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  • Active
  • Severity: High
  • Ransomware
  • Windows
  • Verified · Jun 2016

How to remove Kozy.Jozy ransomware virus

A step-by-step removal guide for affected devices. Follow the verified procedure below — most readers complete it in under 10 minutes.

Olivia Morelli · Ransomware analyst

Kozy.Jozy ransomware is a malicious computer threat that you should be aware of

Kozy.Jozy virus is a severe computer threat, and you should do everything to stop it from entering your PC. It belongs to crypto-ransomware family, which means that it is a file-encrypting virus. The way it works is rather simple. When the user executes Kozy.Jozy malware, it encrypts all data that has the following file extensions:

.cd, .ldf, .mdf, .odt, .ods, .odb, .odg, .bmp, .png, .max, .dbf, .epf, .1cd, .md, .pdf, .ppt, .doc, .arj, .tar, .7z, .rar, .xls, .zip, .tif, .jpg, .cdr, .psd, .jpeg, .docx, .xlsx, .pptx, .accdb, .mdb, .rtf.

Encrypted data becomes useless as the user cannot open, use, or manipulate it in any way. The worst thing is that this virus runs the encryption process in the background without notifying the computer user, and the only thing that can seem suspicious is that the computer runs a bit slower than usually. As a result, the user does not have a change to interrupt or stop this virus anyhow. Kozy.Jozy ransomware adds unique file extensions to encrypted files, too; here is an example of it – .31392E30362E32303136_(random number from 0 to 20)_LSBJ1. It is worth noting that victims have also reported similar symbol combinations, so it might be that authors of this malware sell its code in dark web forums. Once the virus encrypts all files, and when there is nothing more to corrupt, it changes desktop wallpaper with the following image:
Kozy.Jozy ransomware encrypts files and asks to pay up

The message is written in the Russian language, and it claims that files have been encrypted with the RSA-2048 cipher. It is one of the most complicated ciphers to crack, so it means that it might be impossible to decrypt your data anytime soon. Besides, the virus deletes Volume Shadow Copies, so forget about them – this virus takes all necessary actions to frighten the user and make him pay the ransom. The ransom note says that the victim needs to get in touch with ransomware authors by sending a letter to kozy.jozy@yahoo.com email. The frauds will ask you to transfer them a considerable amount of money via Bitcoin payment system. Sadly, this might not help you to get your files back; therefore, we recommend you to remove Kozy.Jozy ransomware from your PC as soon as possible. Make sure you use a powerful anti-malware program for that, for example, FortectIntego.

How does this virus spread?

The vast of ransomware threats spread using same techniques. It seems that cyber criminals are not so creative at this point; typically, they send these viruses to victims via emails. For instance, they try to mask an executive file by adding .txt or .doc to its filename, for example, invoice.jpg.exe. We advise you not to open an email if you do not know the sender of it.

If you had accidentally installed a malicious Trojan into your computer a while ago, it could also be a reason why Kozy.Jozy got into your computer. Trojans can silently download malicious files to a compromised computer and execute them after some time. If you do not want your data to be encrypted, you should take particular security measures – secure your computer with an anti-malware software, backup your files, update your software, and avoid visiting untrustworthy websites and downloading content from them.

How to remove Kozy.Jozy?

We do not suggest removing Kozy.Jozy virus manually. It is not a simple program, but a malicious computer threat, which contaminates the computer system by placing malicious files everywhere. Unless you are an advanced programming expert, you might not be able to identify all these files. Remember that even remains of a virus pose a threat to computer and can cause various issues later. Therefore, it is advisable to use an anti-malware software to delete this virus from your computer. We recommend using FortectIntego to complete Kozy.Jozy removal.

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