How to remove .Serp file extension virus

Serpent ransomware presents .Serp file extension virus

.Serp file extension virus is a new version of the infamous Serpent ransomware virus^[1], which first showed up in February 2017. The new ransomware shocked everyone with its complexity, and researchers claim that the virus has been programmed by someone associated with Zyklon Locker, Wildfire Locker, and Hades Locker ransomware projects. The virus belongs to ransomware category due to its ability to lock all victim’s files down with a sophisticated combination of encryption ciphers– reportedly, it uses AES256 and RSA2048 ciphers. Once locked, files become inaccessible, meaning that years of work, memories, and other important files are going to be lost in less than 10 minutes^[2]. The ransomware also marks each encrypted file with the .serp file extension (modifies the filename) and then drops a ransom note called README_TO_RESTORE_FILES(random characters).txt. This file holds information about a possible file recovery solution, which is, to put it shortly, is to pay a ransom to get files back. There’s no surprise why ransomware is also called a cyber extortion tool^[3] – it holds victim’s files hostage until the victim decides to pay up. The note that virus saves on victim’s desktop as well as in folders with encrypted data provides an URL that points to victim’s personal payment website. On this site, the victim finds a countdown timer that shows how much time is left to pay the initial ransom price. Once the given time passes (7 days), the ransom price triples.

According to the latest reports, the new version of the virus demands 0.75 BTC in exchange for the decryption tool. Another interesting fact about this ransomware is that the payment page it provides to victim looks surprisingly similar, if not identical to the one that Cerber ransomware^[4] uses. No matter what, we do not recommend you to buy Serpent Decrypter because there are no guarantees that it will actually restore your files and not infect your PC even more. To recover your files without paying the ransom, you must have a data backup, and if you do, remove .Serp ransomware as soon as you can. There is no point in keeping the virus in your PC if you do not plan to pay up, either. For .Serp virus removal we strongly recommend using anti-malware software, for example, FortectIntego software. It will help you to fix your PC and remove all of the virus’ remains safely.

Distribution peculiarities

Ransomware viruses and tricks used to distribute them get better and better, and the only way to fight back is to be aware of them. Typically, the majority of ransomware viruses get transmitted via spam, in other words, via junk emails. Therefore, our advice for you is to be careful when checking your email inbox. Make sure you do not open emails that come from unknown senders and of course never open links or attachments that such electronic letters carry. Even if the attachment is a Word file, it can still infect you with ransomware – you will be asked to enable Macros, and that’s the trick that activates the malicious script that immediately downloads malware on your computer. Another tip is to inspect the email address of the sender. If it looks suspicious to you, stay away from such email. Scammers often try to pretend that they work for legitimate companies, and checking their email address can help you identify a scammer. No legitimate company allows their employees send emails to people from unofficial email addresses, so let’s say johny-amazon-clients@protonmail.ru obviously doesn’t work at Amazon. Ransomware can be distributed with the help of exploit kits^[5] and malvertising, and to protect your PC from such attack we can only recommend you to stay away from suspicious websites and keep your anti-malware software up-to-date.

How can I remove .Serp file extension virus from the system completely?

If you decide not to pay the ransom to cyber criminals, we can only say that it is the right thing to do. Now you will need to remove .Serp file extension virus, and we highly recommend using professional malware removal tools. If you are not a skilled programmer, please do not try to fix your computer on your own. You might delete the wrong files and leave the malicious ones on the system without realizing it because such viruses tend to hide their components precisely. For .Serp removal, you should reboot your PC using instructions given below first.