The Pizzasucker virus falls under the Chaos ransomware family. Malware of such sort encrypts all the data on your computer (photos, text files, excel tables, music, videos, etc) and adds its extra extension to every file, leaving the read_it.txt text files in each directory with the encrypted files.
Pizzasucker virus: what is known so far?
☝️ A strictly accurate denomination for the Pizzasucker would be “a Chaos family ransomware infection”.
Pizzasucker will append its own .ICQ@PIZZASUCKER extension to the title of each encoded file. For instance, an image named “photo.jpg” will be changed to “photo.jpg.ICQ@PIZZASUCKER”. Likewise, the Excel file with the name “table.xlsx” will become “table.xlsx.ICQ@PIZZASUCKER”, and so forth.
In each folder containing the encrypted files, a read_it.txt text file will be found. It is a ransom money memo. Therein you can find information on the ways of paying the ransom and some other information. The ransom note usually contains instructions on how to purchase the decryption tool from the racketeers. You can get this decrypting software after contacting ICQ contact specified in the changed file extension. That is how they do it.
Pizzasucker outline:
| Name | Pizzasucker Virus |
| Ransomware family1 | Chaos ransomware |
| Extension | .ICQ@PIZZASUCKER |
| Ransomware note | read_it.txt |
| Contact | ICQ contact |
| Detection | Win32.Virlock.Gen.2, Ulise.133670, Trojan:Win32/CryptInject.CD!MTB |
| Symptoms | Your files (photos, videos, documents) have a .ICQ@PIZZASUCKER extension and you can’t open them. |
| Fix Tool | See If Your System Has Been Affected by Pizzasucker virus |
In the screenshot below, you can see what a directory with files encrypted by the Pizzasucker looks like. Each filename has the “.ICQ@PIZZASUCKER” extension added to it.
That is how encrypted “.ICQ@PIZZASUCKER” files look.
How did Pizzasucker ransomware end up on my PC?
There are plenty of possible ways of ransomware injection.
There are currently three most popular ways for hackers to have ransomware settled in your digital environment. These are email spam, Trojan infiltration and peer networks.
If you access your mailbox and see letters that look just like notifications from utility services providers, delivery agencies like FedEx, web-access providers, and whatnot, but whose sender is strange to you, beware of opening those letters. They are most likely to have a malware file attached to them. Thus it is even more dangerous to open any attachments that come with emails like these.
Another thing the hackers might try is a Trojan horse scheme2. A Trojan is an object that gets into your machine pretending to be something different. For instance, you download an installer for some program you want or an update for some program. But what is unboxed turns out to be a harmful program that corrupts your data. As the installation package can have any name and any icon, you’d better be sure that you can trust the resource of the things you’re downloading. The optimal thing is to trust the software companies’ official websites.
As for the peer file transfer protocols like torrent trackers or eMule, the danger 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. Our suggestion is that you use 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 to remove the Pizzasucker virus?
It is important to note that besides encrypting your data, the Pizzasucker virus will probably deploy the Azorult Spyware on your computer to seize your credentials to different accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). The mentioned spyware3 can extract your credentials from your browser’s auto-filling cardfile.
Often tamperers would unblock few of your files to prove that they do have the decryption program. Since Pizzasucker virus is a relatively recent ransomware, security software developers have not yet found a method to reverse its work. Nevertheless, the decoding tools are frequently updated, so the effective countermeasure may soon arrive.
Understandably, if the tamperers succeed in encrypting victim’s critical files, the desperate person will most likely fulfill their demands. Despite that, paying to criminals does not necessarily mean that you’re getting your data back. It is still dangerous. After receiving the ransom, the racketeers may deliver a wrong decryption key to the victim. There were reports about criminals simply vanishing after getting the money without even bothering to reply.
The best countermeasure to ransomware is to have a system 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 not enough. The most crucial 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 drives with the antivirus program after the OS is rolled back.
Pizzasucker 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, Qqmt, Qqjj, Vvyu, and some others. The two basic differences between them and the Pizzasucker are the ransom amount and the method of encryption. The rest is the same: files become encrypted, their extensions changed, ransom notes appear in every directory containing encoded files.
Some fortunate victims were able to decrypt the blocked files with the help of the free software provided by anti-malware developers. Sometimes the criminals accidentally send the decoding key to the victims in the ransom readme. Such an epic fail allows the user to restore the files. But obviously, one should never rely on such a chance. Make no mistake, ransomware is a bandits’ tool to lay their hands on the money of their victims.
How do I avert ransomware infiltration?
Pizzasucker ransomware has no endless power, so as any similar malware.
You can defend your system from ransomware infiltration in three 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 money prize draw without even taking part in it?). In case the email subject is more or less something you are expecting, check all elements of the questionable letter carefully. A fake email will surely have mistakes.
- Never use cracked or untrusted programs. Trojan viruses are often shared as a part of cracked products, possibly as a “patch” to prevent the license check. But dubious programs are very hard to distinguish from trustworthy software, because trojans may also have the functionality you seek. You can try searching for information about this program on the anti-malware forums, but the optimal way is not to use such software.
- And finally, to be sure about the safety of the files you downloaded, check them with GridinSoft Anti-Malware. This software will be a powerful shield for your PC.
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 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 computer for Pizzasucker 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 “.ICQ@PIZZASUCKER” files?Is it possible to open“.ICQ@PIZZASUCKER” files?
Unfortunately, no. You need to decipher the “.ICQ@PIZZASUCKER” files first. Then you will be able to open them.
🤔 What should I do to make my files accessible as fast as possible?
It’s good if you have fаr-sightedly saved copies of these important files elsewhere. If not, there is still a function of System Restore but it needs a Restore Point to be previously saved. All other solutions require time.
🤔 Will GridinSoft Anti-Malware remove all the encrypted files alongside the Pizzasucker virus?
Of course not. The encrypted files are not harmful, so they won’t be deleted.
GridinSoft Anti-Malware only deals with active viruses. The ransomware that has infiltrated your system is probably still functional 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 Pizzasucker malware does not come alone. 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 Pizzasucker malware has blocked my PC and I can’t get the activation key.
In such an unfortunate situation, you need to prepare a memory stick with a pre-installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to do the cleaning. The point is that the ransomware starts automatically as the system boots and encrypts any new files created or brought into your computer. To stop this function – use Safe Mode, which allows only the vital programs to run automatically. Consider reading our manual on running Windows in Safe Mode.
🤔 And what should I do now?
Some of the blocked files can be located elsewhere.
- If you exchanged your important files through email, you could still download them from your online mail server.
- You may have shared photographs or videos with your friends or relatives. Just ask them to send those images back to you.
- If you have initially downloaded any of your files from the Internet, you can try doing it again.
- Your messengers, social networks pages, and cloud disks might have all those files as well.
- Maybe you still have the needed files on your old computer, a portable device, phone, external storage, etc.
USEFUL TIP: You can use data recovery programs6 to get your lost data back since ransomware encodes the copies of your files, removing the original ones. In the tutorial below, you can see how to use PhotoRec for such a recovery, but be advised: you can do it only after you eradicate the ransomware itself 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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Brendan SmithHow to Remove PIZZASUCKER Ransomware & Recover PC
Name: PIZZASUCKER Virus
Description: PIZZASUCKER Virus is a ransomware-type infections. This virus encrypts important personal files (video, photos, documents). The encrypted files can be tracked by a specific .ICQ@PIZZASUCKER extension. So, you can't use them at all.
Operating System: Windows
Application Category: Virus
User Review
( votes)References
- My files are encrypted by ransomware, what should I do now?
- You can read more on Trojans, their use and types in the Trojan-dedicated section of GridinSoft official website.
- You can read more on spyware variants and nature in the respective 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.
