RAPAX Ransomware ([email protected]) Removal Guide

The Rapax virus belongs to the ransomware type of malicious agent. Ransomware of such sort encrypts all user’s data on the computer (images, text files, excel tables, audio files, videos, etc) and appends its specific extension to every file, creating the instructions.txt files in every directory containing encrypted files.

Rapax virus: what is known so far?

Rapax will add its own .rapax extension to every file’s name. For example, an image entitled “photo.jpg” will be renamed to “photo.jpg.rapax”. In the same manner, the Excel file named “table.xlsx” will be altered to “table.xlsx.rapax”, and so forth.

In every directory containing the encoded files, a instructions.txt text file will appear. It is a ransom money memo. Therein you can find information on the ways of paying the ransom and some other remarks. The ransom note most probably contains a description of how to purchase the decryption tool from the racketeers. You can obtain this decrypting software after contacting [email protected] through email. That is it.

Rapax Overview:

The instructions.txt document coming in package with the Rapax ransomware states the following:

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YOUR FILES HAVE BEEN ENCRYPTED BY RAPAX RANSOMWARE!!!

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All your important files have been encrypted and are no longer accessible. The only way to recover your data is by obtaining the decryption key.

TO GET THE DECRYPTION KEY, YOU MUST PAY A RANSOM OF 5,000 DOLLARS IN BITCOIN.

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PAYMENT INSTRUCTION:

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1. Purchase Bitcoin in Binance, BitPay, Exodus or Trust Wallet

2. Send the exact amount of 5,000 dollars in Bitcoin to the following address:

Bitcoin Address: 19DpJAWr6NCVT2oAnWieozQPsRK7Bj83r4

3. After making the payment, send the transaction details to the following email address:

[email protected]

4. Once the payment confirmed, you will receive the decryption key through email to restore access to your files.

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IMPORTANT:

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- Do not rename or modify the encrypted files, this will cause irreversible damage and prevent decryption.

- Trying to delete the ransomware will result in permanent data loss.

- If payment is not made within 72 hours, the decryption key will be permanently deleted and you will not be able to recover your files.

ACT NOW TO RECOVER YOUR DATA!!!

- Rapax Ransomware

In the picture below, you can see what a folder with files encrypted by the Rapax looks like. Each filename has the “.rapax” extension appended to it.

How did Rapax ransomware end up on my PC?

There are plenty of possible ways of ransomware infiltration.

Nowadays, there are three most exploited ways for evil-doers to have ransomware planted in your digital environment. These are email spam, Trojan injection and peer-to-peer file transfer.

• If you open your mailbox and see letters that look just like notifications from utility services providers, postal agencies like FedEx, web-access providers, and whatnot, but whose sender is unknown to you, be wary of opening those emails. They are most likely to have a ransomware file enclosed in them. So it is even more dangerous to download any attachments that come with letters like these.
• Another thing the hackers might try is a Trojan virus scheme. A Trojan is an object that gets into your computer disguised as something legal. For instance, you download an installer of some program you need or an update for some program. But what is unpacked reveals itself a harmful agent that corrupts your data. As the update package can have any name and any icon, you have to make sure that you can trust the source of the files you’re downloading. The optimal way is to use the software companies’ official websites.
• As for the peer-to-peer file transfer protocols like torrent trackers 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 folder containing the downloaded items with the anti-malware utility as soon as the downloading is done.

How to remove ransomware?

It is important to note that besides encrypting your files, the Rapax virus will most likely deploy Vidar Stealer on your machine to seize your credentials to various accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). That spyware can derive your credentials from your browser’s auto-filling data.

How to avoid ransomware infection?

Rapax ransomware doesn’t have a endless power, so as any similar malware.

You can armour your system from its infiltration within several easy steps:

• Ignore any emails from unknown mailers with strange addresses, or with content that has likely no connection to something you are expecting (can you win in a money prize draw without even taking part in it?). If the email subject is likely something you are waiting for, check all elements of the dubious email carefully. A fake email will surely have a mistake.
• Never use cracked or unknown programs. Trojans are often spreaded as a part of cracked products, possibly as a “patch” preventing the license check. But dubious programs are very hard to tell from trustworthy ones, as trojans sometimes have the functionality you seek. Try to find information on this program on the anti-malware forums, but the optimal way is not to use such programs at all.

FAQ

🤔 How can I open “.rapax” files?Can I somehow access “.rapax” files?

Unfortunately, no. You need to decipher the “.rapax” files first. Then you will be able to open them.

🤔 The encrypted files are very important to me. How can I decrypt them quickly?

If the “.rapax” files contain some really important information, then you probably have them backed up. 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.

🤔 What should I do if the Rapax virus has blocked my computer and I can’t get the activation key.

🤔 And what should I do now?

Many of the blocked files might still be within your reach

• If you sent or received your important files by 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 post those images back to you.
• If you have initially got any of your files from the Internet, you can try downloading them 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 portable device, phone, memory stick, etc.

USEFUL TIP: You can employ file recovery utilities¹ to get your lost data back since ransomware encodes the copies of your files, deleting the authentic ones. In the video below, you can see how to recover your files with PhotoRec, but be advised: you can do it only after you kill the ransomware itself with an anti-malware program.

1. Here are Best Data Recovery Software Of 2024.