The Ramp virus belongs with the ransomware type of infection. Harmful software of such sort encrypts all user’s data on the PC (images, documents, excel sheets, audio files, videos, etc) and adds its extra extension to every file, leaving the ramp3.txt files in each folder containing encrypted files.
What is Ramp virus?
☝️ A scientifically accurate denomination for the Ramp would be “a ransomware-type malicious agent”.
Ramp will append its extra .terror_ramp3 extension to every file’s title. For example, an image named “photo.jpg” will be changed to “photo.jpg.terror_ramp3”. Just like the Excel file with the name “table.xlsx” will be renamed to “table.xlsx.terror_ramp3”, and so on.
In every folder with the encrypted files, a ramp3.txt text document will be created. It is a ransom money memo. Therein you can find information on the ways of contacting the racketeers and some other remarks. The ransom note usually contains a description of how to purchase the decryption tool from the Ramp developers. That is it.
Ramp outline:
| Name | Ramp Virus |
| Extension | .terror_ramp3 |
| Ransomware note | ramp3.txt |
| Detection | Ransom:Win32/Multiverze, RATX-gen [Trj], Ransom:Win32/Balaclava!mclg |
| Symptoms | Your files (photos, videos, documents) get a .terror_ramp3 extension and you can’t open them. |
| Fix Tool | See If Your System Has Been Affected by Ramp virus |
In the picture below, you can see what a directory with files encrypted by the Ramp looks like. Each filename has the “.terror_ramp3” extension appended to it.
An example of encrypted .terror_ramp3 files.
How did my machine catch Ramp ransomware?
There are many possible ways of ransomware infiltration.
Nowadays, there are three most popular ways for malefactors to have ransomware acting in your system. These are email spam, Trojan injection and peer-to-peer networks.
If you open your inbox and see emails that look like familiar notifications from utility services providers, postal agencies like FedEx, Internet providers, and whatnot, but whose mailer is unknown to you, be wary of opening those emails. They are very likely to have a malware item attached to them. So it is even riskier to download any attachments that come with letters like these.
Another option for ransom hunters is a Trojan horse model1. A Trojan is a program that infiltrates into your machine pretending to be something legal. For example, you download an installer of some program you need or an update for some program. However, what is unboxed turns out to be a harmful agent that corrupts your data. As the installation package 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 best thing is to use the software developers’ official websites.
As for the peer-to-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. So you’d better be using trustworthy resources. Also, it is a good idea to scan the folder containing the downloaded objects with the anti-malware utility as soon as the downloading is finished.
How to remove the Ramp virus?
It is important to note that besides encrypting your files, the Ramp virus will probably install the Azorult Spyware on your machine to get access to credentials to various accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). The mentioned program can extract your credentials from your browser’s auto-filling data.
Often tamperers would unblock several of your files to prove that they indeed have the decryption tool. Since Ramp virus is a relatively new ransomware, safety measures engineers have not yet found a method to undo its work. Nevertheless, the decoding instruments are constantly updated, so the solution may soon be available.
Understandably, if the malefactors succeed in encrypting victim’s critical data, the hopeless person will probably fulfill their demands. Despite that, paying a ransom gives no guarantee that you’re getting your blocked information back. It is still risky. After obtaining the money, the racketeers may deliver a wrong decryption code to the injured party. There were reports about criminals simply vanishing after getting the ransom without even bothering to reply.
The optimal countermeasure to ransomware is to have a system restore point or the copies of your critical files in the cloud storage or at least on an external storage. Surely, that might be insufficient. Your most important thing could be that one you were working on when it all happened. Nevertheless, it is something. It is also reasonable to scan your drives with the antivirus program after the OS restoration.
There are other ransomware products, besides Ramp, that work similarly. Examples of those are Tury, Powd, Bowd, and some others. The two basic differences between them and the Ramp are the ransom amount and the method of encryption. The rest is the same: documents become blocked, their extensions changed, ransom notes are found in every folder containing encoded files.
Some lucky users were able to decrypt the arrested files with the help of the free software provided by anti-malware specialists. Sometimes the hackers mistakenly send the decoding key to the wronged in the ransom note. Such an extraordinary fail allows the user to restore the files. But of course, one should never expect such a chance. Make no mistake, ransomware is a tamperers’ instrument to pull the money out of their victims.
How сan I avoid ransomware injection?
Ramp ransomware doesn’t have a endless power, neither does any similar malware.
You can defend your system from ransomware attack in several easy steps:
- Ignore any letters from unknown senders 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 participating in it?). In case the email subject is more or less something you are waiting for, scrutinize all elements of the suspicious letter with caution. A hoax letter will always contain a mistake.
- Avoid using cracked or untrusted programs. Trojan viruses are often distributed as a part of cracked software, most likely as a “patch” which prevents the license check. But untrusted programs are difficult to tell from trustworthy ones, as trojans sometimes have the functionality you need. You can try searching for information on this software product 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 objects you downloaded, use GridinSoft Anti-Malware. This software will be a perfect shield for your system.
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 system.
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 Ramp 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 finished, 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 “.terror_ramp3” files?Are the “.terror_ramp3” files accessible?
There’s no way to do it, unless the files “.terror_ramp3” files are decrypted.
🤔 What should I do to make my files accessible as fast as possible?
If the “.terror_ramp3” 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. The rest of the methods require patience.
🤔 If GridinSoft deletes the Ramp malware, will it also delete my files that were encrypted?
No way! Your encrypted files are no threat to your PC.
GridinSoft Anti-Malware only deals with active threats. The virus that has infected your device is most likely still functional and it scans your system periodically to encode any new files you might create on your PC after the attack. As it has been mentioned above, the Ramp malware comes with the company. It installs backdoors and keyloggers that can steal your account credentials and provide criminals with easy access to your PC after some time.
🤔 What should I do if the Ramp malware has blocked my computer and I can’t get the activation code.
In such a case, you need to prepare a flash memory card with a pre-installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to perform the procedure. The point is that the ransomware runs automatically as the system boots and encrypts any new files created or imported into your PC. To suppress this function – use Safe Mode, which allows only the vital applications to run automatically. Consider reading our manual on booting Windows in Safe Mode.
🤔 What could help the situation right now?
Many of the encrypted files might still be at your disposal
- If you exchanged your important files through email, you could still download them from your online mailbox.
- You might have shared photographs or videos with your friends or family members. Simply ask them to post those pictures back to you.
- If you have initially got any of your files from the Web, you can try downloading them again.
- Your messengers, social networks pages, and cloud drives might have all those files as well.
- Maybe you still have the needed files on your old PC, a portable device, phone, external storage, etc.
HINT: You can employ file recovery programs4 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 eradicate the ransomware itself with an antivirus program.
Also, you can contact the following official 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 RAMP Ransomware & Recover PC
Name: RAMP Virus
Description: RAMP Virus is a ransomware-type infections. This virus encrypts important personal files (video, photos, documents). The encrypted files can be tracked by a specific .terror_ramp3 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 are Top 10 Data Recovery Software Of 2023.
