The Blacksnaketeam virus falls within the ransomware type of infection. Ransomware of this type encrypts all the data on your computer (photos, documents, excel tables, audio files, videos, etc) and appends its extra extension to every file, creating the UNLOCK_MY_FILES.txt text files in each directory which contains the encrypted files.
What is Blacksnaketeam virus?
☝️ A strictly correct description for the Blacksnaketeam is “a ransomware-type infection”.
Blacksnaketeam adds its extra .pay2decryption extension to every file’s title. For instance, a file named “photo.jpg” will be turned into “photo.jpg.pay2decryption”. Likewise, the Excel sheet named “table.xlsx” will be renamed to “table.xlsx.pay2decryption”, and so forth.
In each directory containing the encoded files, a UNLOCK_MY_FILES.txt text document will appear. It is a ransom money memo. It contains information about the ways of paying the ransom and some other information. The ransom note usually contains a description of how to buy the decryption tool from the tamperers. That is it.
Blacksnaketeam overview:
| Name | Blacksnaketeam Virus |
| Extension | .pay2decryption |
| Ransomware note | UNLOCK_MY_FILES.txt |
| Detection | Crytex.Virus.FileInfector.DDS, Win32/Filecoder.OLC, Malware-Cryptor.InstallCore.5 |
| Symptoms | Your files (photos, videos, documents) get a .pay2decryption extension and you can’t open them. |
| Fix Tool | See If Your System Has Been Affected by Blacksnaketeam virus |
In the picture below, you can see what a folder with files encrypted by the Blacksnaketeam looks like. Each filename has the “.pay2decryption” extension added to it.
That is how encrypted “.pay2decryption” files look.
How did my computer get infected with Blacksnaketeam ransomware?
There are many possible ways of ransomware infiltration.
Nowadays, there are three most popular ways for malefactors to have ransomware acting in your digital environment. These are email spam, Trojan infiltration and peer file transfer.
If you open your inbox and see emails that look just like notifications from utility services providers, postal agencies like FedEx, Internet providers, and whatnot, but whose mailer is strange to you, be wary of opening those letters. They are most likely to have a ransomware file enclosed in them. So it is even riskier to download any attachments that come with emails like these.
Another option for ransom hunters is a Trojan file model1. A Trojan is a program that infiltrates into your computer pretending to be something different. 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 encrypts your data. Since the installation wizard can have any name and any icon, you have to make sure that you can trust the source of the stuff you’re downloading. The optimal way is to trust the software companies’ official websites.
As for the peer-to-peer file transfer protocols like BitTorrent or eMule, the threat is that they are even more trust-based than the rest of the Web. You can never guess what you download until you get it. So you’d better be using trustworthy resources. Also, it is reasonable to scan the directory containing the downloaded objects with the anti-malware utility as soon as the downloading is done.
How to remove the Blacksnaketeam virus?
It is crucial to note that besides encrypting your data, the Blacksnaketeam virus will probably deploy the Azorult Spyware on your PC to get access to credentials to different accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). That program can extract your logins and passwords from your browser’s auto-filling data.
Often tamperers would unblock some of your files so you know that they really have the decryption tool. As Blacksnaketeam virus is a relatively recent ransomware, security software designers have not yet found a way to reverse its work. However, the decryption instruments are frequently updated, so the effective countermeasure may soon arrive.
Sure thing, if the tamperers succeed in encoding someone’s essential files, the hopeless person will probably comply with their demands. However, paying to racketeers gives no guarantee that you’re getting your data back. It is still risky. After getting the money, the racketeers may deliver a wrong decryption key to the injured party. There were reports of racketeers just disappearing after getting the ransom without even writing back.
The optimal solution against ransomware is to have a system restore point or the copies of your essential files in the cloud storage or at least on an external disk. Of course, that might be insufficient. Your most crucial thing could be that file you were working upon when it all happened. Nevertheless, it is something. It is also advisable to scan your drives with the anti-malware utility after the system restoration.
There are other ransomware products, besides Blacksnaketeam, that work similarly. Examples of those are Iotr, Hhoo, Hhee, and some others. The two basic differences between them and the Blacksnaketeam are the ransom amount and the encoding method. The rest is the same: documents become encrypted, their extensions changed, ransom notes are created in every folder containing encrypted files.
Some fortunate victims were able to decrypt the arrested files with the help of the free tools provided by anti-malware specialists. Sometimes the criminals mistakenly send the decryption code to the victims in the ransom readme. Such an epic fail allows the injured part to restore the files. But obviously, one should never expect such a chance. Remember, ransomware is a bandits’ technology to lay their hands on the money of their victims.
How to avoid ransomware injection?
Blacksnaketeam ransomware doesn’t have a superpower, neither does any similar malware.
You can protect your system from its attack in several easy steps:
- Ignore any letters from unknown mailers with strange addresses, or with content that has likely no connection to something you are waiting for (how can you win in a lottery without participating in it?). In case the email subject is likely something you are waiting for, check all elements of the dubious email with caution. A hoax letter will always have mistakes.
- Never use cracked or untrusted programs. Trojans are often distributed as an element of cracked software, possibly as a “patch” preventing the license check. Understandably, potentially dangerous programs are very hard to tell from reliable ones, because trojans may also have the functionality you need. Try searching for information about this program on the anti-malware forums, but the optimal way is not to use such programs at all.
- And finally, to be sure about the safety of the objects you downloaded, check them with GridinSoft Anti-Malware. This program will be a perfect armor for your PC.
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 computer.
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 system for Blacksnaketeam 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 “.pay2decryption” files?Can I somehow access “.pay2decryption” files?
Unfortunately, no. You need to decipher the “.pay2decryption” files first. Then you will be able to open 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 Blacksnaketeam virus. Does it mean that all my files, currently encrypted, will be removed too?
No way! The encrypted files are not harmful, so they won’t be deleted.
GridinSoft Anti-Malware will delete active infections from your computer. The virus that has attacked your device is probably still functional and launching checks periodically to encode any new files you might create on your computer after the infection. As it has already been said, the Blacksnaketeam ransomware comes with the company. It installs backdoors and keyloggers that can steal your account credentials and provide malefactors with easy access to your PC in the future.
🤔 What actions should I take if the Blacksnaketeam malware has blocked my PC and I can’t get the activation key.
In such a case, you need to have a flash memory card with a pre-installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to execute the procedure. You see, the ransomware starts automatically as the system launches and encodes any new files created or brought into your computer. To block this process – use Safe Mode, which allows only the essential programs to run upon system boot. Consider reading our manual on booting Windows in Safe Mode.
🤔 What can I do right now?
Some of the encrypted files can be located elsewhere.
- If you exchanged your important files via email, you could still download them from your online mail server.
- You may have shared photographs or videos with your friends or family members. 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 too.
- It might be that you still have the needed files on your old computer, a portable device, cellphone, memory stick, etc.
HINT: You can use data recovery utilities4 to get your lost data back since ransomware blocks the copies of your files, deleting the authentic ones. In the tutorial below, you can see how to use PhotoRec for such a restoration, but remember: you can do it only after you kill the ransomware itself with an antivirus program.
Also, you can contact the following governmental 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 BLACKSNAKETEAM Ransomware & Recover PC
Name: BLACKSNAKETEAM Virus
Description: BLACKSNAKETEAM Virus is a ransomware-type infections. This virus encrypts important personal files (video, photos, documents). The encrypted files can be tracked by a specific .pay2decryption 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’s the list of Best Data Recovery Software Of 2023.
