Crypton ransomware is the newest bilingual cryptovirus that has been found. Malware researchers from the MalwareHunterTeam have made the discovery. The payload of the virus tries to trick users that it is WinRar. The virus will encrypt your files and place “_crypt” as the ending of their name. A ransom message appears after that, and depending on the language you prefer to use on your system, the note will be written either in Russian or English. To see how to remove this ransomware and how you can try to restore your data, read the full article.

Threat Summary

Name	Crypton
Type	Ransomware, Cryptovirus
Short Description	The ransomware will encrypt your files and then display a ransom note with instructions for payment either in the English or Russian language.
Symptoms	The ransomware will encrypt your files and place _crypt to the back of their names.
Distribution Method	Spam Emails, Email Attachments, Executables
Detection Tool	See If Your System Has Been Affected by Crypton Download Malware Removal Tool
User Experience	Join Our Forum to Discuss Crypton.
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.

Crypton Ransomware – Infection

Crypton ransomware can spread its infection in multiple ways. The most common of those ways is with a payload file disguised as a WinRar installer setup. If you download that file and load it, the malicious script will get executed and will infect your computer. You can see the analysis of VirusTotal of the executable file containing the payload, from the picture below:

Crypton ransomware might be spreading its payload file around social media networks and file-sharing services. WinRar could be just one of many other legitimate applications that can contain the malicious payload script. A lot of freeware and bundled apps could be promoted as useful but hide the entry point for the ransomware. Do not open files from dubious sources like emails and links, especially not right after you download them. First, you should do a scan with a security tool and check their size and signatures for anything suspicious. Read the tips for ransomware prevention in the forum section.

Crypton Ransomware – Technical Analysis

The Crypton ransomware is also a cryptovirus. Malware researchers from the MalwareHunterTeam have discovered it in the wild.

After your files get encrypted, they will receive _crypt appended to the back of their names, before their extension. Crypton ransomware might create entries in the Windows Registry to achieve persistence. Those registry entries are designed to make the virus launch automatically with each boot of the Windows Operating System.

After your files are encrypted, a ransom note will pop up on your desktop screen. That note contains the instructions and demands of the cybercriminals for unlocking your files. A short ransom message is also being included in a readme_encryption.txt file.

You can see the ransom note in English below:

Image Source: MalwareHunterTeam

That ransom note reads the following:

Attention!
All data on you PC is encrypted!
To decrypt your data, you need to pay the amounts shown below.
Please note that the payment confirmation may take some time (from 1 hour to 1 day).
All this time, the program must be running and have an internet connection.
After the successful confirmation of payment – decoding will start automatically.
Read more about how to make a payment using Bitcoin can be found on the internet network.
In destination address – specify the Bitcoin address, listed below.
Keep in mind that the services may charge a fee for the payment, it is important that we must …
It is not recommended to attempt to recover the data, or remove this program! This can lead to a complete loss of your data forever! To restore data, you must be connected to the Internet.
Status:
Bitcoin address:
Payment amount: BTC по курсу в валюте check payment status

The same note in the Russian language:

Image Source: MalwareHunterTeam

It reads the following:

Внимание!
Ваши данные зашифрованны!
Для расшифровки ваших данных, вам необходимо оплатить указанную ниже сумму.
Обратите внимание, что подтверждение платежа может занять какое то время (от 1 часа до 1 дня).
Все это время, программа должна быть запущена и иметь соединение к интернет.
После успешного подтверждения платежа – расшифровка запустится автоматически.
Подробнее о том как произвести оплату с помощью Bitcoin можно найти в сети internet.
Наример можно воспользоваться сервисом https://xchange.cc/visa-mastercard-rur-to-bitcoin.html.
Крайне не рекомендуется пытаться самостоятельно восстановить данные, или удалять эту программу! Это может привести к полной потере ваших данных навсегда! Для восстановления данных необходимо подключение к интернет.
Текущий статус:
Bitcoin адрес:
Сумма к оплате: BTC по курсу в валюте проверить статус платежа

The short ransom message looks like this:

You can see that it is contained in the readme_encryption.txt file and reads the following:

This files are encrypted! Follow the instructions on the screen.
Эти файлы зашифрованы! Следуйте инструкции на экране.
ID: [Redacted]

There are also Command&Control (C&C) servers associated the ransomware. You should NOT even think of paying the cybercriminals. This will only support them financially, and nobody can guarantee that your files will get decrypted after payment.

The Crypton ransomware encrypts files and puts _crypt suffix to the names of each one of them. That suffix is put before their file extension, so if a file called Work document.doc will become Work document_crypt.doc. The encryption algorithm that is used is unknown. A list with all file extensions that the virus searches to encrypt are shown right here:

→.xls, .xlsx, .doc, .docx, .txt, .tbb, .tbn, .cd, .cdr, .db, .dbx, .dbf, .pdf, .rtf, .tiff, .jpg, .png, .mdb, .vsd, .jpg, .psd, .pst, .ppt, .pptx, .xml, .htm, .html, .mht, .zip, .rar, .7z, .dat

Source: MalwareHunterTeam

The Crypton cryptovirus is quite likely to erase the Shadow Volume Copies from the Windows operating system by using the command down here:

→vssadmin.exe delete shadows /all /Quiet

Read further to find out what kinds of methods you can try to restore some of your data files.

Remove Crypton Ransomware and Restore _crypt Files

If your computer got infected with the Crypton ransomware virus, you should have some experience in removing malware. You should get rid of this ransomware as fast as possible before it can have the chance to spread further and infect more computers. You should remove the ransomware and follow the step-by-step instructions guide given below. To see ways that you can try to recover your data, see the step titled 2. Restore files encrypted by Crypton.

Manually delete Crypton from your computer

Note! Substantial notification about the Crypton threat: Manual removal of Crypton requires interference with system files and registries. Thus, it can cause damage to your PC. Even if your computer skills are not at a professional level, don’t worry. You can do the removal yourself just in 5 minutes, using a malware removal tool.

1. Boot Your PC In Safe Mode to isolate and remove Crypton files and objects

Boot Your PC Into Safe Mode

1. For Windows 7,XP and Vista. 2. For Windows 8, 8.1 and 10. Fix registry entries created by Crypton on your PC.

For Windows XP, Vista, 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 the Start Menu

Step 2: Whilst holding down Shift button, click on Power and then click on Restart.
Step 3: After reboot, the aftermentioned menu will appear. From there you should choose Troubleshoot.

Step 4: You will see the Troubleshoot menu. From this menu you can choose Advanced Options.

Step 5: After the Advanced Options menu appears, click on Startup Settings.

Step 6: Click on Restart.

Step 7: A menu will appear upon reboot. You should choose Safe Mode by pressing its corresponding number and the machine will restart.

Some malicious scripts may modify the registry entries of your computer to change different settings. This is why manual clean up of your Windows Registry Database is strongly recommended. Since the tutorial on how to do this is a bit lenghty, we recommend following our instructive article about fixing registry entries.

2.Find malicious files created by Crypton on your PC

Find malicious files created by Crypton

1. For Windows 8, 8.1 and 10. 2. For Windows 7,XP and Vista.

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.

Automatically remove Crypton by downloading an advanced anti-malware program

1. Remove Crypton with SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool and back up your data

Remove Crypton with SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool

1. Install SpyHunter to scan for and remove Crypton.2. Scan with SpyHunter to Detect and Remove Crypton. Back up your data to secure it against infections and file encryption by Crypton in the future.

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

Download

Malware Removal Tool

It is highly 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.

Step 2: Guide yourself by the download instructions provided for each browser.
Step 3: After you have installed SpyHunter, wait for it to automatically update.

Step1: After the update process has finished, click on the ‘Scan Computer Now’ button.

Step2: After SpyHunter has finished scanning your PC for any Crypton files, click on the ‘Fix Threats’ button to remove them automatically and permanently.

Step3: Once the intrusions on your PC have been removed, it is highly recommended to restart it.

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 automatically with cloud backup and insure it against any type of data loss on your device, even the most severe. We recommend reading more about and downloading SOS Online Backup .

SOS Online Backup

2. Restore files encrypted by Crypton

Restore Files Encrypted by Crypton

Ransomware infections like Crypton aim to encrypt your files using an encryption algorithm which may be very difficult to directly 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 they may not be 100% effective but they may help you little or a lot in some situations.

Method 1: Scanning your drive’s sectors by using Data Recovery software.
Another method of 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:

• Stellar Phoenix Data Recovery Technicians License(Pro version with more features)
• Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery
• Stellar Phoenix Photo Recovery

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:

• Kaspersky Decryptors
• Emsisoft Decryptors

Urgent! It is strongly advisable to first remove the Crypton threat before attempting any decryption, since it may interfere with system files and registries. You can do the removal yourself just in 5 minutes, using an advanced malware removal tool.

Method 3: Using Shadow Explorer

To restore your data in case you have backup set up, it is important to check for shadow copies in Windows using this software if ransomware has not deleted them:

• Shadow Explorer

Method 4: Finding Crypton decryption key while it communicates it via a network sniffing software.

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:

Instructions on How to Find Decryption Key for Files Encrypted By Ransowmare

Optional: Using Alternative Anti-Malware Tools

Remove Crypton Using Other Alternative Tools

STOPZilla Anti Malware

1. Download and Install STOPZilla Anti-malware to Scan for And Remove Crypton.
Step 1: Download STOPZilla by clicking here.
Step 2: A pop-up window will appear. Click on the ‘Save File’ button. If it does not, click on the Download button and save it afterwards.

Step 3: After you have downloaded the setup, simply open it.
Step 4: The installer should appear. Click on the ‘Next’ button.

Step 5: Check the ‘I accept the agreement’ check circle if not checked if you accept it and click the ‘Next’ button once again.

Step 6: Review and click on the ‘Install’ button.

Step 7: After the installation process has completed click on the ‘Finish’ button.

2. Scan your PC with STOPZilla Anti Malware to remove all Crypton associated files completely.
Step 1: Launch STOPZilla if you haven’t launched it after install.
Step 2: Wait for the software to automatically scan and then click on the ‘Repair Now’ button. If it does not scan automatically, click on the ‘Scan Now’ button.

Step 3: After the removal of all threats and associated objects, you should Restart your PC.

Berta Bilbao

Berta is the Editor-in-Chief of SensorsTechForum. She is a dedicated malware researcher, dreaming for a more secure cyber space.

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