithms to run file encryption. Each of them has a separate extension that is assigned to encrypted data. The most recent are .steriok, .cyber, and .crystal. If you spotted the change of shortcut icons along with extensions, this means your files have been successfully encrypted. To illustrate, a file like 1.pdf will change to 1.pdf.steriok, 1.pdf.cyber, 1.pdf.crystal or similarly depending on which version infiltrated your system. After encryption, Thanos creates either HOW_TO_DECYPHER_FILES.txt, HELP_ME_RECOVER_MY_FILES.txt or RESTORE_FILES_INFO.txt text files. These are the names of ransom notes containing instructions on how to redeem your data.