EnCiPhErEd Ransomware – Remove It and Decrypt Encrypted Files for Free - How to, Technology and PC Security Forum

by Ventsislav Krastev | May 18, 2016 | 0 Comments Decrypt Files, file-encryption, ransomware, Windows, Xorist

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A new variant of old ransomware, EnCiPhErEd is a part of the Xorist crypto family. The virus encrypts files on compromised systems leaving its name as a file extension to the encoded files. The ransomware has also been reported by malware researchers to be sold online on deep web black markets. Since ransomware from the Xorist family has been hacked a while ago, we advise users to follow the tutorial in this article to remove it and decrypt their files instead of paying the ransom money to the cyber-criminals.

Threat Summary

Name	EnCiPhErEd(Xorist)
Type	Ransomware
Short Description	The ransomware encrypts files with the RSA algorithm and AES-128 ciphers and asks a ransom for decryption.
Symptoms	Files are encrypted and become inaccessible. A ransom note with instructions for paying the ransom shows as a .txt file.
Distribution Method	Spam Emails, Email Attachments, File Sharing Networks.
Detection Tool	See If Your System Has Been Affected by EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) Download Malware Removal Tool
User Experience	Join our forum to Discuss EnCiPhErEd 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.

EnCiPhErEd Ransomware – Infection Process

To infect users, this ransomware may spread via several different ways:

Via infected USB drives or other external drives.
Through malicious URLs that cause drive-by-downloads or the execution of .js(JavaScript) files.
Via malicious executables, like Windows activators, game key generators, and others, pretending to be virus-free applications.

Since the ransomware is sold in Russian forums, users on those forums have reported that the ransomware may be spread via activators for Microsoft products, such as fake KMS Activator.

EnCiPhErEd Ransomware In Detail

Once activated on your computer, EnCiPhErEd Ransomware may place different files of the following file types:

→ .js, .exe, .dll, .tmp, .vbs, .bat, .cmd .reg

The files may be located in one of the following folders:

%AppData%
%Local%
%Roaming%
%System%
%{User’s Profile}%
%Temp%

Those files may be obfuscated so that they avoid detection by antivirus software. As soon as they are executed, EnCiPhErEd may immediately begin to encrypt your files. It may look for files of the following file extensions:

→ .DOC .DOCX .LOG .MSG .ODT .PAGES .RTF .TEX .TXT .WPD .WPS .CSV .DAT .GED .KEY .KEYCHAIN .PPS .PPT .PPTX .SDF .TAR .TAX2014 .TAX2015 .VCF .XML Audio Files .AIF .IFF .M3U .M4A .MID .MP3 .MPA .WAV .WMA Video Files .3G2 .3GP .ASF .AVI .FLV .M4V .MOV .MP4 .MPG .RM .SRT .SWF .VOB .WMV 3D .3DM .3DS .MAX .OBJ R.BMP .DDS .GIF .JPG .PNG .PSD .PSPIMAGE .TGA .THM .TIF .TIFF .YUV .AI .EPS .PS .SVG .INDD .PCT .PDF .XLR .XLS .XLSX .ACCDB .DB .DBF .MDB .PDB .SQL .APK .APP .BAT .CGI .COM .EXE .GADGET .JAR .PIF .WSF .DEM .GAM .NES .ROM .SAV CAD Files .DWG .DXF GIS Files .GPX .KML .KMZ .ASP .ASPX .CER .CFM .CSR .CSS .HTM .HTML .JS .JSP .PHP .RSS .XHTML .CRX .PLUGIN .FNT .FON .OTF .TTF .CAB .CPL .CUR .DESKTHEMEPACK .DLL .DMP .DRV .ICNS .ICO .LNK .SYS .CFG .INI .PRF Encoded Files .HQX .MIM .UUE .7Z .CBR .DEB .GZ .PKG .RAR .RPM .SITX .TAR.GZ .ZIP .ZIPX .BIN .CUE .DMG .ISO .MDF .TOAST .VCDSource:fileinfo.com

After it encrypts the files, the ransomware adds the EnCiPhErEd extensions to the files, for example:

→New Text Document.txt.EnCiPhErEd

The ransomware may add a ransom message similar to the following:

→ “Attention! All your files are encrypted!
To restore your files and access them,
please send Bitcoin to address
23d9h320hd23d2389g32fh23z3208
and email to {cyber-criminals’ email} proof
(screen or smth) of your payment.
After receiving funds, I will send you
your password and decrypt instruction via email.
You have several attempts to enter the code.
When that number has been exceeded,
all the data irreversibly is destroyed.
Be careful when you enter the code!”Source:BleepingComputer

Another ransom message seen in Xorist variants is the following:

This is just an example message; however, users also report being asked to send SMS messages that charge them the ransom amount. This is very convenient and untraceable method of quick money making, and this is why some cyber-criminals may prefer it.

Remove EnCiPhErEd Ransomware and Decrypt the Encoded Files

To remove this ransomware, we advise users to immediately download and use an advanced anti-malware software to scan automatically for the threat. However, there is also the manual removal possibility of finding the registry entries and the files created by the ransomware, for which we have prepared instructions for you below.

To decrypt your files, please check step “3. Decrypt Files Encrypted by EnCiPhErEd Ransomware”.

Ventsislav Krastev

Ventsislav has been covering the latest malware, software and newest tech developments at SensorsTechForum for 3 years now. He started out as a network administrator. Having graduated Marketing as well, Ventsislav also has passion for discovery of new shifts and innovations in cybersecurity that become game changers. After studying Value Chain Management and then Network Administration, he found his passion within cybersecrurity and is a strong believer in basic education of every user towards online safety.

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REMOVE IT NOW (PC)

with Spy Hunter

EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) may remain persistent on your system and may re-infect it. We recommend you to download SpyHunter and run free scan to remove all virus files on your PC. This saves you hours of time and effort compared to doing the removal yourself.

Keep in mind, that SpyHunter’s scanner is only for malware detection. If SpyHunter detects malware on your PC, you will need to purchase SpyHunter’s malware removal tool to remove the malware threats. Read our SpyHunter 5 review. Click on the corresponding links to check SpyHunter’s EULA, Privacy Policy and Threat Assessment Criteria.

Preparation before removing EnCiPhErEd(Xorist).

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.

Step 1: Boot Your PC In Safe Mode to isolate and remove EnCiPhErEd(Xorist)

OFFER

Manual Removal Usually Takes Time and You Risk Damaging Your Files If Not Careful!

We Recommend To Scan Your PC with SpyHunter

1. Hold Windows key() + R

2. The “Run” Window will appear. In it, type “msconfig” and click OK.

3. Go to the “Boot” tab. There select “Safe Boot”, tick “Network” and then click “Apply” and “OK”.

Tip: Make sure to reverse those changes by unticking Safe Boot after that, because your system will always boot in Safe Boot from now on.

4. When prompted, click on “Restart” to go into Safe Mode.

5. You can recognise Safe Mode by the words written on the corners of your screen.

Step 2: Clean any registries, created by EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) 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 EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) there. This can happen by following the steps underneath:

1. Open the Run Window again, type “regedit” and click OK.

2. When you open it, you can freely navigate to the Run and RunOnce keys, whose locations are shown above.

3. You can remove the value of the virus by right-clicking on it and removing it.

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 files created by EnCiPhErEd(Xorist)

For Windows 8, 8.1 and 10.

For Windows XP, Vista, and 7.

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 navination box to fill up in case the PC is looking for the file and hasn’t found it yet.

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.

IMPORTANT!
Before starting “Step 4”, please boot back into Normal mode, in case you are currently in Safe Mode.
This will enable you to install and use SpyHunter 5 successfully.

Step 4: Scan for EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) with SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool

1. Click on the “Download” button to proceed to SpyHunter’s download page.

Download

Malware Removal Tool

It is recommended to run a scan before purchasing the full version of the software to make sure that the current version of the malware can be detected by SpyHunter. Click on the corresponding links to check SpyHunter’s EULA, Privacy Policy and Threat Assessment Criteria.

2. After you have installed SpyHunter, wait for it to update automatically.

3. After the update process has finished, click on the ‘Malware/PC Scan’ tab. A new window will appear. Click on ‘Start Scan’.

4. After SpyHunter has finished scanning your PC for any files of the associated threat and found them, you can try to get them removed automatically and permanently by clicking on the ‘Next’ button.

If any threats have been removed, it is highly recommended to restart your PC.

Step 5 (Optional): Try to Restore Files Encrypted by EnCiPhErEd(Xorist).

Ransomware infections and EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) aim to encrypt your files using an encryption algorithm which may be very difficult to decrypt. This is why we have suggested a data recovery method that may help you go around direct decryption and try to restore your files. Bear in mind that this method may not be 100% effective but may also help you a little or a lot in different situations.

1. Download the reccomended Data Recovery software by clicking on the link underneath:

Stellar Data Recovery Technician Version

2. On the download page, click on the “Download” button:

3. Click on “Save File” button:

4. Accept all agreements and click “Next”:

5. After all the “Next” steps, click on “Install” and then wait for the installation to complete:

6. Run the software. Click on the location to scan for missing or deleted files and click on “Scan”:

7. Wait for the scan to complete, it may take some time. Be advised that this scan is not 100% guaranteed to recover all files, but it does have some chance to get your data back:

For more “how-to” file recovery methods and steps, you can visit our instructive article on “How to Restore Files Encrypted by Ransomware (Without Decrypter)“.

Ventsislav Krastev

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OFFER

REMOVE IT NOW (PC)

with Spy Hunter

Preparation before removing EnCiPhErEd(Xorist).

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.

Step 1: Boot Your PC In Safe Mode to isolate and remove EnCiPhErEd(Xorist)

OFFER

Manual Removal Usually Takes Time and You Risk Damaging Your Files If Not Careful!

We Recommend To Scan Your PC with SpyHunter

1. Hold Windows key() + R

2. The “Run” Window will appear. In it, type “msconfig” and click OK.

3. Go to the “Boot” tab. There select “Safe Boot” and then click “Apply” and “OK”.

Tip: Make sure to reverse those changes by unticking Safe Boot after that, because your system will always boot in Safe Boot from now on.

4. When prompted, click on “Restart” to go into Safe Mode.

5. You can recognise Safe Mode by the words written on the corners of your screen.

Step 2: Clean any registries, created by EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) 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 EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) there. This can happen by following the steps underneath:

1. Open the Run Window again, type “regedit” and click OK.

2. When you open it, you can freely navigate to the Run and RunOnce keys, whose locations are shown above.

3. You can remove the value of the virus by right-clicking on it and removing it.

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 files created by EnCiPhErEd(Xorist)

For Windows 8, 8.1 and 10.

For Windows XP, Vista, and 7.

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.

N.B. We recommend to wait for the green loading bar in the navination box to fill up in case the PC is looking for the file and hasn’t found it yet.

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.

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.

Step 4: Scan for EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) with SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool

1. Click on the “Download” button to proceed to SpyHunter’s download page.

Download

Malware Removal Tool

2. After you have installed SpyHunter, wait for it to update automatically.

3. After the update process has finished, click on the ‘Malware/PC Scan’ tab. A new window will appear. Click on ‘Start Scan’.

If any threats have been removed, it is highly recommended to restart your PC.

Ventsislav Krastev

More Posts - Website

OFFER

REMOVE IT NOW (PC)

with Spy Hunter

Preparation before removing EnCiPhErEd(Xorist).

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.
Be patient as this could take a while.

Step 1: Uninstall EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) and related software from Windows

OFFER

Manual Removal Usually Takes Time and You Risk Damaging Your Files If Not Careful!

We Recommend To Scan Your PC with SpyHunter

Here is a method in few easy steps that should be able to uninstall most programs. No matter if you are using Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista or XP, those steps will get the job done. Dragging the program or its folder to the recycle bin can be a very bad decision. If you do that, bits and pieces of the program are left behind, and that can lead to unstable work of your PC, errors with the file type associations and other unpleasant activities. The proper way to get a program off your computer is to Uninstall it. To do that:

1. Hold the Windows Logo Button and “R” on your keyboard. A Pop-up window will appear.

2. In the field type in “appwiz.cpl” and press ENTER.

3. This will open a window with all the programs installed on the PC. Select the program that you want to remove, and press “Uninstall”

Follow the instructions above and you will successfully uninstall most programs.

Step 2: Clean your Browsers from EnCiPhErEd(Xorist).

Remove an extension from Mozilla Firefox

Remove an extension from Google Chrome

Remove an extension from Internet Explorer

Remove an extension from Microsoft Edge

1. Start Mozilla Firefox. Open the menu window

2. Select the “Add-ons” icon from the menu.

3. Select the unwanted extension and click “Remove“

4. After the extension is removed, restart Mozilla Firefox by closing it from the red “X” button at the top right corner and start it again.

1. Start Google Chrome and open the drop menu

2. Move the cursor over “Tools” and then from the extended menu choose “Extensions“

3. From the opened “Extensions” menu locate the unwanted extension and click on its “Remove” button.

4. After the extension is removed, restart Google Chrome by closing it from the red “X” button at the top right corner and start it again.

1. Start Internet Explorer:
2. Click on the gear icon labeled ‘Tools’ to open the drop menu and select ‘Manage Add-ons’

3. In the ‘Manage Add-ons’ window.

4. Select the extension you want to remove and then click ‘Disable’. A pop-up window will appear to inform you that you are about to disable the selected extension, and some more add-ons might be disabled as well. Leave all the boxes checked, and click ‘Disable’.

5. After the unwanted extension has been removed, restart Internet Explorer by closing it from the red ‘X’ button located at the top right corner and start it again.

1. Start Edge

2. Open the drop menu by clicking on the icon at the top right corner.

3. From the drop menu select “Extensions”.

4. Choose the suspected malicious extension you want to remove and then click on the gear icon.

5. Remove the malicious extension by scrolling down and then clicking on Uninstall.

Step 3: Clean any registries, created by EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) 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 EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) there. This can happen by following the steps underneath:

1. Open the Run Window again, type “regedit” and click OK.

2. When you open it, you can freely navigate to the Run and RunOnce keys, whose locations are shown above.

3. You can remove the value of the virus by right-clicking on it and removing it.

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 4: Scan for EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) with SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool

1. Click on the “Download” button to proceed to SpyHunter’s download page.

Download

Malware Removal Tool

2. After you have installed SpyHunter, wait for it to update automatically.

3. After the update process has finished, click on the ‘Malware/PC Scan’ tab. A new window will appear. Click on ‘Start Scan’.

If any threats have been removed, it is highly recommended to restart your PC.

Ventsislav Krastev

More Posts - Website

OFFER

REMOVE IT NOW (MAC)

with Combo Cleaner

EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) may remain persistent on your system and may re-infect it. We recommend you to download Combo Cleaner and run free scan to remove all virus files on your Mac. This saves you hours of time and effort compared to doing the removal yourself.

Combo Cleaner’s scanner is free but the paid version is needed to remove the malware threats. Read Combo Cleaner’s EULA and Privacy Policy

Preparation Phase:

Before starting to follow the steps below, be advised that you should first do the following preparations:

Backup your files in case the worst happens.
Make sure to have a device with these instructions on standy.
Arm yourself with patience.

Step 1: Uninstall EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) and remove related files and objects

OFFER

Manual Removal Usually Takes Time and You Risk Damaging Your Files If Not Careful!

We Recommend To Scan Your Mac with Combo Cleaner

Keep in mind, that Combo Cleaner needs to purchased to remove the malware threats. Click on the corresponding links to check Combo Cleaner’s EULA and Privacy Policy

1. Hit the ⇧+⌘+U keys to open Utilities. Another way is to click on “Go” and then click “Utilities”, like the image below shows:

2. Find Activity Monitor and double-click it:

3. In the Activity Monitor look for any suspicious processes, belonging or related to EnCiPhErEd(Xorist):

Tip: To quit a process completely, choose the “Force Quit” option.

4. Click on the “Go” button again, but this time select Applications. Another way is with the ⇧+⌘+A buttons.

5. In the Applications menu, look for any suspicious app or an app with a name, similar or identical to EnCiPhErEd(Xorist). If you find it, right-click on the app and select “Move to Trash”.

6. Select Accounts, after which click on the Login Items preference. Your Mac will then show you a list of items that start automatically when you log in. Look for any suspicious apps identical or similar to EnCiPhErEd(Xorist). Check the app you want to stop from running automatically and then select on the Minus (“–“) icon to hide it.

7. Remove any left-over files that might be related to this threat manually by following the sub-steps below:

Go to Finder.
In the search bar type the name of the app that you want to remove.
Above the search bar change the two drop down menus to “System Files” and “Are Included” so that you can see all of the files associated with the application you want to remove. Bear in mind that some of the files may not be related to the app so be very careful which files you delete.
If all of the files are related, hold the ⌘+A buttons to select them and then drive them to “Trash”.

Step 2: Remove EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) – related extensions from your Mac’s browsers

Remove a toolbar from Mozilla Firefox

Remove a toolbar from Google Chrome

Remove an extension from Safari and reset it.

1. Start Mozilla Firefox. Open the menu window

2. Select the “Add-ons” icon from the menu.

3. Select the Extension and click “Remove“

4. After the extension is removed, restart Mozilla Firefox by closing it from the red “X” in the top right corner and start it again.

1. Start Google Chrome and open the drop menu

2. Move the cursor over “Tools” and then from the extended menu choose “Extensions“

3. From the opened “Extensions” menu locate the add-on and click on the garbage bin icon on the right of it.

4. After the extension is removed, restart Google Chrome by closing it from the red “X” in the top right corner and start it again.

1. Start Safari

2. After hovering your mouse cursor to the top of the screen, click on the Safari text to open its drop down menu.

3. From the menu, click on “Preferences“

4. After that, select the ‘Extensions’ Tab

5. Click once on the extension you want to remove.

6. Click ‘Uninstall’

A pop-up window will appear asking for confirmation to uninstall the extension. Select ‘Uninstall’ again, and the EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) will be removed.

How to Reset Safari
IMPORTANT: Before resetting Safari make sure you back up all your saved passwords within the browser in case you forget them.

Start Safari and then click on the gear leaver icon.

Click the Reset Safari button and you will reset the browser.

Step 3: Scan for and remove EnCiPhErEd(Xorist) files from your Mac

When you are facing problems on your Mac as a result of unwanted scripts and programs such as EnCiPhErEd(Xorist), the recommended way of eliminating the threat is by using an anti-malware program. Combo Cleaner offers advanced security features along with other modules that will improve your Mac’s security and protect it in the future.

Download

Combo Cleaner