This article aims to help you by explaining what is .happyness files virus and how to remove Happyness ransomware completely from your computer system.
A new ransomware infection has been detected out in the wild, going by the wrongly-spelled extension name .happyness. The ransomware infection aims to infect the computers of victims and encrypt the files on them with the help of a combination of AES and RSA encryption algorithms. After doing so, the ransomware virus drops a ransom note file on the infected computers’ desktop, called
HOW_TO_RECOVER_ENCRYPTED_FILES.txt which provides instructions on how to pay a hefty ransom fee in Bitcoin in order to restore files that have been encrypted by this ransomware virus. In the event that your computer has been infected by the .happyness files virus, we advise that you read the following article in order to learn how to remove it from your computer and how to restore files, encrypted with it’s extension added.
Threat Summary
| Name | .happyness Files Virus |
| Type | Ransomware, Cryptovirus |
| Short Description | Aims to encrypt the files on the compromised computer system in order to hold them hostage until the victim pays a hefty ransom fee. |
| Symptoms | Files are encrypted with the file extension .happyness added to them and the ransom note HOW_TO_RECOVER_ENCRYPTED_FILES.txt is dropped on the victim’s PC. |
| Distribution Method | Spam Emails, Email Attachments, Executable files |
| Detection Tool |
See If Your System Has Been Affected by malware
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Malware Removal Tool
|
User Experience | Join Our Forum to Discuss .happyness Files Virus. |
| 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. |
.happyness Files Virus – How Does It Infect
The primary method of infection which is used by this ransomware is via spammed e-mail messages which propagate through various different types of methods, including the usage of web links which are masked as fake buttons, like the example fake PayPal image below displays:
When the user is tricked and clicks on the button, a malicious script is activated which may automatically download and run a malicious file on the victim’s computer that triggers the infection. The same method goes if a malicious file has been uploaded as an e-mail attachment, since most malicious files contain JavaScript.
In addition to this, the .happyness ransomware may also be uploaded as a malicious file online, pretending to be a legitimate:
- Setup of a program or game.
- Setup of a system driver.
- Key generator, patch or software license activator.
.happyness Ransomware – How Does It Work
Happyness ransomware is the type of malware which aims to perform various different types of activities such as download it’s payload after infection, which consists of the malicious executable file plus the ransomware’s ransom note. The malicious file of the .happyness files virus has been reported to be dropped in one of the system folders of Windows:
- %AppData%
- %Windows%
- %Local%
- %LocalLow%
- %Roaming%
- %Temp%
After the malicious files of the ransomware infection have been dropped on the victim’s computer, the malware may also drop it’s ransom note file and set it so that the victim can see it, for example, create copies on the desktop of the infected computer. The ransom note, is called HOW_TO_RECOVER_ENCRYPTED_FILES.txt and has the following message, as reported by researcher Michael Gillespie(https://pastebin.com/ZRpvRjsg):
YOUR FILES ARE ENCRYPTED!
Your personal ID
{All your files have been encrypted due to a security problem with your PC.
To restore all your files, you need a decryption.
If you want to restore them, write us to the e-mail
happyness@keemail.me.In a letter to send Your personal ID (see In the beginning of this document).
You have to pay for decryption in Bitcoins.
The price depends on how fast you write to us.
After payment we will send you the decryption tool that will decrypt all your files.
In the letter, you will receive instructions to decrypt your files!In a response letter you will receive the address of Bitcoin-wallet, which is necessary to perform the transfer of funds.
HURRY! Your personal code for decryption stored with us only 72 HOURS!Our tech support is available 24 \ 7
Do not delete: Your personal ID
Write on e-mail, we will help you!Free decryption as guarantee
Before paying you can send to us up to 1 files for free decryption.
Please note that files must NOT contain valuable information and their total size must be less than 5Mb.
When the transfer is confirmed, you will receive interpreter files to your computer.
After start-interpreter program, all your files will be restored.Attention!
Do not rename encrypted files.
Do not try to decrypt your data using third party software, it may cause permanent data loss.
Decryption of your files with the help of third parties may cause increased price (they add their fee to our) or you can become a victim of a scam.
Do not attempt to remove the program or run the anti-virus tools
Attempts to self-decrypting files will result in the loss of your data
Decoders are not compatible with other users of your data, because each user’s unique encryption key
The .happyness files virus has been reported to be a variant of the Matroska ransomware family, which released a variant back in July 2017 and just like it, the ransomware may execute the following commands in Windows Command Prompt:
→ process call create “cmd.exe /c vssadmin.exe delete shadows /all /quiet & bcdedit.exe /set {default} recoveryenabled no & bcdedit.exe /set {default} bootstatuspolicy ignoreallfailures”
After this has been done the .happyness ransowmare may also perform various other activities, such as set automatic running of it’s malicious file on Windows boot by modifying the following Windows Registry sub-keys:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
.happyness Ransomware – Encryption Process
In order to encrypt the files on the computers of victims, the .happyness files virus may use a combination of two main encryption algorithms – AES and RSA encryption. The AES cipher may be used in a variety of different methods, but researchers have reported the first 65 bytes of the files to be used and the first 300 bytes of the files are also encrypted via the RSA-4096 cipher, after which a unique decryption AES key is generated in the process of encrypting the resto of the targeted files. At the moment there is no direct decryption for this combination and this virus, and this is why most ransomware viruses use it. Furthermore, the .happyness ransomware also makes it so that only important files from the infected computers are encrypted, such as:
- Documents.
- Videos.
- Images.
- Audio files.
- Other types of files.
After the encryption process has been done, the malware aims to set the .happyness file extension to the encrypted files, making them appear like the following:
Remove .happyness Ransomware and Restore Encrypted Files
In order to fully erase all traces of this ransomware infection, we advise you to follow the removal instructions down below. They are divided in manual and automatic removal instructions, so that they are appropriate based on your malware removal experience. In case you lack the experience in malware removal, experts recommend to download an advanced anti-malware software. It will make sure to scan automatically for all the malicious files and objects on your computer and secure your computer against future infections as well.
In order to try and restore files, encrypted by this ransomware virus, recommendations are to follow the alternative methods for file recovery down below in step “2. Restore files encrypted by .happyness Files Virus”. They are in no way fully effective against ransomware threats, but may help you to restore as many encrypted files as possible.
Ventsislav Krastev
Ventsislav is a cybersecurity expert at SensorsTechForum since 2015. He has been researching, covering, helping victims with the latest malware infections plus testing and reviewing software and the newest tech developments. Having graduated Marketing as well, Ventsislav also has passion for learning new shifts and innovations in cybersecurity that become game changers. After studying Value Chain Management, Network Administration and Computer Administration of System Applications, he found his true calling within the cybersecrurity industry and is a strong believer in the education of every user towards online safety and security.
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Attention! SensorsTechForum strongly recommends that all malware victims should look for assistance only by reputable sources. Many guides out there claim to offer free recovery and decryption for files encrypted by ransomware viruses. Be advised that some of them may only be after your money.
As a site that has been dedicated to providing free removal instructions for ransomware and malware since 2014, SensorsTechForum’s recommendation is to only pay attention to trustworthy sources.
How to recognize trustworthy sources:
- Always check "About Us" web page.
- Profile of the content creator.
- Make sure that real people are behind the site and not fake names and profiles.
- Verify Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter personal profiles.
About the .happyness Files Virus Research
The content we publish on SensorsTechForum.com, this .happyness Files Virus how-to removal guide included, is the outcome of extensive research, hard work and our team’s devotion to help you remove the specific malware and restore your encrypted files.
How did we conduct the research on this ransomware?
Our research is based on an independent investigation. We are in contact with independent security researchers, and as such, we receive daily updates on the latest malware and ransomware definitions.
Furthermore, the research behind the .happyness Files Virus ransomware threat is backed with VirusTotal and the NoMoreRansom project.
To better understand the ransomware threat, please refer to the following articles which provide knowledgeable details.
References
1. How to Recognize Spam Emails with Ransomware
2. How Does Ransomware Encryption Work?
3. How to Decrypt Ransomware Files
4. Ransomware Getting Greedier and Bigger, Attacks Increase by 40%
5. 1 in 5 Americans Victim of Ransomware
- Guide 1: How to Remove .happyness Files Virus from Windows.
- Guide 2: Get rid of .happyness Files Virus from Mac OS X.
How to Remove .happyness Files Virus from Windows.
Step 1: Boot Your PC In Safe Mode to isolate and remove .happyness Files Virus
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".
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: Uninstall .happyness Files Virus and related software from Windows
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 3: Clean any registries, created by .happyness Files Virus 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 .happyness Files Virus 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.
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 .happyness Files Virus with SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool
1. Click on the "Download" button to proceed to SpyHunter's download page.
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.
Video Guide for Automatic and Fast Removal
Step 5 (Optional): Try to Restore Files Encrypted by .happyness Files Virus.
Ransomware infections and .happyness Files Virus 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 recommended Data Recovery software by clicking on the link underneath:
Simply click on the link and on the website menus on the top, choose Data Recovery - Data Recovery Wizard for Windows or Mac (depending on your OS), and then download and run the tool.
Step 6: How to Restore Files Encrypted by Ransomware (Video Guide)
Get rid of .happyness Files Virus from Mac OS X.
Step 1: Uninstall .happyness Files Virus and remove related files and objects
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 .happyness Files Virus:
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 .happyness Files Virus. 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 .happyness Files Virus. 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”.
In case you cannot remove .happyness Files Virus via Step 1 above:
In case you cannot find the virus files and objects in your Applications or other places we have shown above, you can manually look for them in the Libraries of your Mac. But before doing this, please read the disclaimer below:
1: Click on "Go" and Then "Go to Folder" as shown underneath:
2: Type in "/Library/LauchAgents/" and click Ok:
3: Delete all of the virus files that have similar or the same name as .happyness Files Virus. If you believe there is no such file, do not delete anything.
You can repeat the same procedure with the following other Library directories:
→ ~/Library/LaunchAgents
/Library/LaunchDaemons
Tip: ~ is there on purpose, because it leads to more LaunchAgents.
Step 3 (Optional): Try to Restore Files Encrypted by .happyness Files Virus.
Ransomware infections and .happyness Files Virus 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 recommended Data Recovery software by clicking on the link underneath:
Simply click on the link and on the website menus on top, choose Data Recovery - Data Recovery Wizard for Windows or Mac (depending on your OS), and then download and run the tool.
.happyness Files Virus FAQ
What is .happyness Files Virus ransomware and how does it work?
.happyness Files Virus is a ransomware infection - the malicious software that enters your computer silently and blocks either access to the computer itself or encrypt your files.
Many ransomware viruses use sophisticated encryption algorithm how to make your files inaccessible. The goal of ransomware infections is to demand that you pay a ransom payment to get access to your files back.
How does .happyness Files Virus ransomware infect my computer?
Via several ways..happyness Files Virus Ransomware infects computers by being sent via phishing e-mails, containing virus attachment.
This attachment is usually masked as an important document, like an invoice, bank document or even a plane ticket and it looks very convincing to users.
After you download and execute this attachment, a drive-by download occurs and your computer is infected with the ransomware virus.
Another way, you may become a victim of .happyness Files Virus is if you download a fake installer, crack or patch from a low reputation website or if you click on a virus link. Many users report getting a ransomware infection by downloading torrents.
How to open ..happyness Files Virus files?
You can't. At this point the ..happyness Files Virus files are encrypted. You can only open them once they are decrypted.
Decryptor did not decrypt my data. What now?
Do not panic and backup the files. If a decryptor did not decrypt your ..happyness Files Virus files successfully, then do not despair, because this virus is still new.
One way to restore files, encrypted by .happyness Files Virus ransomware is to use a decryptor for it. But since it's a new virus, advised that the decryption keys for it may not be out yet and available to the public. We will update this article and keep you posted as soon as this decryptor is released.
How Do I restore "..happyness Files Virus" files (Other Methods)?
Yes, sometimes files can be restored. We have suggested several file recovery methods that could work if you want to restore ..happyness Files Virus files.
These methods are in no way 100% guarantee that you will be able to get your files back. But if you have a backup, your chances of success are much greater.
How do I get rid of .happyness Files Virus ransomware virus?
The safest way and the most efficient one for the removal of this ransomware infection is the use a professional anti malware software. It will scan for and locate .happyness Files Virus ransomware and then remove it without causing any additional harm to your important ..happyness Files Virus files.
Also, keep in mind that viruses like .happyness Files Virus ransomware also install Trojans and keyloggers that can steal your passwords and accounts. Scanning your computer with an anti-malware software will make sure that all of these virus components are removed and your computer is protected in the future.
What to Do If nothing works?
There is still a lot you can do. If none of the above methods seem to work for you, then try these methods:
- Try to find a safe computer from where you can can login on your own line accounts like One Drive, iDrive, Google Drive and so on.
- Try to contact your friends, relatives and other people so that they can check if they have some of your important photos or documents just in case you sent them.
- Also, check if some of the files that were encrypted it can be re-downloaded from the web.
- Another clever way to get back some of your files is to find another old computer, a flash drive or even a CD or a DVD where you may have saved your older documents. You might be surprised what will turn up.
- You can also go to your email account to check if you can send any attachments to other people. Usually what is sent the email is saved on your account and you can re-download it. But most importantly, make sure that this is done from a safe computer and make sure to remove the virus first.
More tips you can find on our forums, where you can also asks any questions about your ransomware problem.
How to Report Ransomware to Authorities?
In case your computer got infected with a ransomware infection, you can report it to the local Police departments. It can help authorities worldwide track and determine the perpetrators behind the virus that has infected your computer. Below, we have prepared a list with government websites, where you can file a report in case you are a victim of a cybercrime:
Cyber-security authorities, responsible for handling ransomware attack reports in different regions all over the world:
- Germany - Offizielles Portal der deutschen Polizei
- United States - IC3 Internet Crime Complaint Centre
- United Kingdom - Action Fraud Police
- France - Ministère de l'Intérieur
- Italy - Polizia Di Stato
- Spain - Policía Nacional
- Netherlands - Politie
- Poland - Policja
- Portugal - Polícia Judiciária
- Greece - Cyber Crime Unit (Hellenic Police)
- India - Mumbai Police - CyberCrime Investigation Cell
- Australia - Australian High Tech Crime Center
Reports may be responded to in different timeframes, depending on your local authorities.
