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.
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.
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.
Note! Your computer might be affected by Creeper and other threats.
Threats such as Creeper 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
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.
This article has been created in order to help you by explaining how to remove Creeper Virus virus from your computer system and how to restore .creeper encrypted files.
The Creeper virus is a new malware threat that has just been discovered by the security community. The analysis reveals that it is not part of any of the popular malware families and follows the typical ransomware behavior patterns. It targets the commonly used user data using the built-in cipher. The processed data is renamed with the .creeper extension.
Threat Summary
Name
Creeper
Type
Ransomware, Cryptovirus
Short Description
The main goal of the Creeper Virus is to encrypt sensitive user files and extort the victims for a ransom fee payment.
Symptoms
The Creeper Virus component processes target files and renames them with the .creeper extension.
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.
Creeper Virus – Infection Process
The Creeper virus is distributed using the most popular delivery tactics. The hacker controllers can make use of email messages that utilize social engineering tactics. There are two main types that are considered by the criminals:
Hyperlinks — These email messages contain links to malware-hosted instances on hacker-controlled sites. The victims are sent links that look like items of interest.
File Attachments — The hackers can also attempt to use another social engineering strategy by sending out malware files that are disguised as files of interest.
The social engineering tactics can use two additional approaches. The first one is the inclusion of the malware code in documents. They can be of different types (rich text documents, spreadsheets and presentations) and they usually pose as invoices, letters, contracts and etc. Once they are opened by the victims a notification prompt will be spawned. It asks them users to enable the built-in macros. If this is done the virus infection follows.
The other tactic relies on the distribution of malware software installers. They are essentially modified setup files taken from the legitimate sites which are modified to include the dangerous code.
Another strategy relies on browser hijackers that represent malware browser plugins. They are usually made compatible with the most popular applications: Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, Safari and Opera. Once they are downloaded to the victim’s computer the virus infection is started.
Creeper Virus – Analysis and Activity
The Creeper virus is a dangerous new malware that has been discovered by the security experts. At the moment no correlation with any of the famous malware families has been identified, this means that it is very likely that the threat is produced by the hacker or criminal collective behind it. It is possible that the samples may have been purchased from the hacker underground forums as well.The full security analysis is not yet complete and at the moment the full array of possible malware interactions is not known. We suspect that the virus and any of its future iterations may perform a dangerous array of hacker modifications.
The infection may begin with an information gathering that can harvest sensitive information from the compromised systems. Usually the data is classified into two main groups — anonymous data that usually consists of information related to the operating system configuration settings and the hardware components. The personal data gathered can directly expose the victim’s identity by looking out for strings related to their names, addresses, interests, location, email adresses, passwords and account credentials.
The next step would be to use the gathered information in order to scan the system for any installed instances that can interfere with its execution. This includes anti-virus products, sandbox and debugging environments and virtual machine hosts. The threat can bypass or entirely remove their real-time engines to protect itself. If it finds that it is unable to do so it can remove itself to remove infection.
System modifications that can impact the system include the modification of the Windows registry. Such changes can lead to severe performance issues and can impact the correct execution of certain applications and system services. The criminals can also opt to modify the boot options by removing the ability to access the recovery menu. This prevents the victims from using it to remove the persistent threat.
Advanced forms of ransomware like this one are also capable of removing the shadow volume copies of the discovered data – this makes it very difficult for the users to recover it. Further damage can be caused if the threat interacts with the Windows volume manager — this would allow it to impact any connected removable storage devices and network shares as well.
If a network connection is made to the hacker-controlled servers it can be used to overtake control of the affected machines, as well as deliver additional threats.
Creeper Virus — Encryption Process
As soon as the Creeper virus has finished the execution of the prior components it starts the ransomware engine. It uses a list of built-in extensions that usually target the most popular types of data:
Archives
Backups
Images
Videos
Music
Documents
Databases
As a result all affected data is renamed with the .creeper extension. A ransomware note is produced in a file called DECRIPT_MY_FILES.txt which has the following contents:
Decrypting your files is easy. Take a deep breath and follow the steps below. 1 ) Make the proper payment. Payments are made in Monero. This is a crypto-currency, like bitcoin. You can buy Monero, and send it, from the same places you can any other crypto-currency. If you’re still unsure, google ‘monero exchange’. Sign up at one of these exchange sites and send the payment to the address below. Payment Address (Monero Wallet): 46WDbj1YCQrCfAGW37AJi3Ljr86waWBP1GwoRCeAGcR49xtNvRWpVyXQsqWDxW4qaQ5SxnDB4VnJZRhNaYHuvkAdVaeLeMM 2 ) Farther you should send the following code: *** to email address [email protected] Then you will receive all necessary key. Prices : Days : Monero : Offer Expires 0-2 : 3 : 03/01/18 3-5 : 5 : 03/04/18 Note: In 6 days your password decryption key gets permanently deleted. You then have no way to ever retrieve your files. So pay now.
How to Remove Creeper Virus and Restore .creeper Encrypted Files
In order to make sure that this malware is permanently gone from your computer, you should follow the manual or automatic removal instructions down below. If you have the experience in removing ransomware manually, we advise you to focus on the first 2 steps from the manual removal and to look for the registry files which we have explained in the analysis part above. Otherwise, if you want a more automatic and faster solution and lack the expertise in malware removal, we urge you to download an advanced anti-malware program, which aims to automatically perform the removal operation of Creeper ransomware and secures your computer against future infections in real-time.
If you want to restore files that have been encrypted by this ransomware infection, we advise you to try out the alternative tools for file recovery down below in step “2. Restore files encrypted by .creeper Files Virus”. They may not guarantee fully that you will recover all of the files, but if you haven’t reinstalled your OS already, there is a good chance that you might just restore them.
Note! Your computer system may be affected by Creeper 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 Creeper. 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 Creeper follow these steps:
1. Boot Your PC In Safe Mode to isolate and remove Creeper 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 Creeper on your PC
Find files created by Creeper
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 Creeper with SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool and back up your data
1. Install SpyHunter to scan for Creeper and remove them.2. Scan with SpyHunter, Detect and Remove Creeper. 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 Creeper
Try to Restore Files Encrypted by Creeper
Ransomware infections and Creeper 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:
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.
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.
This article has been created in order to help you by explaining how to remove Creeper Virus virus from your computer system and how to restore 
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 Creeper and remove them.
Back up your data to secure it from malware in the future.
