Voldemort ransomware / virus (Removal Guide)
Voldemort virus Removal Guide
What is Voldemort ransomware virus?
Voldemort ransomware is there, and it needs no magic wand to corrupt your files
Voldemort is known to be a cold-blooded killer, and that is probably why the author of Voldemort virus had chosen this name for this ransomware project. Some researchers also tend to call this virus as Nagini ransomware due to some details found in the ransomware code. This virus encrypts .doc, .docx, .xls, .xlsx, .jpg, .jpeg, .bmp, .pptx, .png, .exe, and .pdf type files on the infected system immediately, but surprisingly, it leaves no ransom notes or any other hints on how to decrypt the corrupted data. Unlike other ransomware viruses, it does not append file extensions to encrypted data, either. However, Voldemort ransomware displays a full-screen window with Voldemort’s picture on it and a small panel on the left. The virus states: “Done encrypting!” and asks the victim to enter the credit card number, which is not typical behavior of cyber criminals. Typically, they ask to buy Bitcoins and send them to a provided Bitcoin address, but in this case, criminals seem to have different plans. The victim supposedly can decrypt the data with a special key, which needs to be entered in a particular box on the same window.
However, we advise you NOT to provide your credit card details for the author of this ransomware as he or she can shamelessly rob your bank account. If you have discovered the picture of this J.K. Rowling’s books’ character on your computer screen, you have to run a powerful anti-malware software like FortectIntego to remove Voldemort virus from the system. The virus drops 1.exe, Nagini.exe, and voldemort.horcrux files on the system and adds several registry entries to Windows Registry. It is highly recommended to complete Voldemort removal with the automatic virus removal tool because if you miss even a few components of this virus when trying to delete it manually, you will put your computer at risk and leave it vulnerable to other malware attacks.
How does Voldemort aka Nagini ransomware spread?
Voldemort ransomware can sneak into your system without even wearing the invisibility cloak. To get inside user’s system, it uses Trojan horse technique. It means that it can arrive in the form of a safe- looking file, which shows its malicious presence as soon as the victim executes it. At the moment, this ransomware is not actively distributed since it hasn’t been programmed to perfection yet. However, we want to warn our readers in advance and urge them to take precautions and protect the computers by creating backups, installing anti-malware tools and updating software in order to defend the system from ransomware attacks. It is recommended to update all programs on your PC so that various exploit kits could not take advantage of security vulnerabilities in outdated software on your PC. A trustworthy anti-malware software can help to block malicious files and not allow them to enter the computer system at all, and finally, data backups come in handy in case original copies get encrypted, deleted, or corrupted in another way.
How to remove Voldemort virus?
If you have become a victim of Voldemort virus attack and all your files have been encrypted, then you should start thinking about data backup that you have. Do not rush to plug it into your computer – most likely Voldemort ransomware can encrypt files stored on devices connected to the compromised computer, so it is recommended to remove Voldemort malware before doing that. You can find an informative Voldemort removal guide below as well as instructions on how to decrypt encrypted data.
Getting rid of Voldemort virus. Follow these steps
Manual removal using Safe Mode
Important! →
Manual removal guide might be too complicated for regular computer users. It requires advanced IT knowledge to be performed correctly (if vital system files are removed or damaged, it might result in full Windows compromise), and it also might take hours to complete. Therefore, we highly advise using the automatic method provided above instead.
Step 1. Access Safe Mode with Networking
Manual malware removal should be best performed in the Safe Mode environment.
Windows 7 / Vista / XP
- Click Start > Shutdown > Restart > OK.
- When your computer becomes active, start pressing F8 button (if that does not work, try F2, F12, Del, etc. – it all depends on your motherboard model) multiple times until you see the Advanced Boot Options window.
- Select Safe Mode with Networking from the list.
Windows 10 / Windows 8
- Right-click on Start button and select Settings.
- Scroll down to pick Update & Security.
- On the left side of the window, pick Recovery.
- Now scroll down to find Advanced Startup section.
- Click Restart now.
- Select Troubleshoot.
- Go to Advanced options.
- Select Startup Settings.
- Press Restart.
- Now press 5 or click 5) Enable Safe Mode with Networking.
Step 2. Shut down suspicious processes
Windows Task Manager is a useful tool that shows all the processes running in the background. If malware is running a process, you need to shut it down:
- Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc on your keyboard to open Windows Task Manager.
- Click on More details.
- Scroll down to Background processes section, and look for anything suspicious.
- Right-click and select Open file location.
- Go back to the process, right-click and pick End Task.
- Delete the contents of the malicious folder.
Step 3. Check program Startup
- Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc on your keyboard to open Windows Task Manager.
- Go to Startup tab.
- Right-click on the suspicious program and pick Disable.
Step 4. Delete virus files
Malware-related files can be found in various places within your computer. Here are instructions that could help you find them:
- Type in Disk Cleanup in Windows search and press Enter.
- Select the drive you want to clean (C: is your main drive by default and is likely to be the one that has malicious files in).
- Scroll through the Files to delete list and select the following:
Temporary Internet Files
Downloads
Recycle Bin
Temporary files - Pick Clean up system files.
- You can also look for other malicious files hidden in the following folders (type these entries in Windows Search and press Enter):
%AppData%
%LocalAppData%
%ProgramData%
%WinDir%
After you are finished, reboot the PC in normal mode.
Remove Voldemort using System Restore
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Step 1: Reboot your computer to Safe Mode with Command Prompt
Windows 7 / Vista / XP- Click Start → Shutdown → Restart → OK.
- When your computer becomes active, start pressing F8 multiple times until you see the Advanced Boot Options window.
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Select Command Prompt from the list
Windows 10 / Windows 8- Press the Power button at the Windows login screen. Now press and hold Shift, which is on your keyboard, and click Restart..
- Now select Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup Settings and finally press Restart.
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Once your computer becomes active, select Enable Safe Mode with Command Prompt in Startup Settings window.
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Step 2: Restore your system files and settings
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Once the Command Prompt window shows up, enter cd restore and click Enter.
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Now type rstrui.exe and press Enter again..
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When a new window shows up, click Next and select your restore point that is prior the infiltration of Voldemort. After doing that, click Next.
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Now click Yes to start system restore.
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Once the Command Prompt window shows up, enter cd restore and click Enter.
Bonus: Recover your data
Guide which is presented above is supposed to help you remove Voldemort from your computer. To recover your encrypted files, we recommend using a detailed guide prepared by 2-spyware.com security experts.If your files are encrypted by Voldemort, you can use several methods to restore them:
Use Data Recovery Pro
To decrypt your files, you can use Data Recovery Pro program. To learn how to use it, follow these instructions:
- Download Data Recovery Pro;
- Follow the steps of Data Recovery Setup and install the program on your computer;
- Launch it and scan your computer for files encrypted by Voldemort ransomware;
- Restore them.
Use ShadowExplorer
In some cases, ransomware viruses have flaws in their codes. For instance, some viruses forget to delete Volume Shadow Copies. You can check if Voldemort ransomware leaves these copies on the system by using ShadowExplorer and allowing it to restore encrypted data.
- Download Shadow Explorer (http://shadowexplorer.com/);
- Follow a Shadow Explorer Setup Wizard and install this application on your computer;
- Launch the program and go through the drop down menu on the top left corner to select the disk of your encrypted data. Check what folders are there;
- Right-click on the folder you want to restore and select “Export”. You can also select where you want it to be stored.
Finally, you should always think about the protection of crypto-ransomwares. In order to protect your computer from Voldemort and other ransomwares, use a reputable anti-spyware, such as FortectIntego, SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner or Malwarebytes
How to prevent from getting ransomware
Access your website securely from any location
When you work on the domain, site, blog, or different project that requires constant management, content creation, or coding, you may need to connect to the server and content management service more often. The best solution for creating a tighter network could be a dedicated/fixed IP address.
If you make your IP address static and set to your device, you can connect to the CMS from any location and do not create any additional issues for the server or network manager that needs to monitor connections and activities. VPN software providers like Private Internet Access can help you with such settings and offer the option to control the online reputation and manage projects easily from any part of the world.
Recover files after data-affecting malware attacks
While much of the data can be accidentally deleted due to various reasons, malware is one of the main culprits that can cause loss of pictures, documents, videos, and other important files. More serious malware infections lead to significant data loss when your documents, system files, and images get encrypted. In particular, ransomware is is a type of malware that focuses on such functions, so your files become useless without an ability to access them.
Even though there is little to no possibility to recover after file-locking threats, some applications have features for data recovery in the system. In some cases, Data Recovery Pro can also help to recover at least some portion of your data after data-locking virus infection or general cyber infection.
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