The 69 virus falls under the ransomware type of infection. Harmful software of this type encrypts all the data on your PC (images, documents, excel tables, music, videos, etc) and appends its specific extension to every file, creating the Readme_now.txt files in every folder which contains the encrypted files.
69 virus: what is known so far?
☝️ A strictly accurate description for the 69 would be “a ransomware malicious agent”.
69 appends its extra .69 extension to the name of every encoded file. For instance, an image entitled “photo.jpg” will be turned into “photo.jpg.69”. Likewise, the Excel file named “table.xlsx” will become “table.xlsx.69”, and so forth.
In every folder with the encrypted files, a Readme_now.txt text file will appear. It is a ransom money memo. Therein you can find information about the ways of paying the ransom and some other information. The ransom note most probably contains instructions on how to purchase the decryption tool from the 69 developers. That is how they do it.
69 summary:
| Name | 69 Virus |
| Extension | .69 |
| Ransomware note | Readme_now.txt |
| Detection | Win32/GenKryptik.FXXR, Win32/Packed.CAB.K suspicious, Trojan:Win32/Zbot.RB!MTB |
| Symptoms | Your files (photos, videos, documents) get a .69 extension and you can’t open them. |
| Fix Tool | See If Your System Has Been Affected by 69 virus |
In the picture below, you can see what a folder with files encrypted by the 69 looks like. Each filename has the “.69” extension appended to it.
That is how encrypted “.69” files look.
How did my machine catch 69 ransomware?
There are plenty of possible ways of ransomware infiltration.
Nowadays, there are three most exploited ways for hackers to have the 69 virus settled in your digital environment. These are email spam, Trojan injection and peer-to-peer networks.
If you open your inbox and see emails that look just like notifications from utility services companies, postal agencies like FedEx, Internet providers, and whatnot, but whose “from” field is unknown to you, be wary of opening those emails. They are very likely to have a malicious file attached to them. So it is even riskier to download any attachments that come with letters like these.
Another thing the hackers might try is a Trojan virus model1. A Trojan is an object that infiltrates into your computer disguised as something else. For instance, you download an installer of some program you need or an update for some service. However, what is unpacked turns out to be a harmful agent that encrypts your data. Since the update file can have any title and any icon, you’d better be sure that you can trust the source of the things you’re downloading. The best way is to trust the software developers’ official websites.
As for the peer-to-peer networks like torrents or eMule, the threat is that they are even more trust-based than the rest of the Web. You can never know what you download until you get it. So you’d better be using trustworthy resources. Also, it is a good idea to scan the folder containing the downloaded files with the antivirus as soon as the downloading is complete.
How do I get rid of the 69 virus?
It is crucial to note that besides encrypting your data, the 69 virus will probably install the Azorult Spyware on your computer to seize your credentials to various accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). That program can extract your credentials from your browser’s auto-filling data.
Often criminals would decrypt some of your files to prove that they really have the decryption tool. Since 69 virus is a relatively new ransomware, safety measures developers have not yet found a method to undo its work. Nevertheless, the decoding instruments are frequently updated, so the effective countermeasure may soon be available.
Of course, if the evildoers do the job of encoding someone’s essential files, the hopeless person will probably fulfill their demands. Nevertheless, paying a ransom gives no guarantee that you’re getting your blocked information back. It is still dangerous. After getting the ransom, the racketeers may send a wrong decryption key to the injured party. There were reports of hackers just vanishing after getting the ransom without even bothering to reply.
The best safety measure against ransomware is to have aan OS restore point or the copies of your essential files in the cloud drive or at least on an external disk. Surely, that might be not enough. The most important thing could be that file you were working upon when it all went down. Nevertheless, it is something. It is also advisable to scan your PC for viruses with the anti-malware utility after the OS restoration.
69 is not the only ransomware of its kind, since there are other specimens of ransomware out there that act in the same manner. Examples of those are Hhwq, Ggwq, Llqq, and some others. The two basic differences between them and the 69 are the ransom amount and the method of encryption. The rest is almost identical: documents become blocked, their extensions altered, ransom notes emerge in each folder containing encrypted files.
Some lucky victims were able to decode the arrested files with the aid of the free tools provided by anti-malware experts. Sometimes the hackers accidentally send the decoding key to the victims in the ransom note. Such an extraordinary fail allows the victim to restore the files. But obviously, one should never expect such a chance. Remember, ransomware is a criminals’ tool to pull the money out of their victims.
How do I avert ransomware injection?
69 ransomware doesn’t have a superpower, so as any similar malware.
You can defend your computer from its attack in three easy steps:
- Never open any emails from unknown senders with strange addresses, or with content that has nothing to do with something you are expecting (how can you win in a lottery without even taking part in it?). In case the email subject is more or less something you are expecting, check all elements of the dubious letter with caution. A fake email will always contain mistakes.
- Do not use cracked or unknown software. Trojan viruses are often distributed as a part of cracked products, most likely under the guise of “patch” to prevent the license check. Understandably, potentially dangerous programs are difficult to distinguish from trustworthy ones, as trojans may also have the functionality you need. You can try to find information about this software product on the anti-malware message boards, but the optimal way is not to use such software.
- And finally, to be sure about the safety of the objects you downloaded, use GridinSoft Anti-Malware. This program will be a powerful defense for your personal computer.
Reasons why I would recommend GridinSoft2
There is no better way to recognize, remove and prevent ransomware than to use an anti-malware software from GridinSoft3.
Download Removal Tool.
You can download GridinSoft Anti-Malware by clicking the button below:
Run the setup file.
When setup file has finished downloading, double-click on the setup-antimalware-fix.exe file to install GridinSoft Anti-Malware on your system.
An User Account Control asking you about to allow GridinSoft Anti-Malware to make changes to your device. So, you should click “Yes” to continue with the installation.
Press “Install” button.
Once installed, Anti-Malware will automatically run.
Wait for the Anti-Malware scan to complete.
GridinSoft Anti-Malware will automatically start scanning your computer for 69 infections and other malicious programs. This process can take a 20-30 minutes, so I suggest you periodically check on the status of the scan process.
Click on “Clean Now”.
When the scan has completed, you will see the list of infections that GridinSoft Anti-Malware has detected. To remove them click on the “Clean Now” button in right corner.
Frequently Asked Questions
🤔 How can I open “.69” files?Is it possible to open“.69” files?
There’s no way to do it, unless the files “.69” files are decrypted.
🤔 What should I do to make my files accessible as fast as possible?
Hopefully, you have made a copy of those important files. In case you haven’t, there is still a chance that you do have a Restore Point from some time ago to roll back the whole system to the moment when it had no virus yet, but already had your files. The rest of the methods require patience.
🤔 You have advised using GridinSoft Anti-Malware to get rid of the 69 virus. Does it mean that all my files, currently encrypted, will be removed too?
Absolutely not! Your encrypted files are no threat to your PC.
With the help of GridinSoft Anti-Malware, you can clean your computer off the actual viruses. The malware that has infiltrated your system is most likely still functional and it scans your system every so often to encrypt any new files you might create on your PC after the initial attack. As it has been mentioned above, the 69 malware comes with the company. It installs backdoors and keyloggers that can take your account passwords by trespass and provide hackers with easy access to your PC in the future.
🤔 What should I do if the 69 ransomware has blocked my computer and I can’t get the activation code.
In such an unfortunate situation, you need to have a flash memory drive with a previously installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to perform the cleaning. The point is that the ransomware starts automatically as the system launches and encodes any new files created or brought into your PC. To stop this function – use Safe Mode, which allows only the essential programs to run upon system boot. Consider reading our manual on booting Windows in Safe Mode.
🤔 And what should I do now?
Some of the encrypted data can be found elsewhere.
- If you sent or received your important files via email, you could still download them from your online mail server.
- You might have shared images or videos with your friends or family members. Just ask them to give those images back to you.
- If you have initially got any of your files from the Web, you can try to do it again.
- Your messengers, social networks pages, and cloud drives might have all those files too.
- It might be that you still have the needed files on your old computer, a notebook, mobile, memory stick, etc.
HINT: You can use file recovery programs4 to get your lost data back since ransomware encodes the copies of your files, deleting the original ones. In the tutorial below, you can learn how to recover your files with PhotoRec, but be advised: you won’t be able to do it before you remove the virus with an anti-malware program.
Also, you can contact the following official fraud and scam sites to report this attack:
- In the United States: On Guard Online;
- In Canada: Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre;
- In the United Kingdom: Action Fraud;
- In Australia: SCAMwatch;
- In New Zealand: Consumer Affairs Scams;
- In France: Agence nationale de la sécurité des systèmes d’information;
- In Germany: Bundesamt für Sicherheit in der Informationstechnik;
- In Ireland: An Garda Síochána;
To report the attack, you can contact local executive boards. For instance, if you live in USA, you can have a talk with FBI Local field office, IC3 or Secret Service.
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Brendan SmithHow to Remove 69 Ransomware & Recover PC
Name: 69 Virus
Description: 69 Virus is a ransomware-type infections. This virus encrypts important personal files (video, photos, documents). The encrypted files can be tracked by a specific .69 extension. So, you can't use them at all.
Operating System: Windows
Application Category: Virus
User Review
( votes)References
- You can read more on Trojans, their use and types in the Trojan-dedicated section of GridinSoft official website.
- GridinSoft Anti-Malware Review from HowToFix site: https://howtofix.guide/gridinsoft-anti-malware/
- More information about GridinSoft products: https://gridinsoft.com/comparison
- Here are Best Data Recovery Software Of 2023.
