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 $ucyLocker and other threats.
Threats such as $ucyLocker 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 $ucyLocker ransomware and them try to recover the files encrypted with .WINDOWS file extension.
A ransomware virus, using a lockscreen message and the .WINDOWS file extension which it adds to the files it encrypts, called $ucyLocker has been detected at the beginning of June 2017. The virus has been reported to demand a ransom payoff in BTC in order to get back your files. It also drops a READ_IT.txt ransom note file in which there are requests to read the lockscreen program’s instructions on how to pay. If your computer has been infected by $ucyLocker, we advise you to read this article carefully.
Threat Summary
Name
$ucyLocker
Type
Ransomware, Cryptovirus
Short Description
Encrypts the files on the computers it infects in order to get victims to pay a ransom in BTC to get them back.
Symptoms
Files cannot be opened and are appended the .WINDOWS file extension after their original one. The virus also adds a READ_IT.txt ransom note.
Distribution Method
Spam Emails, Email Attachments, Executable files
Detection Tool
See If Your System Has Been Affected by $ucyLocker
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.
.WINDOWS File Virus – How Does It Infect
The infection process of this ransomware virus is conducted primarily via malicious e-mail spam messages. These are usually sent with the pretext that they are legitimate notifications, usually for invoices, purchase requests, receipts and other types of important documents. The e-mails usually carry either a web link that leads to the infection one way or another or a malicious file extension. If the file extension uploaded is malicious it may be either an executable file, pretending to be document or a Microsoft Office file with malicious macros. The files are often in an archive. The e-mails may appear like the image below displays:
Other methods by which your computer can become infected with the $ucyLocker ransomware virus include uploading the file online. It may exist in torrent websites or other suspicious software sites as a fake setup of a program, crack, patch or other executable file.
$ucyLocker Virus – Analysis
Whether via a file or a malicious URL script, once you are infected with $ucyLocker, the processes that happen on your computer are almost simultaneous and it is very difficult to detect it or stop the infection process.
The initial activity of the virus is to drop it’s malicious payload files on your computer, each of which may be responsible for different types of activities. These files are the following:
$ucyLocker.exe
VapeHacksLoader.exe
{random 0-9 A-Z name}.exe
These files may be responsible for a variety of malicious activities on the victim’s computer. These activities include:
Erasing backups, system restore points and shadow copies from your computer, so you cannot get the files back via Windows.
Interfering with the Windows Registry Editor by adding registry entries which allow the virus to be automatically executed on system boot.
In addition to this activity, the $ucyLocker ransomware virus also drops it’s “read me” file, called READ_IT.txt. It has the following message to the victim:
Your files have been encrypted. Read the Program for more information.
And the program is not very friendly in it’s messages as well. It features a threatening ransom note with instructions that the victim has to pay various amounts of BitCoin, usually around 0.2 to a BTC address, which the virus provides:
$ucyLocker – The Encryption Process
For the encryption process to succeed, $ucyLocker ransomware targets only specific files that are important for the victim, such as:
Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint documents.
PDF Files.
Audio files.
Video files.
Archives.
Database file types.
Photos.
System image files.
When these files are detected $ucyLocker applies an encryption algorithm which makes the files no longer readable by your operating system. The virus finally appends the .WINDOWS file extension to the encrypted files:
Remove $ucyLocker and Try to Recover Your Files
For the removal of $ucyLocker ransomware it is strongly advisable that you focus on backing up the .WINDOWS encrypted files, just in case.
Then you should proceed with removing $ucyLocker, preferably by following the removal instructions below. They are specifically created to help you delete the malicious files of this virus either Manually or Automatically. In addition to this, the ransomware virus should be removed via an advanced anti-malware software, if you lack the experience to do it manually, experts recommend.
Furthermore, if you are looking for methods to recover your data, we advise you to try the alternative tools for file recovery we have suggested in step “2. Restore Files Encrypted by $ucyLocker” below.
Note! Your computer system may be affected by $ucyLocker 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 $ucyLocker. 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 $ucyLocker follow these steps:
1. Boot Your PC In Safe Mode to isolate and remove $ucyLocker 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 $ucyLocker on your PC
Find files created by $ucyLocker
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 $ucyLocker with SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool and back up your data
1. Install SpyHunter to scan for $ucyLocker and remove them.2. Scan with SpyHunter, Detect and Remove $ucyLocker. 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 $ucyLocker
Try to Restore Files Encrypted by $ucyLocker
Ransomware infections and $ucyLocker 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 $ucyLocker ransomware and them try to recover the files encrypted with .WINDOWS file extension.
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 $ucyLocker and remove them.
Back up your data to secure it from malware in the future.
