Wiki Ransomware | Guide to remove it from system

Guide to Remove Wiki Ransomware –

Wiki Ransomware is the latest member of the infamous Dharma Malware family. Alike other crypto-viruses, Wiki Virus has been developed to encrypt the files, degrade the PC performance & demand hefty ransom amount from the victims in exchange of the Wiki decrypter tool.

Wiki virus Ransomware spreads its infection through commonly used internet services such as spam e-mail campaigns, unreliable software download channels and fake software updaters. Once the PC is infected, Wiki virus searches the system for targeted system & user file extensions. When found, it encrypts the files using strong Encryption Algorithms & makes them instantly unreadable. It further drops a ransom-note on desktop of the infected system.

The note suggests the victim to pay the required ransom amount in Bitcoins  to purchase Wiki decrypter. Any attempt of renaming the encrypted files or trying to decrypt using third party software may lead to permanent data loss.

Regardless, cyber-security analysts recommend users avoid communicating the hackers & making the ransom payment. Despite paying the ransom, the users not always receive the promised decryption tool or private unique key.

Well, now you may wonder what the possible ways to restoring the encrypted data or preventing Wiki attack are. Continue to read to find answers to your questions-

Threat Summary of Wiki Ransomware –

Threat Summary

Name	Wiki
Type	Ransomware
Category	Malware
Targeted OS	Windows
Symptoms	It infects your system with the motive to encrypt stored files. After successful encryption, Wiki demands Ransom amount in bitcoins to in exchange of the decryption tool & unique private key.
Damage	You cannot open a locked file without paying the asked ransom. Additionally, it may increase the malicious payload in your system.
Removal	Download Removal Tool

Threat Behavior of Wiki Ransomware –

The latest member of Dharma Malware Family, Wiki Ransomware is currently posing as a menace to the computer users around the world. It stealthily infects the system via commonly used internet services, encrypts the files & instantly makes them unreadable to the users.

Wiki Ransomware uses highly-complex encryption methods to encrypt the files. The encrypted files are renamed by appending-

• A unique ID number
• The developer’s e-mail address
• .wiki extension to the file names.

For example, a file named “image.jpg” might be renamed as image.jpg.id-1E757D00.[[email protected]].wiki.

Certain file extensions that Wiki Ransomware is able to encrypt are-

• Document files (.docx, .doc, .odt, .rtf, .text, .pdf, .htm, .ppt)
• Audio Files (.mp3, .aif, .iff, .m3u, .m4u, .mid, .mpa, .wma, .ra, .avi, .mov, .mp4)
• Video Files (.3gp, .mpeg, .3g2, .asf, .asx, .flv, .mpg, .wmv, .vob)
• Images (.jpg, .jpeg, .raw, .tif, .gif, .png)
• Backup Files (.bck, .bckp, .tmp, .gho)

The encrypted files are instantly made unreadable & hence, it restricts the users from accessing/opening the files.

It has been found that the threat behavior of Wiki File Virus shares some common traits with other Ransomware infections such as Maze 2019, MedusaLocker & Deal. These crypto-viruses encrypt the files & demand handsome amount for decryption. The major differences in these Ransomware infections are type of encryption algorithms used & amount of ransom demanded, which usually ranges between three-digit to four-digit sums in USD.

However, the hackers demand ransom in digital currencies so as to avoid being tracked by the cyber-security analysts.

Details of the Ransom Note of Wiki Ransomware

Once the targeted files are encrypted, Wiki Ransomware drops a ransom-demanding note on the victim’s desktop. This note is in a text format & named as “FILES ENCRYPTED.txt”.

The note explains the current situation of the PC & asks the victim to contact the hackers to get the encrypted data restored.

In addition to that, a pop-up window covers the screen, which contains the ransom note in a detailed manner. It asks the victims to write an e-mail to the hackers from the alternative e-mail address provided in the note in case they do not receive response from hackers in 24 hours. The e-mail must contain the unique ID (mentioned in ransom note) of the victim in the subject-line.

Hackers demand the ransom for decryption in Bitcoins, which solely depends on how quickly the victim is contacting the hackers. They promise to send the Wiki Decryption tool after receiving the ransom amount.

To display the authenticity of their promises, the hackers offer to decrypt any one file for absolutely no cost. However, the file sent for decryption should not contain sensitive information. This way the hackers attempt to earn the confidence of the victims.

Regardless of the claims made in the ransom-note, computer users are expressly advised not to communicate with the hackers & make any ransom payment. Victims not always receive necessary tools & unique private key in exchange of the ransom amount.

Analysis has revealed that majority of the victims who paid the ransom did not receive any response from the hackers. And sadly, they lost their data permanently.

Therefore, in order to protect the data from encryption or damage, computer users are advised to keep the data backup in remote servers &/or on unplugged storage devices.

Distribution Techniques of Wiki Ransomware –

The cybercriminals use various strategies for malware distribution which include –

1. Software Bundling: Software bundling is the process in which a malicious program is distributed with other free software, to get an unnoticed entry into your computer system. When a user installs a free application, the malicious programs gains a front door entry with the free application, the user has downloaded. Thus, it is a good idea to keep an eye on the installation screens while installing these free applications.
2. Infected Storage Devices: Your system can also get infected by using removable media such as USB hard drives and jump drives without scanning them with an anti-virus.
3. Spam Emails – Spamming is the most economic and common method used for the distribution of such malware. The targeted users get genuine looking emails which contain .doc, .txt, and other similar attachments. These attachments can be named as anything which can grab the user’s attention and triggers him/her to open the attachment. As soon as the user opens this attachment, the malware infects the user’s computer system.
4. Malicious Websites or Malevolent Advertisements: The malicious websites are the ones which are created just for promoting the malware infections. Such websites include but are not limited to porn sites, torrent sites and other free downloading platforms. By visiting such websites, the adware infects the user’s computer without permission. Fake advertisements and updates like Flash player and windows updates which ask the user to update to the latest version are a few examples. When the users click on such links, their computer system gets infected. That is why, it is highly recommended to resist clicking on such links. Also avoid clicking on advertisements offering free stuff such as Win an iPhones, cars or free overseas trips etc.

Download Vipre Malware Remover

How to remove Wiki Ransomware infection from the system-

 The removal steps of the Wiki Ransomware are still not known at this time. However, here are few common measures that have been concluded after proper research & analysis by our analysts.

STEP A: Reboot your system to Safe Mode

To restart the system to Safe Mode with Networking,  if already switched ON then follow the below steps:

Windows 7/ Vista/ XP

1. Click on Windows icon present in the lower left corner of the computer screen.
2. Select and click  Restart.
3. When the screen goes blank, Keep tapping  F8  Key until you see the Advanced Boot Options window.
4. With the help of arrow keys on keyboard, Select Safe Mode with Networking  option from the list and press the Enter Key. The system will then restart to Safe Mode with Networking.

5 Once the system restarts, click on the username and enter the password (if any) to log in.

Windows 10 / Windows 8

1. Press and hold the Shift Key and simultaneously click on the windows icon present in the lower left corner of your computer screen.
2. While the Shift key is still pressed click on the Power button and then click on Restart.
3. Now select Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup Settings.
4. When the Startup Settings screen appears which is the first screen to appear after restart, select and click on Enable Safe Mode with Networking. The system will then restart to Safe Mode with Networking.
5. Once the system restarts in Safe Mode, click on the username and enter the password, if any to log in.

STEP B: Delete the suspicious key from the Configuration Settings

1. Press Windows Button and R key simultaneously to initiate the “Run Box”.
2. Type “Regedit” in Run Box, select it and press Enter.
3. An authorization dialog box will appear, then you just have to click “Yes”. (The dialog box appearance may vary depending on OS used. For Windows 10 the the dialog box looks like the first screenshot and for windows 7 it appears like the second screenshot)
4. In the registry editor, take the backup of the current registry settings before making any changes in case you want to revert to old settings later. For this, Click on File option in the menu and select Export. Save the entry at a known location.
5. From the Menu, Click Edit and Select Find.
6. Enter Wiki Ransomware and click OK in the search box.
7. Select and delete suspicious  enteries.

STEP C: Restore the encrypted data via Windows previous version

If the system restore was enabled for both, system and user files, then you can recover your personal data through Windows Previous Version, provided the ransomware has not damaged the backup files. To restore your data follow the instructions given below –

1. Open My Computer and search for the folder you want to restore.
2. As soon as you find it, right click on it and choose the restore previous version option from the new window.
3. This option will display all the previous copies of the folder.
4. Now select restore data and through the options i.e. Open – Copy – Restore. 

STEP D: Restore the System Files & Settings

From Control Panel

For Windows 7

1. Click on the ‘Start’ button on the taskbar. This will open the Start menu.
2. Click on the ‘Control Panel’ button in the Start menu. This will open the control panel window.
3. In the Control Panel window, click on the ‘View by:’ button on the top right. Select the Large Icon option
4. In the control Panel window click on the ‘Recovery Icon’. This will open a window that will ask ‘Restore the computer to an earlier point in time’.
5. Click on the ‘Open system restore’ button. This will open the ‘system restore ’window where you need to click on the Next Button.
6.  Select the restore point that is prior the infiltration of Wiki Ransomware. After doing that, click Next.
7. This will open the ‘Confirm your restore point’ dialog box. Click on Finish button. This will restore your system to a previous restore point before your system was infected by Wiki Ransomware.

OR

From Command Prompt

1. Type cmd in the search box and click on the command prompt to open the Command Prompt window. box and clicking on it.
2. Once the Command Prompt window shows up, enter cd restore and click Enter.(Ensure that you in the system32 directory of Windows folder in C Drive)
3. Now type rstrui and press Enter again.
4. When a new window shows up, click Next and select your restore point that is prior the infiltration of Wiki Ransomware. After doing that, click Next.
5. This will open the ‘Confirm your restore point’ dialog box. Click on Finish button. This will restore your system to a previous restore point before your system was infected by Wiki Ransomware.

OR

type ‘rstrui’ in the search box

1. Type ‘Rstrui’ in the search box present on the task bar. This will open the System restore dialog box.

Continue to follow steps 4 & 5 of Method 2 to restore the System Files and settings.

How to prevent Wiki Ransomware from infecting your system-

1. Keeping the Operating System Updated- In order to remain protected and avoid such infections, it is recommended to keep your Operating System updated by enabling the automatic update on your system. The systems with outdated or older versions of Operating System become an easy target for the attackers.
2. Resist clicking on spam emails – One of the major techniques used for malware distribution is forwarding spam emails to the user. The system gets infected as soon as the user clicks on the attachment. These mails appear to be genuine, so be aware and resist falling for these tricks.
3. Keep an eye on third party installations- It is quite important that you take due care while installing any third party applications for they are major source of such infections. Such malware programs come bundled with the free applications thereby requiring the user to remain cautious.
4. Regular periodical backup- In order to keep your data and files safe, it is recommended to take regular back up of all your data and files either on an external drive or cloud.
5. Use Anti-Virus Protection- We strongly recommend the use of antivirus protection/internet security in your PC like Vipre and BULL GUARD so that it remains safe.
6. Enable the Ad Blocker/Popup Blocker in your browser- Enabling the popup blocker/ ad blocker in your chosen browser will help you to stay protected from annoying adware.