This article will aid you to remove .maoloa Ransomware. Follow the ransomware removal instructions provided at the end of the article.
.maoloa Ransomware is one that encrypts your data and demands money as a ransom to get it restored. Files will receive the .maoloa extension. The .maoloa Ransomware will leave ransomware instructions as a desktop wallpaper image. Keep on reading the article and see how you could try to potentially recover some of your locked files and data.
Threat Summary
| Name | .maoloa ransomware |
| Type | Ransomware, Cryptovirus |
| Short Description | The ransomware encrypts files by placing the .maoloa before the affected files on your computer system and demands a ransom to be paid to allegedly recover them. |
| Symptoms | The ransomware will encrypt your files and leave a ransom note with payment instructions. |
| Distribution Method | Spam Emails, Email Attachments |
| Detection Tool |
See If Your System Has Been Affected by malware
Download
Malware Removal Tool
|
User Experience | Join Our Forum to Discuss .maoloa ransomware. |
| Data Recovery Tool | Windows Data Recovery by Stellar Phoenix Notice! This product scans your drive sectors to recover lost files and it may not recover 100% of the encrypted files, but only few of them, depending on the situation and whether or not you have reformatted your drive. |
.maoloa Ransomware – Distribution Techniques
These samples have been sighted in a relatively low-quantity campaign. The code analysis is not yet complete which doesn’t give out details about the possible infection campaign.
One of the most popular options is to coordinate email phishing campaigns that attempt to confuse the victims into thinking that they have received a legitimate notification from a well-known service or product. They will feature file attachments or malicious content that once interacted with will lead to the virus infection.
A similar strategy is the creation of malicious sites that use similar sounding domain names and fake security certificates. They are made in order to confuse the victims into thinking that they have accessed a legitimate site by copying down their design and main contents.
A popular alternative is the distribution of payload carriers which contain the .maoloa ransomware infection instructions. Whenever these files are engaged the relevant code will be started. There are two popular variants which are most commonly used:
- Infected Documents — Malicious documents can be used to produce infections. They are crafted en-masse with virus installing macros which can be embeddded across all popular document types: spreadsheets, presentations, text documents and databases. Whenever they are opened by the victims a prompt will be spawned requesting for the scripts to be run. This will trigger the infection.
- Application Installers — The same procedure can be used with installers of popular applications. The criminals will embed the necessary code in hacker-made setup files. They are made by taking the original executables and modifying them with the relevant instructions. The finished installers will be delivered to the target users by posing as legitimate packaged applications.
All of these files can additionally be spread via file-sharing networks like BitTorrent. They are widely used by Internet users to spread both legitimate and pirate data.
Larger infiltration attempts can be made by attaching the virus files in malicious web browser plugins which are otherwise known as hijackers. They are often distributed with fake user reviews on the relevant repositories and promise to enhance productivity by adding in new features or optimizing the performance.
.maoloa Ransomware – Detailed Analysis
So far the initial code analysis does not indicate code snippets from any of the famous ransomware families. This leads us to believe that the hackers have have created the .maoloa ransomware from scratch. The fact that the captured files are early test sample shows that it is very possible for future releases to contain an expanded list of features. The other possibility is that it is ordered through the dark underground markets and that future versions may be upgraded with more modules.
It is expected that a typical infection behavior will be followed. This means that the infections will probably begin with a data gathering module which will scan the local con tents and hijack information that can be categorized into one of these two groups:
- Machine Identification Data — By taking various data from the infected computers the engine can generate an unique ID which is assigned to each different host. It is usually calculated from values such as the installed hardware components, user settings and Windows Registry entries.
- Personal Information — The criminals can hijack information that can be used to directly expose the identity of the victims. This is done by programming the relevant engine into retrieving information about a given user’s name, address, location, interests and even any stored account information.
The harvested information can be found not only on the local drive, but also on the attached removable storage devices and network shares as well if the .maoloa ransomware interacts with the Windows Volume Manager. Furthermore the collected information can be used to bypass security software by looking for engines of applications that can block the proper .maoloa ransomware execution. The list includes: anti-virus programs, sandbox environments, virtual machine hosts and debug software. If detected they will be removed instantly.
As soon as these two actions have completed running the computer hackers will have the ability to modify the system according to the virus instructions. Most commonly this will lead to value modification in the Windows Registry. In most of the cases this can lead to overall system instability — the computer’s performance may degrade to the point of being unusable unless the virus infections is completely removed. Modifications to strings that are part of third-party applications can result in the inability to use them properly as unexpected errors can appear.
When the virus has obtained full control of the machine it can set itself as a persistent threat. This means that it will set itself to automatically launch as soon as the computer is powered on. These infections can be used to deploy other malware such as the following:
- Trojans — These local installations will establish a connection with a predefined server thus allowing the remote operators to spy on the victim computers. They can overtake control at any given time, deploy other threats and steal files before the encryption process is engaged.
- Cryptocurrency Miners — These are small-sized applications that wiil download resource-intensive tasks from a remote server and start them on the infected computers. They will utilize the available hardware resources by placing a heavy load on the CPU, GPU, hard disk space and memory. Whenever one of them is reported to the servers cryptocurrency assets will be automatically transferred to the hacker controllers.
- Browser Redirect Code — They are able to introduce changes to the web browsers which will redirect the victims to hacker-controlled landing pages. They can be either used to engage the users into intrusive ads which will direct revenue to the hacker controllers or to the ransomware note itself.
All kinds of changes can take place as the hackers can dynamically send new configuration options as new samples are produced.
.maoloa Ransomware – Encryption Process
The .maoloa Ransomware encrypts user data with a strong cipher according to a built-in list of target data extensions. In most cases it will target the most popular ones:
- Archives
- Backups
- Documents
- Images
- Videos
- Music
The victim files will be renamed with the .maoloa extension and a ransomware note added to coerce the victims into paying a decryption fee to the hackers.
Remove .maoloa Ransomwareand Try to Restore Data
If your computer system got infected with the .maoloa ransomware virus, you should have a bit of experience in removing malware. You should get rid of this ransomware as quickly as possible before it can have the chance to spread further and infect other computers. You should remove the ransomware and follow the step-by-step instructions guide provided below.
Martin Beltov
Martin graduated with a degree in Publishing from Sofia University. As a cyber security enthusiast he enjoys writing about the latest threats and mechanisms of intrusion.
Follow Me:
Preparation before removing .maoloa ransomware.
Before starting the actual removal process, we recommend that you do the following preparation steps.
- Make sure you have these instructions always open and in front of your eyes.
- Do a backup of all of your files, even if they could be damaged. You should back up your data with a cloud backup solution and insure your files against any type of loss, even from the most severe threats.
- Be patient as this could take a while.
- Scan for Malware
- Fix Registries
- Remove Virus Files
Step 1: Scan for .maoloa ransomware with SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool
Step 2: Clean any registries, created by .maoloa ransomware on your computer.
The usually targeted registries of Windows machines are the following:
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
You can access them by opening the Windows registry editor and deleting any values, created by .maoloa ransomware there. This can happen by following the steps underneath:
Tip: To find a virus-created value, you can right-click on it and click "Modify" to see which file it is set to run. If this is the virus file location, remove the value.Step 3: Find virus files created by .maoloa ransomware on your PC.
1.For Windows 8, 8.1 and 10.
For Newer Windows Operating Systems
1: On your keyboard press + R and write explorer.exe in the Run text box and then click on the Ok button.
2: Click on your PC from the quick access bar. This is usually an icon with a monitor and its name is either “My Computer”, “My PC” or “This PC” or whatever you have named it.
3: Navigate to the search box in the top-right of your PC's screen and type “fileextension:” and after which type the file extension. If you are looking for malicious executables, an example may be "fileextension:exe". After doing that, leave a space and type the file name you believe the malware has created. Here is how it may appear if your file has been found:
N.B. We recommend to wait for the green loading bar in the navigation box to fill up in case the PC is looking for the file and hasn't found it yet.
2.For Windows XP, Vista, and 7.
For Older Windows Operating Systems
In older Windows OS's the conventional approach should be the effective one:
1: Click on the Start Menu icon (usually on your bottom-left) and then choose the Search preference.
2: After the search window appears, choose More Advanced Options from the search assistant box. Another way is by clicking on All Files and Folders.
3: After that type the name of the file you are looking for and click on the Search button. This might take some time after which results will appear. If you have found the malicious file, you may copy or open its location by right-clicking on it.
Now you should be able to discover any file on Windows as long as it is on your hard drive and is not concealed via special software.
.maoloa ransomware FAQ
What Does .maoloa ransomware Trojan Do?
The .maoloa ransomware Trojan is a malicious computer program designed to disrupt, damage, or gain unauthorized access to a computer system. It can be used to steal sensitive data, gain control over a system, or launch other malicious activities.
Can Trojans Steal Passwords?
Yes, Trojans, like .maoloa ransomware, can steal passwords. These malicious programs are designed to gain access to a user's computer, spy on victims and steal sensitive information such as banking details and passwords.
Can .maoloa ransomware Trojan Hide Itself?
Yes, it can. A Trojan can use various techniques to mask itself, including rootkits, encryption, and obfuscation, to hide from security scanners and evade detection.
Can a Trojan be Removed by Factory Reset?
Yes, a Trojan can be removed by factory resetting your device. This is because it will restore the device to its original state, eliminating any malicious software that may have been installed. Bear in mind that there are more sophisticated Trojans that leave backdoors and reinfect even after a factory reset.
Can .maoloa ransomware Trojan Infect WiFi?
Yes, it is possible for a Trojan to infect WiFi networks. When a user connects to the infected network, the Trojan can spread to other connected devices and can access sensitive information on the network.
Can Trojans Be Deleted?
Yes, Trojans can be deleted. This is typically done by running a powerful anti-virus or anti-malware program that is designed to detect and remove malicious files. In some cases, manual deletion of the Trojan may also be necessary.
Can Trojans Steal Files?
Yes, Trojans can steal files if they are installed on a computer. This is done by allowing the malware author or user to gain access to the computer and then steal the files stored on it.
Which Anti-Malware Can Remove Trojans?
Anti-malware programs such as SpyHunter are capable of scanning for and removing Trojans from your computer. It is important to keep your anti-malware up to date and regularly scan your system for any malicious software.
Can Trojans Infect USB?
Yes, Trojans can infect USB devices. USB Trojans typically spread through malicious files downloaded from the internet or shared via email, allowing the hacker to gain access to a user's confidential data.
About the .maoloa ransomware Research
The content we publish on SensorsTechForum.com, this .maoloa ransomware how-to removal guide included, is the outcome of extensive research, hard work and our team’s devotion to help you remove the specific trojan problem.
How did we conduct the research on .maoloa ransomware?
Please note that our research is based on an independent investigation. We are in contact with independent security researchers, thanks to which we receive daily updates on the latest malware definitions, including the various types of trojans (backdoor, downloader, infostealer, ransom, etc.)
Furthermore, the research behind the .maoloa ransomware threat is backed with VirusTotal.
To better understand the threat posed by trojans, please refer to the following articles which provide knowledgeable details.