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.
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.
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.
Note! Your computer might be affected by .fmoon Virus and other threats.
Threats such as .fmoon Virus may be persistent on your system. They tend to re-appear if not fully deleted. A malware removal tool like SpyHunter will help you to remove malicious programs, saving you the time and the struggle of tracking down numerous malicious files. SpyHunter’s scanner is free but the paid version is needed to remove the malware threats. Read SpyHunter’s EULA and Privacy Policy
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.
This article aims to help you remove the MOON DECRYPTOR ransomware virus from your computer and restore files that have been encrypted with the .fmoon file extension added.
A new ransomware virus, calling itself MOON or MOON DECRYPTOR has been detected by malware researchers to encrypt files on computers it infects, adding the .fmoon file extension. The virus aims to use the AES and RSA ciphers in order to generate unique decryption keys stored in a decrypter for which the user must pay a hefty ransom to receive. If you are one of the victims of MOON DECRYPTOR ransomware, we strongly advise you to read this article and learn how to remove it and get your files back without having to pay anything.
Threat Summary
Name
.fmoon Virus
Type
Ransomware, Cryptovirus
Short Description
Virus from the file encryption kind. Renders your files temporarily useless until you pay a hefty ransom fee to get them back.
Symptoms
The files are no longer openable with an added .fmoon file extension to them. A “decryptor” pops up with instructions how to pay a ransom fee to get the files back.
Distribution Method
Spam Emails, Email Attachments, Executable files
Detection Tool
See If Your System Has Been Affected by .fmoon Virus
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.
How Does MOON DECRYPTOR Spread
In order for this ransomware virus to infect unsuspecting users, the cyber-crooks may trick them into opening an infection file or a web link. Such objects may be spread into multiple different methods, the most often used of which is to infect computers via e-mail spam. Such infection process is usually conducted with the classic social engineering technique – deceiving potential victims that they have received an important file, like an invoice, letter of confirmation, bank account statement, hijacked account report or other type of important file. The messages accompanying the file are also deceptive, for example:
Besides via e-mail, this ransomware virus may also be spread via multiple different methods, for instance if it has been uploaded online as a fake setup of software, game patch, crack or any other seemingly legitimate type of program.
MOON DECRYPTOR – Analysis
Once this virus has been activated on your computer system, it may immediately drop it’s malicious files on the user’s computer. As soon as it drops those virus, the ransomware may immediately focus on modifying your computer system, more particularly insert processes in Windows Task Manager, the usage of which may result in MOON DECRYPTOR to obtaind administrative permissions on your computer. The virus may also modify the Windows Registry Editor of the infected computer, more specifically attack the Run and RunOnce registry keys:
In addition to this, MOON DECRYPTOR ransomware may also delete your shadow volume copy backed up files, by using a batch file which it executes without your knowledge. The commands it may insert in the background are the following:
In addition to this, the virus also sets a ransom note, named MOON DECRYPTOR which appears like the following:
Image Source: id-ransomware.blogspot.bg
Text from the image:
MOON DECRYPTOR WHAT HAPPENED ??? Oops all your data are encrypted !! This is a ransomware AES 256 + RS A 1024!! Look at Wikipedia for morę informations Please pay before 20 minutes oryour datalll be lost forever. I’ll delete a file per minutę after! Copy and past this link in Internet Explorer or Firefox : http://10.10.3.1/panel/decipher.php and enter your informations : Your UUID : Encrypted key iBtSvjYAVWaJslcc4Hn/nMIMrg+bUgA0W4g*** If you obtain your passord, take it here and click on RECOVER button {RECOVER}
MOON DECRYPTOR – Encryption Process
For the file encryption, MOON ENCRYPTOR uses a strong combination of the following encryption algorithms:
AES (Advanced Encryption Standard).
RSA (Rivest-Shamir-Adleman).
The AES cipher is used by this virus to encrypt the data in the files themselves. But no all the data of the files is encrypted, only blocks of it. The AES cipher generates decryption keys which are in turn encrypted with the RSA cipher, generating unique private and public keys, that are required for the decryption of the files.
The MOON DECRYPTOR virus targets primarily important files on your computer, such as documents, videos, audio files and other types of files. The file extensions targeted may be most of the following:
To the files locked by MOON DECRYPTOR, the file extenson .fmoon is added, making them appear like the example below:
→ New Text Document.txt.fmoon
Remove MOON Ransomware and Restore .fmoon Encrypted Files
In order to remove this ransomware from your computer, we strongly suggest that you focus on backing your files beforehand. After doing so, you can go ahead and follow the instructions for the removal below. They are divided in manual and automatic and for maximum effectiveness, security experts always recommend removing viruses, like MOON automatically using the specific removal software for this purpose.
If you want to restore your files, in the event that they have been encrypted by MOON DECRYPTOR virus, you can go ahead and follow the alternative file recovery methods below in step “2. Restore files encrypted by .fmoon Virus.” They are specifically designed to help you recover as many files as possible without having to pay any form of ransom.
Note! Your computer system may be affected by .fmoon Virus and other threats. Scan Your PC with SpyHunter SpyHunter is a powerful malware removal tool designed to help users with in-depth system security analysis, detection and removal of threats such as .fmoon Virus. 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.
To remove .fmoon Virus follow these steps:
1. Boot Your PC In Safe Mode to isolate and remove .fmoon Virus files and objects
OFFER
Manual Removal Usually Takes Time and You Risk Damaging Your Files If Not Careful!
We Recommend To Scan Your PC with SpyHunter
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
Boot Your PC Into Safe Mode
1. For Windows XP, Vista and 7. 2. For Windows 8, 8.1 and 10. Fix registry entries created by malware and PUPs on your PC.
For Windows XP, Vista and 7 systems:
1. Remove all CDs and DVDs, and then Restart your PC from the “Start” menu. 2. Select one of the two options provided below:
– For PCs with a single operating system: Press “F8” repeatedly after the first boot screen shows up during the restart of your computer. In case the Windows logo appears on the screen, you have to repeat the same task again.
– For PCs with multiple operating systems: Тhe arrow keys will help you select the operating system you prefer to start in Safe Mode. Press “F8” just as described for a single operating system.
3. As the “Advanced Boot Options” screen appears, select the Safe Mode option you want using the arrow keys. As you make your selection, press “Enter“.
4. Log on to your computer using your administrator account
While your computer is in Safe Mode, the words “Safe Mode” will appear in all four corners of your screen.
Step 1: Open up the Start Menu.
Step 2: Click on the Power button (for Windows 8 it is the little arrow next to the “Shut Down” button) and whilst holding down “Shift” click on Restart.
Step 3: After reboot, a blue menu with options will appear. From them you should choose Troubleshoot.
Step 4: You will see the Troubleshoot menu. From this menu choose Advanced Options.
Step 5: After the Advanced Options menu appears, click on Startup Settings.
Step 6: From the Startup Settings menu, click on Restart.
Step 7: A menu will appear upon reboot. You can choose any of the three Safe Mode options by pressing its corresponding number and the machine will restart.
Some malicious scripts may modify the registry entries on your computer to change different settings. This is why cleaning your Windows Registry Database is recommended. Since the tutorial on how to do this is a bit long and tampering with registries could damage your computer if not done properly you should refer and follow our instructive article about fixing registry entries, especially if you are unexperienced in that area.
2. Find files created by .fmoon Virus on your PC
Find files created by .fmoon Virus
1. For Windows 8, 8.1 and 10. 2. For Windows XP, Vista, and 7.
For Newer Windows Operating Systems
Step 1:
On your keyboard press + R and write explorer.exe in the Run text box and then click on the Ok button.
Step 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.
Step 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:
Step 1:
Click on the Start Menu icon (usually on your bottom-left) and then choose the Search preference.
Step 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.
Step 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.
Use SpyHunter to scan for malware and unwanted programs
3. Scan for malware and unwanted programs with SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool
Scan your PC and Remove .fmoon Virus with SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool and back up your data
1. Install SpyHunter to scan for .fmoon Virus and remove them.2. Scan with SpyHunter, Detect and Remove .fmoon Virus. Back up your data to secure it from malware in the future.
Step 1: Click on the “Download” button to proceed to SpyHunter’s download page.
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.
Step 2: Guide yourself by the download instructions provided for each browser.
Step 3: After you have installed SpyHunter, wait for it to update automatically.
Step 1: After the update process has finished, click on the ‘Malware/PC Scan’ tab. A new window will appear. Click on ‘Start Scan’.
Step 2: 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.
Step 3: If any threats have been removed, it is highly recommended to restart your PC.
Back up your data to secure it against attacks in the future
IMPORTANT! Before reading the Windows backup instructions, we highly recommend to back up your data with a cloud backup solution and insure your files against any type of loss, even from the most severe threats. We recommend you to read more about it and to download SOS Online Backup.
4. Try to Restore files encrypted by .fmoon Virus
Try to Restore Files Encrypted by .fmoon Virus
Ransomware infections and .fmoon Virus aim to encrypt your files using an encryption algorithm which may be very difficult to decrypt. This is why we have suggested several alternative methods that may help you go around direct decryption and try to restore your files. Bear in mind that these methods may not be 100% effective but may also help you a little or a lot in different situations.
Method 1: Scanning your drive’s sectors by using Data Recovery software. Another method for restoring your files is by trying to bring back your files via data recovery software. Here are some suggestions for preferred data recovery software solutions:
Method 2: Trying Kaspersky and EmsiSoft’s decryptors. If the first method does not work, we suggest trying to use decryptors for other ransomware viruses, in case your virus is a variant of them. The two primary developers of decryptors are Kaspersky and EmsiSoft, links to which we have provided below:
To restore your data in case you have backup set up, it is important to check for Volume Shadow Copies, if ransomware has not deleted them, in Windows using the below software:
Method 4: Finding the decryption key while the cryptovirus sends it over a network via a sniffing tool.
Another way to decrypt the files is by using a Network Sniffer to get the encryption key, while files are encrypted on your system. A Network Sniffer is a program and/or device monitoring data traveling over a network, such as its internet traffic and internet packets. If you have a sniffer set before the attack happened you might get information about the decryption key. See how-to instructions below:
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.
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.
This article aims to help you remove the MOON DECRYPTOR ransomware virus from your computer and restore files that have been encrypted with the .fmoon file extension added.
Image Source: id-ransomware.blogspot.bg
1. For Windows XP, Vista and 7.
2. For Windows 8, 8.1 and 10.
Fix registry entries created by malware and PUPs on your PC.
1. Install SpyHunter to scan for .fmoon Virus and remove them.
Back up your data to secure it from malware in the future.
