How to remove Dragon ransomware

Dragon ransomware – a decryptable cryptovirus that avoids infecting users from China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong

Dragon ransomware is a new variant of Aurora virus and first showed up in mid-August 2019. It is yet unknown what type of distribution methods hackers use, but victims are most likely to get infected with the malware strain when they open a malicious email attachment, visit a malicious site while using an outdated version of Windows, download software cracks, use unprotected Remote Desktop, etc.

Once inside, Dragon ransomware modifies various system settings and starts the encryption process with the help of RSA-2048 cipher. Once complete, the content of the data is changed in a way that prevents users from accessing it. Besides, a .locked extension is added (note that this appendix has been used by many different ransomware developers), so there is a high chance that the affected users will notice the infection straight away.

Dragon ransomware then drops a ransom note #DECRYPT_MY_FILES#.txt which explains that culprits are selling the “Dragon Decryptor” for 0.3 BTC and suggest to contact them via dragon-support@pm.me email. Do not associate with hackers – there is no need to buy the tool they offering, as security researchers from Emsisoft released a decryptor that can recover all the Dragon virus locked files for free.

As soon as Dragon ransomware enters the machine in one way or another, it changes Windows registry, deletes Shadow Volume Copies, opens/writes/copies system files, spawns a factura.exe process that runs in the background, loads various modules, etc.

After encrypting data, Dragon ransomware also contacts a Command & Control^[1] server to send out a private RSA key for each of the victims (it is needed in order to decipher files). Finally, the malware encrypts pictures, documents, databases, videos, and other files, sparing only system data, among a few other exceptions.

A quite interesting fact is that Dragon ransomware will not start any system modification if the host computer IP is from China, Taiwan, or Hong Kong.^[2] This is most likely because culprits themselves are from those countries and do not want to attract the attention of local authorities.

Crooks behind Dragon ransomware try to convince users that all the decryption tools are useless and they are the only ones that can provide an effective solution for file recovery. Here's what they say in the ransom note that is dropped in every folder of the PC:

Dragon Ransomware
###########################

#What happened to your files?
All your files has been encrypted by a strong encryption with RSA-2048.
More information about the encryption keys using RSA-2048 can be found here:

Wikipedia · EN

RSA cryptosystem

The RSA (Rivest–Shamir–Adleman) cryptosystem is a family of public-key cryptosystems, widely used for secure data transmission. The initialism "RSA" comes from the surnames of Ron Rivest, Adi Shamir and Leonard Adleman, who publicly described the algorithm in 1977. An equivalent system was developed secretly in 1973 at Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), the British signals intelligence agency, by the English mathematician Clifford Cocks. That system was declassified in 1997.

Read on Wikipedia →

#What does this mean?
This means that the structure and data within your files have been irrevocably changed, you will not be able to work with them, read them or see them, it is the same thing as losing them forever, but with our help, you can restore them.

#How did this happen?
Especially for you, on our server was generated the secret key pair RSA-2048 – public and private. All your files were encrypted with the public key, which has been transferred to your computer via the Internet. Decrypting of your files is only possible with the help of the private key and decrypt program, which is on our secret server.

#What do I do?
Alas, if you do not take the necessary measures for the specified time then the conditions for obtaining the private key will be changed. If you really value your data, then we suggest you do not waste valuable time searching for the solutions because they do not exist.
Trying to reinstall the system and decrypting the file with a third-party tool will result in file corruption which means no one can decrypt your file(including us)!
If you still try to decrypt the file yourself, you do so at your own risk!

#Test decryption!
As a proof, you can send 3 encrypted files and ID to test decrypt,and we will send you the decrypted files to prove that we can decrypt your files.
To decrypt all your files, you need to buy Dragon Decryptor.

#How to buy Dragon Decryptor?
1.buy 0.3 bitcoin at https://localbitcoins.com
2.contact us by email to get a payment address
3.send bitcoin to our payment address
4.after payment,we will send you Dragon Decryptor

Email:
dragon-support@pm.me

Test decryption is also that many ransomware developers offer nowadays, as it might give victims a false sense of security and shows that the malicious actors can actually decrypt all the data. However, the unfortunate part is that they might not necessarily send the required key and the tool, even after the payment of 0.3 Bitcoin is processed. Thus, do not hesitate and proceed with Dragon ransomware removal.

Speaking of malware analysis, 49 vendors currently recognize Dragon ransomware and detect it under the following names:^[3]

• HEUR/AGEN.1034529
• A Variant Of Win32/Filecoder.NVB
• W32/Chapak.A!tr.ransom
• Troj/Auroran-A
• Ransom.FileCryptor
• Trojan:Win32/Skeeyah.A!MTB
• Win32:Malware-gen, etc.

Therefore, you can use any of these tools or FortectIntego (based on Avira engine) to remove Dragon ransomware safely. Remember, if you start the file recovery process before that, all the data will be encrypted repeatedly. Besides, any files that you download from the internet will get immediately locked if the infection is still present.

Spam emails, outdated operating system and careless behavior online can put you into serious trouble 

Ransomware is one of the most devastating malware families, and seems like it one of the most lucrative ones as well, as millions of users resort to paying the ransom when they can't find any other ways to recover their files. Unfortunately, that just fuels cybercrime, and more ransomware viruses are developed every day. To increase the profits, malicious actors also employ various methods to distribute malware, such as spam emails, exploits, web infects, fake updates software cracks, vulnerabilities, phishing sites, etc.

Security experts from Novirus.uk^[4] advise users to stay vigilant and promote the following computer security tips:

• Install reputable anti-malware software and update its database in order to stop most malware from entering the machine;
• Make sure your operating system and the installed applications are patched with security updates;
• Never download cracks, keygens, or pirated software installers;
• Do not use the default port when using Remote Desktop and protect it with a strong password;
• Enable two-factor authentication for all your accounts;
• Install adblock or use a browser that blocks ads automatically;
• Backup your files!

Remove Dragon ransomware from your computer and recover your data for free

Before you proceed with file recovery, you need to make sure that Dragon ransomware removal was executed successfully. For that, you need to employ reputable anti-malware software like FortectIntego or SpyHunterCombo Cleaner and perform a full system scan. In some cases, malware might tamper with security applications, however, preventing them from working correctly or stopping their startup in the first place. In such a case, enter Safe Mode with Networking as explained below and do the scan from there.

Once you remove Dragon ransomware, you can then use the Decryption tool from Emsisoft to recover your locked data. If for some reason, the tool does not work for you, we provide an additional option for file recovery below.