LIVE Ransomware 🔐 (.LIVE File) — Removal Guide

The Live virus falls under the ransomware type of infection. A harmful program of such sort encrypts all the data on your PC (images, documents, excel tables, audio files, videos, etc) and adds its own extension to every file, creating the FILE RECOVERY_ID_[victim\’s_ID].txt text files in each folder containing encrypted files.

Live virus: what is known so far?

Live will append its specific .LIVE extension to the title of each encrypted file. For instance, a file entitled “photo.jpg” will be changed to “photo.jpg.LIVE”. Just like the Excel file named “table.xlsx” will become “table.xlsx.LIVE”, and so on.

In every directory with the encoded files, a FILE RECOVERY_ID_[victim\’s_ID].txt text file will be found. Victim’s ID is a 12-digit number; it appears to be randomly-picked. It is a ransom money note. It contains information about the ways of paying the ransom and some other remarks. The ransom note usually contains instructions on how to buy the decryption tool from the ransomware developers. You can obtain this tool after contacting [email protected] via email. That is it.

Live Summary:

The FILE RECOVERY_ID_[victim\’s_ID].txt document coming in package with the Live malware provides the following frustrating information:

Hello

Your file has been encrypted and cannot be used
When you see this letter, your privacy data has been backed up by us. If you do not handle it, we will publish your privacy data after the 7th.

Don\'t try to change or restore the file yourself, which will destroy them
If necessary, you can decrypt a test file for free. Free test decryption is only available for files less than 3MB in size.

To restore files, you need a decryption tool. Please contact us by email.
Please add the file name of this document to the email and send it to me.
FILE RECOVERY_ID xxxxxx
I will tell you the amount you need to pay. After the payment is completed, we will make the decryption tool and send it to you.

Customer service mailbox:
[email protected]
Spare mailbox: (use this mailbox after no reply in 24 hours)
[email protected]

You can also contact us through intermediary agencies (such as data recovery companies)

If you refuse to pay, you will be attacked constantly. Your privacy -sensitive data will also be announced on Internet.

!! We are a team that pays attention to credibility, so you can pay safely and restore data.

LIVE TEAM

In the image below, you can see what a directory with files encrypted by the Live looks like. Each filename has the “.LIVE” extension appended to it.

How did my machine catch Live ransomware?

There are plenty of possible ways of ransomware injection.

There are currently three most popular methods for tamperers to have the Live virus planted in your digital environment. These are email spam, Trojan infiltration and peer-to-peer file transfer.

• Another option for ransom hunters is a Trojan virus model. A Trojan is an object that infiltrates into your machine disguised as something legal. For instance, you download an installer for some program you need or an update for some program. However, what is unpacked reveals itself a harmful agent that encrypts your data. As the update package can have any name and any icon, you’d better be sure that you can trust the source of the things you’re downloading. The best thing is to trust the software developers’ official websites.
• As for the peer networks like BitTorrent 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. So you’d better be using trustworthy resources. Also, it is reasonable to scan the folder containing the downloaded files with the anti-malware utility as soon as the downloading is finished.

How to remove ransomware?

It is crucial to inform you that besides encrypting your files, the Live virus will probably install Vidar Stealer on your computer to seize your credentials to different accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). That program can extract your credentials from your browser’s auto-filling data.

How сan I avoid ransomware attack?

Live ransomware doesn’t have a endless power, neither does any similar malware.

You can armour your computer from its injection taking three 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 (can you win in a lottery without even taking part in it?). In case the email subject is likely something you are waiting for, check all elements of the suspicious email with caution. A hoax email will always contain mistakes.
• Avoid using cracked or untrusted programs. Trojan viruses are often spreaded as a part of cracked products, most likely under the guise of “patch” to prevent the license check. But dubious programs are difficult to distinguish from reliable ones, because trojans sometimes have the functionality you seek. You can try searching for information on this software product on the anti-malware message boards, but the best solution is not to use such programs at all.

FAQ

🤔 How can I open “.LIVE” files?Are the “.LIVE” files accessible?

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

🤔 What should I do to make my files accessible as fast as possible?

If the “.LIVE” files contain some really important information, then you probably have them backed up. If not, there is still a function of System Restore but it needs a Restore Point to be previously saved. There are other ways to beat ransomware, but they take time.

🤔 What to do if the Live virus has blocked my PC and I can’t get the activation code.

🤔 What can I do right now?

Many of the blocked files might still be within your reach

• If you sent or received your critical files by email, you could still download them from your online mailbox.
• You may have shared images or videos with your friends or family members. Just ask them to give those pictures back to you.
• If you have initially downloaded any of your files from the Internet, you can try to do it again.
• Your messengers, social networks pages, and cloud disks might have all those files too.
• It might be that you still have the needed files on your old PC, a laptop, cellphone, external storage, etc.

USEFUL TIP: You can employ data recovery utilities¹ to get your lost data back since ransomware encrypts the copies of your files, removing the original ones. In the tutorial below, you can learn 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.

1. Here’s the list of Top 10 Data Recovery Software Of 2023.