The Scytalesecc virus belongs with the ransomware type of malicious agent. Harmful software of this type encrypts all user’s data on the computer (photos, text files, excel tables, music, videos, etc) and adds its own extension to every file, leaving the ___RECOVER__FILES__.scytaleSECC.txt files in every directory which contains the encrypted files.
What is known about the Scytaleseccvirus?
☝️ A strictly accurate denomination for the Scytalesecc would be “a ransomware malicious agent”.
Scytalesecc adds its own .scytaleSECC extension to the title of each encrypted file. For example, an image entitled “photo.jpg” will be renamed to “photo.jpg.scytaleSECC”. Likewise, the Excel table with the name “table.xlsx” will be changed to “table.xlsx.scytaleSECC”, and so on.
In each directory with the encrypted files, a ___RECOVER__FILES__.scytaleSECC.txt text document will be found. It is a ransom money memo. Therein you can find information about the ways of paying the ransom and some other remarks. The ransom note most probably contains instructions on how to purchase the decryption tool from the racketeers. You can get this tool after contacting qTox contact through email. That is it.
Scytalesecc summary:
| Name | Scytalesecc Virus |
| Extension | .scytaleSECC |
| Ransomware note | ___RECOVER__FILES__.scytaleSECC.txt |
| Ransom | 0.5-1BTC |
| Contact | qTox contact |
| Detection | Crytex.Virus.FileInfector.DDS, Win32/Filecoder.OLC, Malware-Cryptor.InstallCore.5 |
| Symptoms | Your files (photos, videos, documents) have a .scytaleSECC extension and you can’t open them. |
| Fix Tool | See If Your System Has Been Affected by Scytalesecc virus |
The ___RECOVER__FILES__.scytaleSECC.txt document accompanying the Scytalesecc malware states the following:
All your files are encrypted. You can get your key for 0.50 BTC. you have exactly 48 hours to leak your files! Use your qtox id to unlock hxxps://tox.chat/download.html 1 bitcoin(s) to BTC address: 15VkfWnihwSKgKB1cHW2pXUxvk5r5HN8Yc Next, please qtox your process id as the message path: - Thank you and have a nice day!
In the picture below, you can see what a directory with files encrypted by the Scytalesecc looks like. Each filename has the “.scytaleSECC” extension added to it.
That is how encrypted “.scytaleSECC” files look.
How did my machine catch Scytalesecc ransomware?
There is a huge number of possible ways of ransomware infiltration.
Nowadays, there are three most popular methods for evil-doers to have ransomware settled in your system. These are email spam, Trojan infiltration and peer networks.
If you open your mailbox and see emails that look like familiar notifications from utility services companies, delivery agencies like FedEx, Internet providers, and whatnot, but whose “from” field is unknown to you, be wary of opening those emails. They are most likely to have a ransomware item attached to them. Therefore, it is even riskier to open any attachments that come with emails like these.
Another thing the hackers might try is a Trojan virus model1. A Trojan is an object that infiltrates into your computer disguised as something else. For instance, you download an installer for some program you want or an update for some software. However, what is unboxed reveals itself a harmful agent that corrupts your data. Since the installation wizard can have any title and any icon, you’d better be sure that you can trust the source of the files you’re downloading. The best way is to use the software developers’ official websites.
As for the peer networks like torrent trackers or eMule, the threat is that they are even more trust-based than the rest of the Internet. You can never guess what you download until you get it. So you’d better be using trustworthy websites. Also, it is reasonable to scan the directory containing the downloaded files with the anti-malware utility as soon as the downloading is complete.
How do I get rid of the Scytalesecc virus?
It is crucial to inform you that besides encrypting your files, the Scytalesecc virus will most likely deploy the Azorult Spyware on your machine to get access to credentials to various accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). The mentioned spyware2 can derive your logins and passwords from your browser’s auto-filling cardfile.
Sometimes tamperers would decode several of your files to prove that they indeed have the decryption tool. As Scytalesecc virus is a relatively new ransomware, security software engineers have not yet found a way to undo its work. Nevertheless, the decoding tools are frequently upgraded, so the solution may soon arrive.
Sure thing, if the malefactors succeed in encrypting someone’s essential data, the desperate person will probably fulfill their demands. Nevertheless, paying to racketeers gives no guarantee that you’re getting your data back. It is still dangerous. After receiving the ransom, the racketeers may send a wrong decryption code to the injured party. There were reports of hackers simply disappearing after getting the money without even bothering to reply.
The optimal solution 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 disk. Surely, that might be not enough. Your most important thing could be that file you were working on when it all started. Nevertheless, it is something. It is also advisable to scan your PC for viruses with the antivirus program after the system is rolled back.
There are other ransomware products, besides Scytalesecc, that work similarly. Examples of those are Mzop, Poqw, Pouu, and some others. The two major differences between them and the Scytalesecc are the ransom amount and the encoding method. The rest is almost identical: files become encoded, their extensions altered, ransom notes are found in each directory containing encoded files.
Some fortunate users were able to decrypt the blocked files with the aid of the free software provided by anti-ransomware developers. Sometimes the racketeers mistakenly send the decoding code to the wronged in the ransom note. 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 criminals’ instrument to pull the money out of their victims.
How do I avoid ransomware attack?
Scytalesecc ransomware doesn’t have a superpower, so as any similar malware.
You can protect yourself from its attack taking several easy steps:
- Ignore any emails from unknown senders with strange addresses, or with content that has nothing to do with something you are waiting for (how can you win in a lottery without participating in it?). In case the email subject is likely something you are waiting for, scrutinize all elements of the suspicious letter with caution. A fake email will surely contain a mistake.
- Never use cracked or untrusted software. Trojans are often shared as an element of cracked software, possibly as a “patch” which prevents the license check. Understandably, untrusted programs are difficult to distinguish from trustworthy ones, because trojans sometimes have the functionality you seek. You can try to find information about this software product on the anti-malware forums, but the optimal way is not to use such software.
- And to be sure about the safety of the objects you downloaded, scan them with GridinSoft Anti-Malware. This software will be a perfect defense for your personal computer.
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 system for Scytalesecc 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 “.scytaleSECC” files?Can I somehow access “.scytaleSECC” files?
Unfortunately, no. You need to decipher the “.scytaleSECC” files first. Then you will be able to open them.
🤔 I really need to decrypt those “.scytaleSECC” files ASAP. How can I do that?
Hopefully, you have made a copy of those important files. 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. There are other ways to beat ransomware, but they take time.
🤔 You have advised using GridinSoft Anti-Malware to get rid of the Scytalesecc virus. Does it mean that all my files, currently encrypted, will be removed too?
Absolutely not! The encrypted files are not harmful, so they won’t be deleted.
GridinSoft Anti-Malware only deals with real viruses. The ransomware that has attacked your system is must be still functional and launching checks periodically to encode any new files you might create on your computer after the infection. As it has been mentioned above, the Scytalesecc ransomware comes with the company. It installs backdoors and keyloggers that can take your account passwords by trespass and provide malefactors with easy access to your system after some time.
🤔 What should I do if the Scytalesecc malware has blocked my PC and I can’t get the activation code.
If that happened, you need to have a flash memory drive with a pre-installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to perform the procedure. 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 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?
Some of the encrypted files can be located elsewhere.
- If you exchanged 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 family members. Just ask them to give those pictures back to you.
- If you have initially downloaded any of your files from the Web, 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 notebook, cellphone, flash memory, etc.
USEFUL TIP: You can employ file recovery utilities5 to get your lost data back since ransomware blocks the copies of your files, deleting the authentic ones. In the video below, you can learn how to use PhotoRec for such a restoration, but remember: you can do it only after you remove the virus 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 SCYTALESECC Ransomware & Recover PC
Name: SCYTALESECC Virus
Description: SCYTALESECC Virus is a ransomware-type infections. This virus encrypts important personal files (video, photos, documents). The encrypted files can be tracked by a specific .scytaleSECC 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 are Best Data Recovery Software Of 2023.
