Geek's Advice

VYIA ransomware is designed to lock all your computer files via encryption

VYIA ransomware is an emergent file-encrypting computer virus with proven links to the notorious STOP/DJVU ransomware family. Just like others within the family, it attacks by encrypting all files it can locate in any computer it infects while also appending .vyia extension to each file name. Take for instance, a file that was formerly saved as 1.jpg becomes 1.jpg.vyia and the same action is repeated on all others. Also, while the attack is still ongoing, certain ransom notes known as _readme.txt will be dropped in every folder. These notes contain information from the cybercriminals behind the attack explaining the situation and the need for the victim to reach out to them in order to certain fees as ransom in exchange for VYIA decryption tool.

As contained in the notification, they will explain that VYIA ransomware virus was able to encrypt the entire files contained in the compromised computer, which include important documents, pictures, and indeed all other data. Therefore, since a very strong and complex encryption key was used, the victim won’t be able to recover them again except they pay a certain fixed amount as ransom so they could decrypt the files. Two emails – support@sysmail.ch, helprestoremanager@airmail.cc will equally be dropped which they hope the victim will respond with.

Also included in the notification are decryption service prices which are listed as follows as well as the conditions of payment: Although ransom fee is quoted as $980 but they will inform the victim that 50% discount is available provided they can pay the ransom within three days or 72 hours of being notified, which brings it down to $490. However, failure to do so within that specific period means only 100% payment would be acceptable by the cybercriminals.

However, if the victim decides to contact the cybercriminals through any of the emails provided, they will also direct him to make payment by purchasing cryptocurrency that is worth the amount earlier quoted in hard currency and transfer it to wallet address they will provide. Obviously, they only accept such medium of payment because of the anonymity it provides. In order to prove to the victim about their expertise and influence him to make payment without further delay, they often request for excerpts of the encrypted file to be sent to them for test decryption, but will also warn that such excerpt must not contain any information that could be perceived as important.

In any case, our cybersecurity experts recommend that victims should only follow the FBI’s directive regarding ransom demand/payment which clearly says NO TO RANSOM PAYMENT. Why they take such a stand is because, generally, making ransom payments does not guarantee file recovery. Worse still, such payment would only encourage malware developers to continue constituting nuisance by employing more hands and creating more malware since they would find it highly profitable. Already, many people are ripped off through this means annually and this has to stop.

Additionally, this virus is infamous for dropping Trojans like AZORULT and VIDAR that passively steal sensitive information such as browser cookies, banking details, software login credentials, cryptocurrency wallets, passwords, browsing history etc., which the cybercriminals equally use in perpetrating more fraudulent acts like blackmails and robbery.

For those that have been infected by this variant of STOP/DJVU ransomware, it would be in your best interest to remove VYIA ransomware virus without any delay. You can do this effectively by activating any strong antivirus software while the computer is set up in Safe Mode with Networking. If you’re not sure of any brand of antivirus to work with, please do not hesitate to go for INTEGO Antivirus because it is among the best out there as verified by our team. Another option we recommend considering is downloading RESTORO which is proved reliable when repairing virus-affected Windows OS files.

Ransomware Summary

REMOVE MALWARE & REPAIR VIRUS DAMAGE

Ransomware distribution techniques computer users should be wary of

The most common way through which computer users often become victims of STOP/DJVU ransomware variants including VYIA virus is when they download from online malicious torrents. Cybercriminals are known to always upload pirated software contents that are laced with malware to such platforms and they become triggered when unsuspecting users download them in their various computers. Therefore, the so-called “cracks” and key generators among other fake contents created by them are highly dangerous and should be avoided. The cybercriminals then upload such contents to online torrent libraries as baits to lure their victims, the most popular pirated ones they often use are listed below:

• League of Legends;
• Fifa 20;
• Tenorshare 4ukey;
• AutoCad;
• Opera browser;
• Corel Draw;
• VMware Workstation;
• Cubase;
• Adobe Illustrator;
• Adobe Photoshop;
• Internet Download Manager;
• KMSPico (illegal Windows activation tool).

Therefore, if you’re among those that often visit malicious online torrents platform, you’re advised to immediately stop such risky behavior. Cybercriminals prey on users who want to make use of copyrighted software content illegally and without paying the requisite fees attached to them. Also, remember that such activity goes against copyright laws and offenders are liable to be penalized. On the contrary, we suggest that users should rather encourage software developers by obtaining their products legitimately and also paying the fees attached to them. It is also important to note that whatever amount a user pays for such needs would always be insignificant when compared to the huge ransom demands usually made by cybercriminals on their victims, and neither will there be any risk of losing vital and sensitive information.

Another method used by cybercriminals to distribute ransomware is through malicious email attachments. In this method, they would compose highly believable and “real” looking messages that would be accompanied with attachments that were crafted using formats such as DOCX, PDF and XLS among others that allow JavaScript or Macro Functions, both of which can be used in downloading payload from external sources and triggering them in other computers.

The most worrisome part of it is that cybercriminals have increasingly become more sophisticated in recent times and would either send emails that appear to be coming from either friends/family/colleagues or just any popular brand out there. The brands they usually impersonate include Amazon, UPS, eBay, DHL, and FedEx, among others, and would also use compelling terms like Tracking Details, Invoice, and Order Summary etc. Alternatively, they may even make use of email spoofing tactics to hide the actual sender’s email address.

However, no matter the gimmick they may use, it is important to apply common sense at all times. If an email is unexpected or suspicious for any other reason, then it could be a red flag and you should avoid opening such.

Furthermore, those that unfortunately became victims of any variant of STOP/DJVU ransomware should avoid certain websites that usually claim to provide miraculous decryption solutions because such rarely exist. Currently, only DiskTuna and Emsisoft have proven to be reliable in decrypting/repairing STOP/DJVU encrypted files.

More information about the infection

For those who want to understand more about the extent to which their PCs were affected following VYIA ransomware attack, this section would certainly come in handy. The first thing this computer virus does is to set up build.exe or build2.exe executables alongside winupdate.exe that pops up fake update Windows screen. The virus then requests the computer’s geolocation information by connecting to https[:]//api.2ip.ua/geo.json URL, and saves the response to the geo.json file. Afterwards, it will begin information gathering of relevant details about the computer under attack and would be stored as geolocation-related data; such information will include the computer’s geolocation, latitude and longitude, and zip code details. Shown in the image below is an example of how the geo.json file appears.

Another file will also be created for hardware details, the installed software list, as well as active processes that would be forwarded to information.txt.

At this point, the malware will make a comparison between the country code of the infected computer and certain countries they designated as encryption-exempted nations, namely: Russian Federation, Syria, Armenia, Belarus, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Kazachstan and Kyrgyzstan. If it shows that the location of the computer is within any of the aforementioned countries, it will instantly abort its operation. If otherwise, it will begin the full data encryption process by going to their server to extract online encryption key, including the victim’s ID, and would save them in both bowsakkdestx.txt file and PersonalID.txt file. You can check below to see examples of these files.

Under specific circumstances, the virus might fail to extract any online encryption key from their server. In such a case, it resorts to the use of a hardcoded offline key, which is the same for all victims of that particular virus variant. The appearance of t1 characters as a suffix to the personal ID is an indication that offline key was used and raises hope that .vyia files could be decrypted going forwarded. More details about this are provided below.

At this stage, the ransomware will proceed to full data encryption by scanning every folder and encrypting them with Salsa20 before locking the encryption key with the RSA-2048 key. To make encrypted file distinguishable, the virus also appends .vyia extension to its name.

Here is a screenshot of the _readme.txt ransom note dropped in several computer locations.

Afterwards, the virus would delete all Volume Shadow Copies using the help of the command prompt task as displayed below:

^{vssadmin.exe Delete Shadows /All /Quiet}

In completing the process, the malware will blacklist some domains by adding them to the Windows HOSTS file. Any attempt by the victim to access them may bring up a DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN error message. This is a cunning attempt to prevent the victim from getting help online.

Remove VYIA Ransomware Virus, Recover Lost Files

In conclusion, it is important to reiterate that victims of STOP/DJVU variants should remove VYIA ransomware virus from the infected PC without any delay and also follow the steps outlined below. Meanwhile, remember that it is necessary to set up your computer in Safe Mode with Networking option before running an antivirus on it. Our recommended AV solution is INTEGO Antivirus which we consider reliable and powerful.

Steps to take now you’ve removed VYIA ransomware virus:

• Get in touch with the relevant government agency nearest to you and inform them about the situation.
• Restore lost data with any backup device available to you.
• It is time to learn about possible ways STOP/DJVU encrypted files can be decrypted.
• It is very important to change all passwords that were used on the infected computer.
• Consider downloading RESTORO to identify and repair damage caused for Windows OS files.

Above all measures, it is best to remain proactive by avoiding risky online behaviors that could put one in danger of becoming a victim to cybercriminals.

OUR GEEKS RECOMMEND

Our team recommends a two-step rescue plan to remove ransomware and other remaining malware from your computer, plus repair caused virus damage to the system:

STEP 1. REMOVE AUTOMATICALLY WITH ROBUST ANTIVIRUS

REMOVE & PROTECT WITH INTEGO

Get INTEGO ANTIVIRUS for Windows to remove ransomware, Trojans, adware and other spyware and malware variants and protect your PC and network drives 24/7.. This VB100-certified security software uses state-of-art technology to provide protection against ransomware, Zero-Day attacks and advanced threats, Intego Web Shield blocks dangerous websites, phishing attacks, malicious downloads and installation of potentially unwanted programs.

Use INTEGO Antivirus to remove detected threats from your computer.

Read full review here.

STEP 2. REPAIR VIRUS DAMAGE TO YOUR COMPUTER

DOWNLOAD RESTORO

RESTORO provides a free scan that helps to identify hardware, security and stability issues and presents a comprehensive report which can help you to locate and fix detected issues manually. It is a great PC repair software to use after you remove malware with professional antivirus. The full version of software will fix detected issues and repair virus damage caused to your Windows OS files automatically.

RESTORO uses AVIRA scanning engine to detect existing spyware and malware. If any are found, the software will eliminate them.

Read full review here.

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Norbert Webb

Norbert Webb is the head of Geek’s Advice team. He is the chief editor of the website who controls the quality of content published. The man also loves reading cybersecurity news, testing new software and sharing his insights on them. Norbert says that following his passion for information technology was one of the best decisions he has ever made. “I don’t feel like working while I’m doing something I love.” However, the geek has other interests, such as snowboarding and traveling.