How to remove Dishwasher ransomware

Dishwasher ransomware is the infection that encodes files and adds .clean file extension to mark affected data but skips the ransom demand

Dishwasher ransomware – the cryptovirus that affect files and encourages people to press the  “Decrypt all files” button. However, according to experts, data recovery was not implemented yet, and the service is not working. Fortunately, data affected by this threat can possibly be decrypted.^[1] This is new ransomware based on no proven features that could be associated with other families known before. That means two things: the coding is new and more difficult than other already analyzed samples, or the malware is in development still, so decryption is easier for ransomware experts.

If you encountered Dishwasher ransomware virus on the system, you should also find dishwasher.exe – core file of the infection, data marked with .clean appendix – encrypted files, and dump.key file that has a list of locations on the machine. Other files may be added to the system, including programs and applications that disable some functions of your device, so you should react as soon as possible and try to store malware-related files, encrypted data on the separate device. Then you can remove the cryptovirus and wait for an official decryption tool.

Dishwasher ransomware might not be fully developed because decryption of files is not possible, although developers claim to offer such a service. The activity of this virus occurred first mid-October when some victims reported about the virus that encrypts files but doesn't demand a ransom. 

There is no ransom note delivered by Dishwasher ransomware, but the lock screen and Desktop background once set to bg.jpg image, also shows the message:

YOUR FILES HAVE BEEN LOCKED.
BLABLABLABLABLAH …;)
—

However, the button that states about decryption possibility on the window is not working because once clicked it only delivers “Not yet implemented;)” instead of delivering to the payment system or further instructions. Dishwasher ransomware still is developed by people who are money-driven and focuses on locking files for the purpose of making a profit.

So you should remove Dishwasher ransomware, then clean the system fully and try to recover those affected files from the external device that stores backups. If you still believe that decryption might be possible in the future, you can store files associated with the malware, encrypted data, and wait for such a tool. However, if you want to use a computer normally, you need to terminate ransomware completely. 

In most cases, such extortionists that create malware like Dishwasher ransomware deliver their ransom demands on text files or show instructions for the payment methods. However, there is nothing like that in this attack, and victims only have their encrypted data.

You may lose your files completely since Dishwasher ransomware creators are not offering you to pay for the data recovery. But researchers can sometimes restore the encoded data, especially when it comes to new threats like this. Don't remove any of those files, try to contact Michael Gillespie or look for information from other experts^[3] and then go for alternate file recovery methods.

Remember that you need to perform Dishwasher ransomware removal before you recover files yourself because any core file left behind can interfere with the recovery and even lead to second round of encoding. Get anti-malware tools like FortectIntego and run a full system check to find all traces of malware and malicious files.

You should also check tips and tricks below the article where we listed methods for data recovery, other features that can help for virus termination. Make sure to terminate the Dishwasher ransomware virus before any further actions to avoid system damage.

Common ransomware spreading methods include types of malicious files

Even though the ransomware coding differs from threat to threat, you can be sure that vectors used to spread the infection are mainly the same. Although criminals can use system vulnerabilities and hack through insecure RDP configurations, malicious email attachments, fake installer files, and other types of data with the malicious script get employed more often.

Malicious macros get injected to Microsoft documents, PDFs, and attached to spam emails that pose as financial notifications from companies or services. When such document is opened, and macros enabled malicious scrips loads on the computer directly.

Another type of malicious file gets loaded in the craked software package with video game cheats, pirated programs, serial numbers of licensed application versions. These additions are not disclosed, so you risk getting malware when you rely on torrent services and such sites with downloads of cracks and cheats.

Eliminate Dishwasher ransomware with anti-malware tool and clean the traces of this infection

Dishwasher ransomware virus is a new infection created in the category of cryptocurrency-extortion based malware. There is not much information about a particular criminal group or tactics of the virus. However, based on typical issues with ransomware, this threat can delete programs, disable functions, and even files to affect the performance, decryption process. 

We recommend employing proper anti-malware tools for Dishwasher ransomware removal because this way, you can eliminate all files and applications related to the malware. By doing so, you terminate the infection fully and can recover files using data backups or third-party software.

When you decide to remove Dishwasher ransomware, you should take some facts into consideration: a virus can disable your AV tool, delete Shadow Volume Copies. FortectIntego, SpyHunterCombo Cleaner, or MalwarebytesMalwarebytes can find malware traces, files and fix possible damage, but you may need to reboot the machine in a Safe Mode first to achieve better results.