Remove Okean-1955 Ransomware and Restore .Xtbl Encrypted Files

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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Ransom virus which contains the e-mail address [email protected] is believed to be a part of a large ransomware family, known as the Xtbl variants. This is an extremely dangerous ransomware, since, at this point, there is no relevant decrypter for the files encoded by the virus. The ransomware, known as Okean-1955 is also reported to focus primarily on hitting enterprises, mainly SQL Server databases. One infected user has reported at Emsisoft forums to see an infection of an SQL server database and Okean-1955 encoded data of over 10000 customers, 15 branches and three years’ worth of information. Not only this, but the virus destroys backup, according to reports. All users who have had their systems infected with this ransomware virus, are strongly advised not to contact the e-mail address and not to cope with the terms of meeting the deadline of 24 hours given by the crooks. Instead, we strongly advise to read this article below and explore your options regarding removing this Xtbl variant and attempting to restore your files.

Threat Summary

Name	Okean-1955
Type	Ransomware
Short Description	Okean-1955 encrypts files with a strong cipher and leaves a ransom note asking to contact the cyber-criminals’ e-mail for further payoff instructions in return for the files.
Symptoms	Files are encrypted and become inaccessible. A ransom note with instructions for paying the ransom shows as a HOW TO DECRYPT FILES.txt file.
Distribution Method	Spam Emails, Email Attachments, Social Media/td>
Detection Tool	See If Your System Has Been Affected by Okean-1955 Download Malware Removal Tool
User Experience	Join our forum to Discuss Okean-1955 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.

Okean-1955 Ransomware – How Does It Replicate

To be widespread across computers and SQL servers and infect them, Okean-1955 may use advanced techniques to bypass protection. One of those techniques is the obfuscation of malicious executables which can conceal the executable when it has been activated from any real-time shields that may be locally running on the affected machine. In addition to this, Okean-1955 Ransomware may spread via malicious web links as well. Such web links may be legitimate when checked for viruses, but they may cause redirects to malicious links, that may infect users via an Exploit Kit, drive-by downloads as well as malicious JavaScript. E-mails sent out by cyber-criminals may be of a different character, resembling legitimate organizations, for example, this fake e-mail spam pretending to be a person adding you to his Linked In circles:

Okean-1955 Ransomware – More Information

The payload which has been dropped by Okean-1955 may be located in the following key Windows folders:

• %AppData%
• %Roaming%
• %Local%
• %LocalRow%
• %Windows%
• %System%
• %System32%
• %Temp%

The files may be more than one and they are usually of the following types:

Usually, cyber-criminals either give the malicious files random names of A-Z 0-9 symbols or they mask them to resemble a legitimate process of Windows or a program installed on the computer, like “svchost.exe” for example which is a legitimate Windows process and stays in Task Manager at all times.

The Okean-1955 ransomware may also heavily modify the Windows Registry Editor, making it run on system startup and encrypt the files of the compromised compute. Simlar to other XTBL variants, Okean-1955 may seek and encrypt the following file types:

So far it is unknown what type of encryption Okean-1955 specifically uses, but we can say for sure that the XTBL variants include various options for choice of encryption mechanisms to add. With other XTBL ransomware viruses, like Crysis Ransomware, it has been seen that the following mechanisms for encoding data were used:

AES Cipher – Advanced Encryption Standard

It is utilized primarily by the government agencies, such as the NSA, which classify it in the Suite.B category, used to encrypt “eyes only” types of files. The direct decoding by AES ciphered files may take unimaginably long time even if performed by a powerful machine.

RSA Cipher – Rivest-Shamir-Adleman

Encoding by this cipher is very similar in decryption possibility with the AES cipher, and this is why it is in the same category. It uses a unique decryption key and in this particular case, it may have been used to encrypt the actual decryption key, automatically generated for the AES encrypted files.

CBC Mode – Cipher Block Chaining

Here is where the situation becomes critical and serious. Whereas the encryption algorithms simply scramble the files’ code, this mode is like a defensive mechanism against users who try to descramble those files. This “mode” uses the so-called “blocks” of encrypted code and uses Initialization Vector to separate and strengthen those blocks of ciphered code. These combined with a chaining mechanism which breaks the file if you try to decrypt it permanently are the perfect insurance to the cyber-criminals that you will pay the ransom.

Not only this but to create additional mess, Okean-1955, may delete the Shadow Volume Copies of the infected machine by executing the following command via a malicious script with Escalated privileges:

After encryption of the files, Okean-1955 adds custom identification symbols, the .okean file extension and of course, the typical .xtbl extension in the end. Here is how an encrypted file looks like:

The ransomware is then reported to leave the following ransom note behind in a HOW TO DECRYPT FILES.txt:

Okean-1955 Ransomware – Conclusion, File Restoration, and Removal

The bottom line is that this is yet another ransomware variant from a very popular ransomware family that has done quite the damage to organizations as well as home users globally. Other viruses like it include the Redshitline Ransomware, Crysis XTBL Ransomware, Ecovector Ransomware, Troldesh Ransomware, DataStorm Ransomware and others. This strongly suggests that to be widespread on this level, this virus must be sold on the underground web markets of the deep web or other places as well. Whatever the case may be, we strongly advise against paying any form of ransom money to cyber-criminals, because you support their organization by making it richer, and a free decrypter may be released sooner than expected.

To remove Okean-1955, we strongly advise you to follow the instructions which we have posted after this article. They are methodologically arranged to contribute to the effective removal process of this crypto-virus.

To try and restore your files, we urge you not to attempt direct decryption and not to use other decryptors, unless researchers provide a working one. Instead, you may want to try and use alternative methods, like the ones mentioned below in step “3. Restore files encrypted by Okean-1955”.

Note! Your computer system may be affected by Okean-1955 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 Okean-1955.
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 Okean-1955 follow these steps:

1. Boot Your PC In Safe Mode to isolate and remove Okean-1955 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 Okean-1955 on your PC

Find files created by Okean-1955

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 Okean-1955 with SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool and back up your data

1. Install SpyHunter to scan for Okean-1955 and remove them.2. Scan with SpyHunter, Detect and Remove Okean-1955. 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.

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.

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 .

SOS Online Backup

4. Try to Restore files encrypted by Okean-1955

Try to Restore Files Encrypted by Okean-1955

Ransomware infections and Okean-1955 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:

• 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

Method 3: Using Shadow Explorer

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:

• Shadow Explorer

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:

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

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.

More Posts - Website

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.

More Posts - Website