The Rpc virus falls under the Dharma ransomware family. Harmful software of this type encrypts all user’s data on the PC (photos, text files, excel tables, music, videos, etc) and appends its specific extension to every file, creating the recinfo.txt text files in each directory which contains the encrypted files.
What is known about the Rpc virus?
☝️ A strictly correct description for the Rpc is “a Dharma family ransomware-type malicious agent”.
The scheme of renaming is the following: victim_id.[contact_email].RPC. As a part of encryption, a file named, for example, “report.docx” will be changed to “report.docx.id-9ECFA84E.[pcrec@tuta.io].RPC”.
In every directory that contains the encoded files, a recinfo.txt text document will be created. It is a ransom money note. Therein you can find information about the ways of contacting the racketeers and some other information. The ransom note usually contains a description of how to buy the decryption tool from the racketeers. You can get this decoding tool after contacting pcrec@tuta.io through email. That is how they do it.
Rpc overview:
| Name | Rpc Virus |
| Ransomware family1 | Dharma ransomware |
| Extension | .RPC |
| Ransomware note | recinfo.txt |
| Contact | pcrec@tuta.io |
| Detection | Win32:Vitro [Inf], Backdoor:ASP/Chopper.F!dha, Ransom:Win32/Multiverze |
| Symptoms | Your files (photos, videos, documents) get a .RPC extension and you can’t open them. |
| Fix Tool | See If Your System Has Been Affected by Rpc virus |
The recinfo.txt document coming in package with the Rpc ransomware states the following:
all your data has been locked us You want to return? write email pcrec@tuta.io or pcrec@cock.li
In the screenshot below, you can see what a folder with files encrypted by the Rpc looks like. Each filename has the “.RPC” extension appended to it.
An example of encrypted .RPC files.
How did my machine catch Rpc ransomware?
There is a huge number of possible ways of ransomware injection.
There are currently three most popular ways for malefactors to have the Rpc virus planted in your digital environment. These are email spam, Trojan infiltration and peer networks.
If you open your mailbox and see letters that look like familiar notifications from utility services providers, delivery agencies like FedEx, web-access providers, and whatnot, but whose addresser is unknown to you, beware of opening those emails. They are most likely to have a harmful item enclosed in them. So it is even riskier to open any attachments that come with letters like these.
Another option for ransom hunters is a Trojan virus model2. A Trojan is a program that infiltrates into your machine disguised as 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 program that compromises your data. As the update file can have any name and any icon, you have to make sure that you can trust the resource of the things you’re downloading. The best thing is to use the software companies’ official websites.
As for the peer-to-peer networks 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 reasonable to scan the directory containing the downloaded objects with the antivirus as soon as the downloading is complete.
How do I get rid of the Rpc virus?
It is important to note that besides encrypting your files, the Rpc virus will most likely install the Azorult Spyware on your PC to get access to credentials to various accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). That spyware3 can extract your logins and passwords from your browser’s auto-filling cardfile.
Often tamperers would unblock few of your files so you know that they indeed have the decryption program. Since Rpc virus is a relatively recent ransomware, security software developers have not yet found a method to reverse its work. Nevertheless, the decoding tools are constantly upgraded, so the effective countermeasure may soon arrive.
Understandably, if the criminals succeed in encrypting victim’s critical files, the hopeless person will probably fulfill their demands. However, paying a ransom gives no guarantee that you’re getting your files back. It is still dangerous. After receiving the money, the racketeers may deliver a wrong decryption code to the injured party. There were reports of racketeers just vanishing after getting the money without even writing back.
The best safety measure against 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. Surely, that might be not enough. Your most important thing could be that one you were working on when it all went down. But at least it is something. It is also wise to scan your drives with the anti-malware utility after the system is rolled back.
Rpc 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, Tury, Powd, Bowd, and some others. The two basic differences between them and the Rpc are the ransom amount and the method of encryption. The rest is the same: files become encoded, their extensions altered, ransom notes are found in every folder containing encrypted files.
Some lucky users were able to decode the blocked files with the help of the free tools provided by anti-ransomware specialists. Sometimes the hackers accidentally send the decryption code to the victims in the ransom note. Such an epic fail allows the injured part to restore the files. But obviously, one should never rely on such a chance. Make no mistake, ransomware is a criminals’ technology to pull the money out of their victims.
How сan I avert ransomware infiltration?
Rpc ransomware doesn’t have a endless power, neither does any similar malware.
You can defend yourself from ransomware injection in several easy steps:
- Never open any letters from unknown senders with unknown addresses, or with content that has likely no connection to something you are waiting for (how 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 dubious email with caution. A hoax letter will surely have a mistake.
- Never use cracked or unknown programs. Trojans are often distributed as an element of cracked software, most likely as a “patch” which prevents the license check. But potentially dangerous programs are very hard to tell from trustworthy software, as trojans may also have the functionality you need. You can try searching for information on this program on the anti-malware forums, but the best way is not to use such software.
- And to be sure about the safety of the objects you downloaded, use GridinSoft Anti-Malware. This program will be a perfect armor 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 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 system for Rpc 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
🤔 Are the “.RPC” files accessible?
Unfortunately, no. You need to decipher the “.RPC” files first. Then you will be able to open them.
🤔 What should I do to make my files accessible as fast as possible?
Hopefully, you have made a copy of those important files. 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.
🤔 Will GridinSoft Anti-Malware remove all the encrypted files alongside the Rpc virus?
Of course not. Unlike the ransomware program itself, the encrypted files do not jeopardize your system.
With the help of GridinSoft Anti-Malware, you can clean your computer off the actual threats. The virus that has infected your computer is probably still active and running scans periodically to encode any new files you might create on your PC after the initial attack. As it has already been said, the Rpc ransomware does not come alone. It installs backdoors and keyloggers that can take your account passwords by trespass and provide hackers with easy access to your computer in the future.
🤔 What to do if the Rpc malware has blocked my computer and I can’t get the activation code.
In such an unfortunate situation, you need to have a flash memory drive with a previously installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to perform the cleaning. You see, the ransomware runs automatically as the system launches and encrypts any new files created or imported into your PC. To stop this process – use Safe Mode, which allows only the essential programs to run upon system boot. Consider reading our manual on booting Windows in Safe Mode.
🤔 And what should I do now?
Many of the blocked files might still be at your disposal
- 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. Simply ask them to give those images back to you.
- If you have initially downloaded any of your files from the Web, you can try to do it again.
- Your messengers, social networks pages, and cloud storage might have all those files too.
- It might be that you still have the needed files on your old PC, a notebook, mobile, external storage, etc.
HINT: You can use data recovery programs6 to get your lost data back since ransomware blocks the copies of your files, removing the authentic ones. In the video below, you can see how to recover your files with PhotoRec, but be advised: you won’t be able to do it before you remove the virus 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 RPC Ransomware & Recover PC
Name: RPC Virus
Description: RPC Virus is a ransomware-type infections. This virus encrypts important personal files (video, photos, documents). The encrypted files can be tracked by a specific .RPC 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 Top 10 Data Recovery Software Of 2023.
