The Polis virus belongs under the ransomware type of infection. Harmful software of such sort encrypts all user’s data on the computer (photos, documents, excel sheets, music, videos, etc) and appends its specific extension to every file, creating the Restore.txt files in each folder which contains the encrypted files.
Polis virus: what is known so far?
☝️ A scientifically accurate denomination for the Polis would be “a ransomware malicious agent”.
Polis will append its extra .polis extension to every file’s name. For example, a file entitled “photo.jpg” will be altered to “photo.jpg.polis”. Just like the Excel file named “table.xlsx” will be changed to “table.xlsx.polis”, and so forth.
In each directory with the encrypted files, a Restore.txt file will be found. It is a ransom money note. Therein you can find information on the ways of contacting the racketeers and some other remarks. The ransom note usually contains instructions on how to purchase the decryption tool from the racketeers. That is how they do it.
Polis outline:
| Name | Polis Virus |
| Extension | .polis |
| Ransomware note | Restore.txt |
| Detection | Upatre.Trojan.Downloader.DDS, Ransom:Win32/StopCrypt.RPL!MTB, MSIL/Filecoder.IV |
| Symptoms | Your files (photos, videos, documents) get a .polis extension and you can’t open them. |
| Fix Tool | See If Your System Has Been Affected by Polis virus |
In the picture below, you can see what a directory with files encrypted by the Polis looks like. Each filename has the “.polis” extension added to it.
An example of encrypted .polis files.
How did my computer get infected with Polis ransomware?
There are many possible ways of ransomware infiltration.
There are currently three most exploited methods for criminals to have the Polis virus working in your digital environment. These are email spam, Trojan introduction and peer-to-peer networks.
If you open your mailbox and see emails that look like familiar notifications from utility services providers, delivery agencies like FedEx, Internet providers, and whatnot, but whose sender is unknown to you, beware of opening those letters. They are very likely to have a viral item attached to them. Thus it is even more dangerous to open any attachments that come with letters like these.
Another thing the hackers might try is a Trojan horse model1. A Trojan is an object that infiltrates into your computer pretending to be something different. For example, you download an installer of some program you need or an update for some program. However, what is unpacked turns out to be a harmful agent that encrypts your data. Since the installation file 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 way is to trust the software companies’ official websites.
As for the peer file transfer protocols like torrents or eMule, the threat 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 items with the antivirus as soon as the downloading is done.
How to remove the Polis virus?
It is crucial to note that besides encrypting your files, the Polis virus will probably install the Azorult Spyware on your machine to get access to credentials to various accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). That spyware2 can derive your credentials from your browser’s auto-filling data.
Sometimes racketeers would decrypt some of your files to prove that they indeed have the decryption program. Since Polis virus is a relatively new ransomware, safety measures engineers have not yet found a way to undo its work. However, the decoding instruments are constantly upgraded, so the solution may soon arrive.
Sure thing, if the tamperers do the job of encoding victim’s critical data, the hopeless person will most likely fulfill their demands. However, paying to criminals does not necessarily mean that you’re getting your files back. It is still risky. After getting the ransom, the racketeers may send a wrong decryption code to the injured party. There were reports about ransomware developers simply vanishing after getting the ransom without even writing back.
The optimal countermeasure to ransomware is to have aan OS restore point or the copies of your essential files in the cloud disk or at least on an external drive. Obviously, that might be insufficient. Your most important thing could be that file you were working upon when it all happened. But at least it is something. It is also advisable to scan your drives with the antivirus program after the system is rolled back.
Polis is not the only ransomware of its kind, since there are other specimens of ransomware out there that act in the same manner. Examples of those are Mmvb, Eewt, Mmdt, and some others. The two major differences between them and the Polis are the ransom amount and the encoding method. The rest is almost identical: files become blocked, their extensions changed, ransom notes appear in every directory containing encrypted files.
Some fortunate users were able to decode the arrested files with the aid of the free tools provided by anti-ransomware developers. Sometimes the racketeers accidentally send the decoding code to the victims in the ransom note. Such an epic fail allows the victim to restore the files. But obviously, one should never expect such a chance. Make no mistake, ransomware is a bandits’ instrument to lay their hands on the money of their victims.
How to avert ransomware injection?
Polis ransomware has no superpower, so as any similar malware.
You can protect your PC from ransomware injection within three easy steps:
- Ignore any emails from unknown mailers with strange addresses, or with content that has nothing to do with something you are expecting (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, check all elements of the suspicious email carefully. A hoax letter will surely have mistakes.
- Do not use cracked or untrusted software. Trojans are often spreaded as a part of cracked software, possibly under the guise of “patch” which prevents the license check. Understandably, potentially dangerous programs are difficult to distinguish from trustworthy software, as trojans sometimes have the functionality you seek. You can try searching for information on this program on the anti-malware forums, but the optimal solution is not to use such software.
- And finally, to be sure about the safety of the files you downloaded, use GridinSoft Anti-Malware. This program will be a perfect armor for your system.
Reasons why I would recommend GridinSoft3
There is no better way to recognize, remove and prevent ransomware than to use an anti-malware software from GridinSoft4.
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 PC.
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 Polis 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.
FAQ
🤔 How can I open “.polis” files?Is it possible to open“.polis” files?
There’s no way to do it, unless the files “.polis” files are decrypted.
🤔 The encrypted files are very important to me. How can I decrypt them quickly?
It’s good if you have fаr-sightedly saved copies of these important files elsewhere. In case you haven’t, there is still a chance that you do have a Restore Point from some time ago to roll back the whole system to the moment when it had no virus yet, but already had your files. All other solutions require time.
🤔 Will GridinSoft Anti-Malware remove all the encrypted files alongside the Polis virus?
Absolutely not! The encrypted files are not harmful, so they won’t be deleted.
GridinSoft Anti-Malware will delete the viruses from your system. The malware that has infiltrated your device is most likely still functional and launching checks periodically to encrypt any new files you might create on your computer after the initial attack. As it has been mentioned above, the Polis ransomware comes with the company. It installs backdoors and keyloggers that can steal your account credentials and provide criminals with easy access to your computer in the future.
🤔 What actions should I take if the Polis malware has blocked my PC and I can’t get the activation code.
In such a case, you need to prepare a memory stick with a pre-installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to perform the cleaning. You see, the ransomware starts automatically as the system launches and encodes any new files created or brought into your PC. To block this process – use Safe Mode, which allows only the essential applications to run upon system boot. Consider reading our manual on running Windows in Safe Mode.
🤔 And what should I do now?
Some of the encrypted files can be found elsewhere.
- If you exchanged your important files by email, you could still download them from your online mail server.
- You may have shared images or videos with your friends or relatives. 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 doing 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, mobile, flash memory, etc.
HINT: You can use data recovery utilities5 to retrieve your lost information since ransomware arrests the copies of your files, deleting the original ones. In the video below, you can see how to use PhotoRec for such a restoration, but remember: you can do it only after you remove 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 POLIS Ransomware & Recover PC
Name: POLIS Virus
Description: POLIS Virus is a ransomware-type infections. This virus encrypts important personal files (video, photos, documents). The encrypted files can be tracked by a specific .polis 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.
- 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.
