Vipasana ransomware virus: what it is and how to remove it
Among recent ransomware, which have caused and still cause trouble for the Internet community, Vipasana ransomware virus does not lag behind them in terms of damage and danger. Though originally the term "Vipasana" means a form of meditation, the virus triggers feelings which are far from inner tranquility.
Facts checked October 7, 2026. Removal steps tested on Windows 11 (26H2) and checked against Microsoft's and the browser makers' current documentation. Sections marked as our earlier report are the original text: they describe the threat as it was then and have not been reviewed since. The 2026 status, the removal steps and the questions are current.
Automatic
Get a free scan and check if your PC is infected.
Fortect finds malware, unwanted programs and the Windows damage they leave behind, and repairs it in one pass.
Programs like Vipasana ransomware virus usually arrive in groups; a free scan lists the companions that are easy to miss.
Do it yourself · free Remove Vipasana ransomware virus yourself 6 steps, about 18 minutes, no software needed.
Start the steps
Vipasana ransomware virus: summary
| Detection names | No Microsoft detection name is known |
|---|---|
| Ransom note | Not named in our report; the text of the note is not in our records |
| Contact | vegclass@aol.com, gerkaman@aol.com.xtbl, vipasana@aol.com |
| Encrypted file extension | Not recorded in our earlier report |
| Decryptor | No free decryptor is known for this variant; check No More Ransom (nomoreransom.org) for updates |
| Distribution | Not recorded in the old report |
| Removal | Scan the PC with security software to find and remove the malware and anything installed with it. Fortect scans Windows for malware and repairs the system files and settings it damaged. Remove it nowTo use the full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Fortect. The scan is free. |
Show 8 more facts
| Damage | Not recorded in the old report |
|---|---|
| Name | Vipasana ransomware virus |
| Type | File-encrypting ransomware |
| Symptoms | An unknown program in Installed apps |
| Evidence | One write-up by a security site; details still limited |
| Free decryptor | No free decryptor is known (checked 7 October 2026) |
| First seen | 5 July 2016 |
| Facts checked | 7 October 2026 |
How Vipasana ransomware virus behaves
From our report of Jul 2016 · not reviewed since
I was infected with Vipasana virus. What does it mean to me?
Among recent ransomware, which have caused and still cause trouble for the Internet community, Vipasana ransomware virus does not lag behind them in terms of damage and danger.
Though originally the term "Vipasana" means a form of meditation, the virus triggers feelings which are far from inner tranquility. The virus is able to encrypt personal virus with the assistance of mathematically exquisite algorithm. However, the danger of this threat does not stop here. It is regarded one of the few viruses which are capable of locking your files offline.
Thus, even if you manage to disconnect your computer from the Internet, this does not protect you from full attack fired by the ransomware. If you happen to be one of the victims, concentrate on Vipasana removal. One of the ways to do that is to install an anti-spyware program.
Regarding the text given in the ransom note, the virus seems to target Russian-speaking users. However, if you live outside Eastern Europe and Asia, do not indulge into thinking that you are safe from this threat. It is known that the virus uses popular AES encryption technique, which consists of public and private keys.
This algorithm has helped countless of ransomware owners to successfully encrypt users' private data. Thus, you should not let your guard down. Moreover, Vipasana malware should be considered eve more dangerous since it is able to execute itself in offline mode. When the malicious file, containing the virus, invades your computer, it can activate itself even if you turn off the Internet connection.
Furthermore, the virus is suspected to belong to the infamous group of viruses which share a similar email address for contacting. There have been multiple threats, such as vegclass@aol.com and gerkaman@aol.com.xtbl, which operate the same way. Speaking of this current virus, it is unknown what amount of ransom it asks for.
Victims are supposed to contact the hackers by vipasana@aol.com email. One week is the term set by the hackers for victims to transfer the money. Afterward, they are given instructions how to create a Bitcoin wallet and then send the payment details in exchange for the personal files.
We would like to remind you not to foster any high hopes of retrieving the files after the transaction is made. Cyber criminals do not possess any responsibility or conscience to return the information to you. Instead, you can try data recovery programs. Before that, you need to remove this virus completely.
From our report of Jul 2016 · not reviewed since
How does Vipasana infect computers?
Like other threats of this kind, Vipasana ransomware tends to infects PCs via spam email attachments.
Do no rush to open any emails which are sent from tax companies, transportation companies or even local court. Hackers have become really good in finding persuasive strategies. Usually, fake emails contain grammar or typing mistakes. You might also notice some mistakes in a logo copy.
Pay attention and remain vigilant upon reviewing similar emails. In addition, hackers tend to convince you into opening the attachments which bear Vipasana infection or other ransomware. In the case of doubt, contact the indicated institution of the company directly.
Recklessly opening the email might cause long-term and high-range problems. Lastly, keep in mind that the malware might also attack your computer via a trojan. So you need a powerful anti-spyware program, e.g., , which will detect the threat in time before it unfolds itself and releases the ransomware.
The Vipasana ransomware virus ransom note
We did not record the full text of the ransom note in our report.
How to remove Vipasana ransomware virus
Tools you'll need
All of these are free except where noted. Download them on a clean device if the infected PC is offline.
- A USB stick: to keep the ransom note, two or three encrypted files and screenshots off the infected PC.
- Microsoft Defender Offline: built into Windows 11 and Windows 10; scans before Windows starts, so running malware cannot hide.
- Microsoft Safety Scanner: a second, portable scanner with current signatures; each download works for 10 days.
- ID Ransomware: identifies the family from the note and one encrypted file and says whether a decryptor exists.
- No More Ransom: the free decryptors from police and security companies; check it again every few months.
- Fortect (optional): scans Windows for malware and repairs the system files and settings it damaged. The free scan is in the box above.
How to remove Vipasana ransomware virus and get your files back
Work in this order.
Disconnecting comes first, removal comes before any restore, and nothing here asks you to contact the attackers.
Step 1: Disconnect the PC and unplug backup drives
Vipasana ransomware virus encrypts everything it can reach, including drives and shares you connect later. Cut the network first: cable out, or Wi-Fi off from the taskbar.
Then unplug every USB stick and backup disk and pause cloud sync, so the encrypted versions do not replace your online copies. Do not reconnect any of them until the ransomware is removed from the Windows 11 or Windows 10 PC.
Windows 11: turn off Wi-Fi to take the PC offline. Full procedure with screenshots: Ransomware: first steps, finding a decryptor and recovering files
Step 2: Save the ransom note and identify the family
Find the ransom note, usually a
.txt,.htmlor .hta file in every folder or on the desktop, and copy it with one or two encrypted files to a USB stick.From another device, upload them to ID Ransomware or No More Ransom's Crypto Sheriff, which name the family from the note and the file extension. Write down the contact address and your personal ID from the note for the report.
Warning: Never contact the attackers from the infected Windows 11 or Windows 10 PC.
Windows 11: the ransom note and encrypted files to copy for identification. Full procedure with screenshots: Ransomware: first steps, finding a decryptor and recovering files
Step 3: Check for a free decryptor
For Vipasana ransomware virus, no free decryptor is known (checked 7 October 2026). Search the family name in the No More Ransom decryption tools list and in the free decryptors of Emsisoft, Avast and Kaspersky, because new tools appear years after an attack.
Important: Keep the encrypted files even if nothing works today, and do not pay before every free option is ruled out: payment does not guarantee a working key.
Decryptors run on Windows 11 and Windows 10, but only after the ransomware itself is removed.
Full procedure with screenshots: Ransomware: first steps, finding a decryptor and recovering files
Step 4: Remove the ransomware before you restore or decrypt
Restoring or decrypting files while Vipasana ransomware virus still runs lets it encrypt them again. Run a Full scan in Windows Security > Virus & threat protection > Scan options, then the Microsoft Defender Antivirus (offline scan).
If the ransomware blocks Windows Security, start Safe Mode with Networking and scan from there. Some families install a password stealer as well, so let both scans finish on Windows 11 or Windows 10.
Windows 11: Windows Security > Virus & threat protection > Scan options. Full procedure with screenshots: Run a Microsoft Defender Offline scan
Step 5: Look for shadow copies of the files
Open Command Prompt as administrator and run
vssadmin list shadows. If it lists copies dated before the attack, right-click a folder with encrypted files in File Explorer, choose Properties > Previous Versions, and open or restore a version from before that date.ShadowExplorer, a free tool, shows the same copies when the tab is empty or hidden. Most current families delete shadow copies, so an empty list is normal, but the check takes two minutes on Windows 11 or Windows 10.
Windows 11: vssadmin list shadows shows whether shadow copies exist. Full procedure with screenshots: Ransomware: first steps, finding a decryptor and recovering files
Step 6: Restore the files from a backup or recover deleted originals
Restore from an external backup, File History or OneDrive's version history, choosing a date before the attack. Connect the backup drive only after the scans are clean, or the ransomware encrypts it too.
If there is no backup, file recovery software can sometimes find the deleted originals, because some ransomware writes an encrypted copy and deletes the original file.
Stop writing to the drive and try recovery on Windows 11 or Windows 10 before new files overwrite the space.
Full procedure with screenshots: Recover deleted files (Recycle Bin, backups, OneDrive) On uGetFix
Instructions for each browser and system
The detailed steps for every browser and system this guide covers. Open the one you use.
Manual removal using Safe Mode
Important! →
Manual removal guide might be too complicated for regular computer users. It requires advanced IT knowledge to be performed correctly (if vital system files are removed or damaged, it might result in full Windows compromise), and it also might take hours to complete. Therefore, we highly advise using the automatic method provided above instead.
Step 1. Access Safe Mode with Networking
Manual malware removal should be best performed in the Safe Mode environment.
Windows 7 / Vista / XP
- Click Start > Shutdown > Restart > OK.
- When your computer becomes active, start pressing F8 button (if that does not work, try F2, F12, Del, etc. - it all depends on your motherboard model) multiple times until you see the Advanced Boot Options window.
- Select Safe Mode with Networking from the list.
Windows 10 / Windows 8
- Right-click on Start button and select Settings.
- Scroll down to pick Update & Security.
- On the left side of the window, pick Recovery.
- Now scroll down to find Advanced Startup section.
- Click Restart now.
- Select Troubleshoot.
- Go to Advanced options.
- Select Startup Settings.
- Press Restart.
- Now press 5 or click 5) Enable Safe Mode with Networking.
Step 2. Shut down suspicious processes
Windows Task Manager is a useful tool that shows all the processes running in the background. If malware is running a process, you need to shut it down:
- Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc on your keyboard to open Windows Task Manager.
- Click on More details.
- Scroll down to Background processes section, and look for anything suspicious.
- Right-click and select Open file location.
- Go back to the process, right-click and pick End Task.
- Delete the contents of the malicious folder.
Step 3. Check program Startup
- Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc on your keyboard to open Windows Task Manager.
- Go to Startup tab.
- Right-click on the suspicious program and pick Disable.
Step 4. Delete virus files
Malware-related files can be found in various places within your computer. Here are instructions that could help you find them:
- Type in Disk Cleanup in Windows search and press Enter.
- Select the drive you want to clean (C: is your main drive by default and is likely to be the one that has malicious files in).
- Scroll through the Files to delete list and select the following:
Temporary Internet Files
Downloads
Recycle Bin
Temporary files - Pick Clean up system files.
- You can also look for other malicious files hidden in the following folders (type these entries in Windows Search and press Enter):
%AppData%
%LocalAppData%
%ProgramData%
%WinDir%
After you are finished, reboot the PC in normal mode.
From our report of Jul 2016 · not reviewed since
Vipasana removal guide
The malware removal program will locate the virus and remove Vipasana within a couple of minutes.
Moreover, it ensures that no virus-related files are left on the system. After the threat is permanently eliminated, you can start thinking of the ways how to decrypt the files. As mentioned before, you can try data recovery programs.
The best way to recover the information is to use back-ups. In addition, try to search for the copies on the hard disks. If you do not have any, then it is high time you backed up your files.
You can also store important files on a several portable data storage locations. Lastly, do not forget to remain vigilant while browsing the Web and downloading new software. You never know where this virus might look and await for a new victim.
Report it and recover your files
Report it
Report the attack even if you do not expect the files back: insurers and banks ask for the report number, and police use the contacts in the note to link cases.
- United States
- FBI IC3 · FTC ReportFraud
- United Kingdom
- Report Fraud (formerly Action Fraud) · NCSC
- Australia
- ReportCyber (ASD)
- EU countries
- Europol: national reporting sites
Give the victim ID, the note and the date the files were encrypted. A business that holds personal data may also have to notify its data protection authority, in the EU within 72 hours.
Make the next attack harmless
Vipasana ransomware virus could only hurt the files that had no second copy, and the signs (vipasana ransomware virus in the list of installed apps) showed exactly which ones those were. The 3-2-1 rule fixes that:
- three copies
- two media
- one disconnected
A practical version for a home PC: OneDrive or another cloud backup with version history, plus an external disk that you plug in once a week for File History and then unplug. Test a restore now and then by opening a few files from the backup on another device.
Details, schedules and what not to back up are in our 3-2-1 backup guide for Windows.
Choose a proper web browser and improve your safety with a VPN tool
Online spying has got momentum in recent years and people are getting more and more interested in how to protect their privacy online.
One of the basic means to add a layer of security - choose the most private and secure web browser. Although web browsers can't grant full privacy protection and security, some of them are much better at sandboxing, HTTPS upgrading, active content blocking, tracking blocking, phishing protection, and similar privacy-oriented features.
However, if you want true anonymity, we suggest you employ a powerful VPN - it can encrypt all the traffic that comes and goes out of your computer, preventing tracking completely.
Lost your files? Use data recovery software
While some files located on any computer are replaceable or useless, others can be extremely valuable.
Family photos, work documents, school projects - these are types of files that we don't want to lose. Unfortunately, there are many ways how unexpected data loss can occur:
- power cuts
- Blue Screen of Death errors
- hardware failures
- crypto-malware attack
- even accidental deletion
To ensure that all the files remain intact, you should prepare regular data backups. You can choose cloud-based or physical copies you could restore from later in case of a disaster. If your backups were lost as well or you never bothered to prepare any, can be your only hope to retrieve your invaluable files.
Questions about Vipasana ransomware virus
When will a decryptor for Vipasana ransomware virus be released?
Nobody can promise a date. When we last checked, on 7 October 2026, no free decryptor is known. Decryptors usually appear after one of three events:
- police seize the attackers' servers and keys
- the authors leak or publish the master keys
- researchers find a mistake in how the ransomware generates keys
Some families got a tool within weeks, others never. Keep the encrypted files and the note on an external drive, check No More Ransom every few months, and follow news about the Vipasana ransomware virus family. A decryptor may need an original file, so keep any unencrypted copies too.
Can a data-recovery company decrypt my files for a fee?
Only if a decryptor already exists or the company pays the attackers for you. Some "ransomware recovery" services advertise that they can decrypt families with no known flaw; in practice they negotiate with the attackers and add their own fee. Others use the same free tools listed on No More Ransom.
Before you hire anyone, ask in writing how they will recover the files, whether they will contact the attackers and what happens if they fail. A legitimate service answers clearly. If a free decryptor exists for your family, you can run it yourself.
Should I pay the ransom?
We advise against it, and so do the FBI, Europol and national cyber agencies. Payment does not guarantee a working tool: some attackers never reply, some tools damage files, and some variants have no decryptor at all. Paying also funds further attacks and can make you a target again.
Before considering payment, try every recovery option in this guide and report the attack. Companies must involve their legal adviser and insurer, because payments to sanctioned groups can be illegal. If files are truly irreplaceable, store the encrypted copies and wait; decryptors sometimes appear later.
How did Vipasana ransomware virus get on my computer?
The way Vipasana ransomware virus spreads has not been documented yet, so look at your own recent activity. On home PCs, ransomware most often comes with cracked programs, game cheats, key generators and fake updates, or with an e-mail attachment that was opened. On business networks, attackers usually log in through Remote Desktop with a stolen or guessed password.
Think back to what was downloaded or installed in the days before vipasana ransomware virus in the list of installed apps, and check the Downloads folder and Installed apps sorted by date. Keep anything suspicious for your report, but do not run it again.
Did Vipasana ransomware virus steal my files or passwords?
We do not know yet. Nothing published so far shows data theft by Vipasana ransomware virus, but the only confirmed sign is vipasana ransomware virus in the list of installed apps, which says nothing about what happened before. Many current ransomware attacks copy files or run a password stealer first, so it is wise to act as if they did.
From a clean device, change the passwords that were saved in the browsers on this PC, starting with e-mail and banking, sign out of all sessions and turn on two-step verification. Watch bank statements and account activity for the next few weeks.
Is Vipasana ransomware virus the same as other ransomware with a similar name?
Not necessarily. Ransomware names come from the file extension, the note or a word in the code, so unrelated families often end up with similar names, and one family can appear under several names. The difference matters: a decryptor or advice for one family does not fit another and can damage files.
Compare the ending added to your files and the exact name of the note with the summary table at the top of this guide, then upload the note and one encrypted file to ID Ransomware from a clean device. If the result names another family, follow the guide for that family instead.
How do I open my .docx, .jpg and other files locked by Vipasana?
You cannot open locked files normally while they stay encrypted, and renaming them will not help. Our earlier report did not record the extension that Vipasana adds, so check one locked file name and the ransom note for it.
No free decryptor is known for this variant; check No More Ransom (nomoreransom.org) for updates. Do not rename the files, change the extension or edit them, because that can make recovery harder. Copy the locked files to an external drive before you clean the system, so a decryptor released later still has them.
How can I protect my files from Vipasana and similar ransomware?
Keep tested backups, update the system and treat unexpected attachments as unsafe. Keep at least one backup copy offline, because ransomware also encrypts drives that stay connected. Install system and browser updates soon after they appear, and turn off remote desktop if you do not use it.
Do not open attachments or links from senders you did not expect, even when the message looks urgent. Use a standard user account for daily work instead of an administrator account. Restore a few files from your backup now and then to prove that it works.
Will Fortect remove Vipasana ransomware virus?
Fortect scans Windows for malware and unwanted programs and repairs the system files and settings they change, and its free scan shows what it finds on your PC before you decide anything.
For Vipasana ransomware virus, follow the plan above as well: the browser steps take back permissions and settings that no scanner treats as a threat, and uninstalling the program that brought it removes the source.
Run Microsoft Defender's full scan and, if anything was found, its offline scan as a second opinion. If the symptoms are gone after the plan and both scans are clean, there is nothing more to do.
Sources
- CISA: StopRansomware (read October 7, 2026)
- No More Ransom (read October 7, 2026)
- FTC: How to recognize, remove and avoid malware (read October 7, 2026)
- Microsoft Learn: Microsoft Defender Offline (read October 7, 2026)
- Microsoft Learn: How Microsoft names malware (read October 7, 2026)