HONKAI (PARADISE) Ransomware 🔐 (.HONKAI File) — Removal Guide

The Honkai (Paradise) virus falls within the ransomware type of infection. Malware of this type encrypts all user’s data on the computer (photos, text files, excel sheets, audio files, videos, etc) and adds its own extension to every file, creating the #DECRYPT MY FILES#.html files in each folder which contains the encrypted files.

Honkai (Paradise) virus: what is known so far?

☝️ A scientifically accurate denomination for the Honkai (Paradise) would be “a ransomware malicious agent”.

The renaming will be executed according to this pattern: [id-xxxxxx].[contact-email].honkai. As a part of encryption, a file entitled, for instance, “report.docx” will be changed to “report.docx.[id-f48tSVGB].[[email protected]].honkai”.

In every folder that contains the encoded files, a #DECRYPT MY FILES#.html file will be created. It is a ransom money note. It contains 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 Honkai (Paradise) developers. You can get this decrypting software after contacting [email protected] through email. That is how they do it.

Honkai (Paradise) outline:

The #DECRYPT MY FILES#.html file accompanying the Honkai (Paradise) malware provides the following discouraging information:

Your files are encrypted!
Paradise Ransomware Team!


Your personal ID
-
Your personal KEY
-


WHAT HAPPENED!
Your important files produced on this computer have been encrypted due a security problem.
If you want to restore them, write to us by email.
You have to pay for decryption in Bitcoins. The price depends on how fast you write to us.
After payment we will send you the decryption tool that will decrypt all your files.

 

FREE DECRYPTION AS GUARANTEE!
Before payment you can send us 1-3 files for free decryption.
Please note that files must NOT contain valuable information.
The file size should not exceed 1MB.
As evidence, we can decrypt one file


HOW TO OBTAIN BITCOINS!
Our Bitcoin Address: 392vKrpVxMF7Ld55TXyXpJ1FUE8dgKhFiv
The easiest way to buy bitcoin is LocalBitcoins site.
You have to register, click Buy bitcoins and select the seller by payment method and price
hxxps://localbitcoins.com/buy_bitcoins/
Also you can find other places to buy Bitcoins and beginners guide here:
hxxp://www.coindesk.com/information/how-can-i-buy-bitcoins/
write to Google how to buy Bitcoin in your country?


Contact!
e-mail:
[email protected]
or
e-mail:
[email protected]


Attention!
Do not rename encrypted files
Do not try to decrypt your data using third party software, it may cause permanent data loss
You are guaranteed to get the decryptor after payment
As evidence, we can decrypt one file
Do not attempt to use the antivirus or uninstall the program
This will lead to your data loss and unrecoverable
Decoders of other users is not suitable to decrypt your files - encryption key is unique

In the screenshot below, you can see what a folder with files encrypted by the Honkai (Paradise) looks like. Each filename has the “.honkai” extension appended to it.

How did my computer get infected with Honkai (Paradise) ransomware?

There is a huge number of possible ways of ransomware injection.

Nowadays, there are three most popular methods for malefactors to have the Honkai (Paradise) virus working in your digital environment. These are email spam, Trojan introduction and peer file transfer.

If you open your inbox and see letters that look like familiar notifications from utility services companies, delivery agencies like FedEx, Internet providers, and whatnot, but whose addresser is strange to you, be wary of opening those letters. They are very likely to have a viral item attached to them. So it is even riskier to download any attachments that come with emails like these.

As for the peer networks like torrent trackers or eMule, the danger 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. So you’d better be using trustworthy resources. Also, it is reasonable to scan the directory containing the downloaded objects with the antivirus as soon as the downloading is done.

How do I get rid of the Honkai (Paradise) virus?

It is important to note that besides encrypting your data, the Honkai (Paradise) virus will most likely deploy the Azorult Spyware on your PC to seize your credentials to different accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). The mentioned spyware² can derive your credentials from your browser’s auto-filling cardfile.

Sometimes racketeers would decode few of your files so you know that they indeed have the decryption program. As Honkai (Paradise) virus is a relatively recent ransomware, anti-malware engineers have not yet found a way to undo its work. Nevertheless, the anti-ransomware tools are frequently updated, so the solution may soon be available.

Sure thing, if the evildoers succeed in encrypting victim’s essential data, the desperate person will probably fulfill their demands. However, paying to criminals gives no guarantee that you’re getting your blocked information back. It is still risky. After receiving the ransom, the racketeers may send a wrong decryption key to the victim. There were reports of racketeers simply disappearing after getting the ransom without even bothering to reply.

The best countermeasure to 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. Of course, that might be insufficient. Your most crucial thing could be that one you were working on when it all started. But at least it is something. It is also reasonable to scan your PC for viruses with the anti-malware utility after the system restoration.

There are other ransomware products, besides Honkai (Paradise), that work similarly. Examples of those are Mzop, Bpws, Bpsm, and some others. The two major differences between them and the Honkai (Paradise) are the ransom amount and the method of encryption. The rest is the same: files become inaccessible, their extensions altered, ransom notes appear in every directory containing encrypted files.

Some fortunate users were able to decode the blocked files with the help of the free software provided by anti-ransomware specialists. Sometimes the criminals accidentally send the decoding code to the wronged in the ransom readme. Such an epic fail allows the user to restore the files. But obviously, one should never expect such a chance. Remember, ransomware is a bandits’ tool to lay their hands on the money of their victims.

How сan I avert ransomware injection?

Honkai (Paradise) ransomware doesn’t have a superpower, so as any similar malware.

You can protect your computer from ransomware attack in several easy steps:

• Ignore any letters from unknown senders with strange addresses, or with content that has nothing to do with something you are waiting for (can you win in a lottery without participating in it?). If the email subject is likely something you are waiting for, check all elements of the questionable email with caution. A fake email will always have a mistake.
• Never use cracked or unknown programs. Trojans are often shared as a part of cracked products, most likely as a “patch” which prevents the license check. But dubious programs are very hard to tell from reliable ones, as trojans sometimes have the functionality you need. Try searching for information about this software product on the anti-malware forums, but the optimal solution is not to use such programs at all.

Reasons why I would recommend GridinSoft³

Download Removal Tool.

Run the setup file.

Press “Install” button.

Once installed, Anti-Malware will automatically run.

Wait for the Anti-Malware scan to complete.

Click on “Clean Now”.

FAQ

🤔 Is it possible to open “.honkai” files?

There’s no way to do it, unless the files “.honkai” files are decrypted.

🤔 I really need to decrypt those “.honkai” files ASAP. How can I do that?

If the “.honkai” files contain some really important information, then you probably have them backed up. Otherwise, you might try to employ System Restore. The only question is whether you have saved any Restore Points that would be helpful now. There are other ways to beat ransomware, but they take time.

🤔 What actions should I take if the Honkai (Paradise) ransomware has blocked my computer and I can’t get the activation key.

🤔 What could help the situation right now?

Some of the blocked data can be found elsewhere.

• If you exchanged your critical files via email, you could still download them from your online mail server.
• You might have shared photographs or videos with your friends or family members. Just ask them to send 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 PC, a notebook, mobile, flash memory, etc.

HINT: You can employ file recovery utilities⁵ to get your lost data back since ransomware encrypts the copies of your files, deleting the authentic ones. In the video below, you can see how to use PhotoRec for such a recovery, but be advised: you can do it only after you remove the virus with an anti-malware 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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