Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus (Virus Removal Instructions) - updated Apr 2021

What is Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus?

Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus is screen-lock malware that targets Canadian PC users

Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus is malware that locks victim's computer screen and demands to pay fake 100 Canadian Dollar fine for fake crimes

Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus is a type of malicious software that locks up Windows computer users' screen and shows victims an incriminating message. It accuses users of various crimes, such as copyright infringement, illegal adult material possession, hacking, and other serious allegations.

Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus then proceeds with various jail and fine threats. According to the message, all the charges will be dropped, and the computer unblocked as soon as the computer user pays 100 CAD fine via the PaysafeCard or Ukash payment methods. Without a doubt, all the accusations are fake, and it is merely a scam – victims are, however, infected with a type of ransomware^[1] that blocks normal access to the Windows system.

Without a doubt, victims who never encountered Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus might be frightened and pay the demanded sum of money and become a victim of an internet fraud campaign. Nevertheless, regardless if you paid or not, you should remove the Cybercrime Investigation Department virus from your machine to regain full control of it.

Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus is one of many of screen-locking ransomware which was prevalent in 2010-2014, and various versions of the malicious messages were created for different countries which embody appropriate authority bodies. Examples include Bundespolizei (Germany), Twoj Komputer Zostal Zablokowany (Poland), Votre fournisseur d'accès à Internet est bloqué (France), etc.

However, screen locking viruses were soon replaced by file locking ransomware. Users were soon alert by fake screen lockers and became more aware of scams like Police Cybercrime Investigation Department message. All victims have to do is terminate the infection by entering Safe Mode and scanning their computers with anti-malware software. For that reason, screen locking malware became less effective, and file lockers dominated the illegal malware business ever since.

Nevertheless, it does not mean that you cannot get infected with Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus. Here's a part of the message you will be able to see:

Police Cybercrime Investigation Department
All activity of this computer has been recorded
If you use a webcam , videos and pictures were saved for identification
Your computer has been locked!
The work of your computer has been suspended on the grounds of unauthorized cyberactivity.
Described below are possible violations, you have made: Article 274 – Copyright
A fine or imprisonment for the term of up to d years (The use or sharing of copyrighted files – movies, software)
(…)
A fine or imprisonment for the term of up to 2 years (You have been gambling, but according to the lav/ residents of the your country are not allowed gambling in any format)
in connection v/ith the decision of the Government as of August 22, all of the violations described above could be considered as conditional in case of payment of a fine.
Amount of the fine is 100 CAD. Payment must be made within 48 hours after the discovery of the violation. If the fine has not been paid, you will become the subject of criminal prosecution.
After paying the fine your computer will be unblocked

Without a doubt, victims who pay cybercriminals behind the Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus will not get their computers unlocked but instead will get scammed out of their money. In fact, paying crooks is the worst option you can possibly choose; unfortunately, malicious actors earn thousands by running an illegal malware business like this.

Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus is a type of ransomware that locks the screen and prevents users from operating their machine

First of all, if you found your computer suddenly locked by a Police Cybercrime Investigation Department scam message, you should not panic and put logic into perspective – even if you were guilty of any of the charges, police would not lock up your computer and let you get away with a mere 100 CAD fine. Serious crimes always have legitimate methods of being resolves, such as official letters, court proceedings, documents, etc.

Therefore, ignore the message completely and proceed with the Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus removal instead. You can rely on AV tools for such a job. Apps for example – SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner, Malwarebytes. Once you terminate the infection, you will be able to access your computer as usual. We also recommend scanning the device with FortectIntego to fix virus damage done to the system files and restore them.

Screen locking malware and other computer parasites can be avoided

Users might get infected with screen locking malware from various sources, including:

• Malicious spam email attachments or hyperlinks;
• Infected installers hosted on torrent sites;
• Software cracks and pirated software;
• Weak login credentials;
• Inadequately patched operating system and software;^[2]
• Fake updates, etc.

Therefore, it is vital to protect your device from malicious infections adequately. Without a doubt, screen lockers are nowhere near as dangerous as file-locking ransomware viruses, but its presence is not a pleasant encounter. Besides, the compromised computer might be used to proliferate other malware.

To avoid such consequences, you need to make sure you equip your device with a robust security tool, keep it updated at all times, avoid torrent and similar file-hosting sites, don't open spam emails, install ad-blocker, use strong passwords and don't believe messages that accuse you of crimes or show alleged virus infections. In other words – be more careful every time you connect to the internet!

Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus has many variants and might visually look different, but the goal remains the same: scam users into paying criminals

Remove Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus to access your computer normally

While it is possible to remove Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus manually, such action might be quite complicated for a regular user. Sophisticated malware often changes various parameters within Windows, and repairing them, as well as deleting malicious files requires adequate IT knowledge. Therefore, it is best to use automatic tools like anti-malware programs SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner and Malwarebytes for the matter.

Nevertheless, because the malware locks the screen, you will still have to enter Safe Mode with Networking, as described below. Safe Mode is a recovery environment, as the system starts only with the most necessary drivers and loads very few files, which consequently prevents malware from performing its usual tasks.

After you do so, scan your system with PC repair software to complete Police Cybercrime Investigation Department virus removal. This way you can clear data damage and virus pieces. Run FortectIntego, for example. After a reboot, you should be able to use your computer normally and, luckily, your personal files should still be intact.