BAAL Virus (.BAAL Files) — How to Remove?

The Baal virus belongs under the Makop ransomware family. Harmful software of such sort encrypts all user’s data on the PC (images, documents, excel sheets, music, videos, etc) and appends its extra extension to every file, leaving the readme-warning.txt files in every directory with the encrypted files.

It is better to prevent, than repair and repent!

When we talk about the intrusion of unfamiliar programs into your computer’s work, the proverb “Forewarned is forearmed” describes the situation as accurately as possible. Gridinsoft Anti-Malware is exactly the tool that is always useful to have in your armory: fast, efficient, up-to-date. It is appropriate to use it as an emergency help at the slightest suspicion of infection.

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What is Baal virus?

☝️ A scientifically correct denomination for the Baal is “a Makop family ransomware-type malicious agent”.

The renaming will be done according to the following pattern: .baal. After the encryption, a file entitled, for instance, “report.docx” will be changed to “report.docx.[2AF20FA3].[baal0625@goat.si].baal”.

In every folder with the encrypted files, a readme-warning.txt file will appear. It is a ransom money memo. It contains information about the ways of contacting the racketeers and some other information. The ransom note usually contains instructions on how to purchase the decryption tool from the Baal developers. You can get this tool after contacting baal0625@goat.si via email. That is basically the scheme of the malefaction.

Baal outline:

The readme-warning.txt document coming in package with the Baal ransomware states the following:

::: Greetings :::


Little FAQ:
.1.
Q: Whats Happen?
A: Your files have been encrypted and now have the "baal" extension. The file structure was not damaged, we did everything possible so that this could not happen.


.2.
Q: How to recover files?
A: If you wish to decrypt your files you will need to pay in bitcoins.


.3.
Q: What about guarantees?
A: Its just a business. We absolutely do not care about you and your deals, except getting benefits. If we do not do our work and liabilities - nobody will cooperate with us. Its not in our interests.
To check the ability of returning files, you can send to us any 2 files with SIMPLE extensions(jpg,xls,doc, etc... not databases!) and low sizes(max 1 mb), we will decrypt them and send back to you. That is our guarantee.

 

.4.
Q: How to contact with you?
A: You can write us to our mailbox: baal0625@goat.si or pecunia0318@tutanota.com


.5.
Q: How will the decryption process proceed after payment?
A: After payment we will send to you our scanner-decoder program and detailed instructions for use. With this program you will be able to decrypt all your encrypted files.


.6.
Q: If I don’t want to pay bad people like you?
A: If you will not cooperate with our service - for us, its does not matter. But you will lose your time and data, cause only we have the private key. In practice - time is much more valuable than money.


:::BEWARE:::
DON'T try to change encrypted files by yourself!
If you will try to use any third party software for restoring your data or antivirus solutions - please make a backup for all encrypted files!
Any changes in encrypted files may entail damage of the private key and, as result, the loss all data.

In the image below, you can see what a folder with files encrypted by the Baal looks like. Each filename has the “.baal” extension added to it.

An example of encrypted .baal files.

How did my machine catch Baal ransomware?

There are plenty of possible ways of ransomware infiltration.

Nowadays, there are three most exploited methods for evil-doers to have ransomware working in your digital environment. These are email spam, Trojan injection and peer-to-peer networks.

If you open your inbox and see letters that look just like notifications from utility services providers, delivery agencies like FedEx, Internet providers, and whatnot, but whose mailer is unknown to you, beware of opening those emails. They are most likely to have a ransomware file attached to them. Thus it is even riskier to open any attachments that come with letters like these.

Another option for ransom hunters is a Trojan horse model³. A Trojan is an object that infiltrates into your PC disguised as something else. For instance, you download an installer for some program you need or an update for some software. But what is unpacked turns out to be a harmful program that encodes your data. As the installation package can have any title and any icon, you have to make sure that you can trust the source of the files you’re downloading. The best thing is to use the software companies’ official websites.

As for the peer-to-peer networks like torrent trackers or eMule, the threat is that they are even more trust-based than the rest of the Internet. You can never guess what you download until you get it. Our suggestion is that you use trustworthy resources. Also, it is a good idea to scan the directory containing the downloaded files with the antivirus as soon as the downloading is complete.

How to remove the Baal virus?

It is crucial to inform you that besides encrypting your data, the Baal virus will probably deploy the Azorult Spyware on your PC to get access to credentials to various accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). That program can extract your logins and passwords from your browser’s auto-filling cardfile.

Sometimes racketeers would decode some of your files to prove that they indeed have the decryption program. Since Baal virus is a relatively new ransomware, safety measures designers have not yet found a way to undo its work. Nevertheless, the decoding instruments are frequently upgraded, so the effective countermeasure may soon be available.

Understandably, if the evildoers succeed in encoding someone’s essential files, the desperate person will most likely comply with their demands. Despite that, paying to criminals gives no guarantee that you’re getting your files back. It is still risky. After getting the ransom, the racketeers may deliver a wrong decryption key to the injured party. There were reports about malefactors just vanishing after getting the money without even writing back.

The best safety measure against ransomware is to have aan OS restore point or the copies of your critical files in the cloud disk or at least on an external drive. Of course, that might be not enough. The most important thing could be that one you were working upon when it all went down. But at least it is something. It is also wise to scan your drives with the antivirus program after the system restoration.

Baal is not the only ransomware of its kind, since there are other specimens of ransomware out there that act in the same manner. For instance, Bbyy, Bbzz, Bnrs, and some others. The two basic differences between them and the Baal are the ransom amount and the method of encryption. The rest is the same: files become encrypted, their extensions changed, ransom notes are created in every folder containing encrypted files.

Some fortunate people were able to decrypt the blocked files with the aid of the free tools provided by anti-malware developers. Sometimes the racketeers accidentally send the decryption key to the wronged in the ransom note. Such an epic fail allows the user to restore the files. But naturally, one should never expect such a chance. Remember, ransomware is a criminals’ instrument to pull the money out of their victims.

How do I avert ransomware attack?

Baal ransomware doesn’t have a endless power, so as any similar malware.

You can protect your PC from ransomware injection within several easy steps:

• Never open any letters from unknown mailers with unknown addresses, or with content that has likely no connection to something you are waiting for (how can you win in a money prize draw without even taking part in it?). In case the email subject is more or less something you are waiting for, scrutinize all elements of the dubious email with caution. A hoax letter will always have mistakes.
• Never use cracked or unknown software. Trojans are often spreaded as an element of cracked software, possibly as a “patch” preventing the license check. But potentially dangerous programs are very hard to distinguish from trustworthy ones, as trojans sometimes have the functionality you need. Try searching for information on this program on the anti-malware forums, but the best solution is not to use such software.
• And to be sure about the safety of the objects you downloaded, check them with GridinSoft Anti-Malware. This program will be a powerful armor for your personal computer.

Reasons why I would recommend GridinSoft⁴

There is no better way to recognize, remove and prevent ransomware than to use an anti-malware software from GridinSoft⁵.

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 Baal 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 finished, 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.

FAQ

🤔 Are the “.baal” files accessible?

Negative. That is why ransomware is so frustrating. Until you decode the “.baal” files you will not be able to access them.

🤔 The encrypted files are very important to me. How can I decrypt them quickly?

Hopefully, you have made a copy of those important files. Otherwise, you might try to employ System Restore. The only question is whether you have saved any Restore Points that would be helpful now. The rest of the methods require patience.

🤔 You have advised using GridinSoft Anti-Malware to get rid of the Baal virus. Does it mean that all my files, currently encrypted, will be removed too?

Absolutely not! The encrypted files are not harmful, so they won’t be deleted.

With the help of GridinSoft Anti-Malware, you can clean your computer off the actual viruses. The malware that has infected your computer is must be still active and launching checks from time to time to arrest any new files you might create on your PC after the attack. As it has been said above, the Baal ransomware comes with the company. It installs backdoors and keyloggers that can take your account passwords by trespass and provide malefactors with easy access to your PC after some time.

🤔 What to do if the Baal ransomware has blocked my computer and I can’t get the activation code.

If that happened, you need to prepare a flash memory drive with a pre-installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to do the cleaning. You see, the ransomware starts automatically as the system boots and encrypts any new files created or brought into your system. To stop this function – use Safe Mode, which allows only the vital programs to run upon system start. Consider reading our manual on running Windows in Safe Mode.

🤔 What can I do right now?

Many of the encrypted files might still be within your reach

• If you exchanged your critical files via email, you could still download them from your online mailbox.
• You may have shared images or videos with your friends or relatives. Just ask them to post those pictures 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 media pages, and cloud drives might have all those files as well.
• Maybe you still have the needed files on your old computer, a laptop, cellphone, memory stick, etc.

USEFUL TIP: You can employ file recovery utilities⁶ to get your lost data back since ransomware arrests the copies of your files, deleting the original ones. In the video below, you can see how to recover your files with PhotoRec, but remember: you can do it only after you remove the virus with an antivirus 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.

How to Remove BAAL Ransomware & Recover PC

Name: BAAL Virus

Description: BAAL Virus is a ransomware-type infections. This virus encrypts important personal files (video, photos, documents). The encrypted files can be tracked by a specific .baal extension. So, you can't use them at all.

Operating System: Windows

Application Category: Virus

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