SECLES Ransomware (.SECLES File) Removal

The Secles virus falls under the ransomware type of malicious agent. A harmful program of this type encrypts all user’s data on the PC (photos, text files, excel sheets, music, videos, etc) and adds its extra extension to every file, leaving the ReadMe.txt files in every directory with the encrypted files.

It is better to prevent, than repair and repent!

When we talk about the intrusion of unfamiliar programs into your computer’s work, the proverb “Forewarned is forearmed” describes the situation as accurately as possible. Gridinsoft Anti-Malware is exactly the tool that is always useful to have in your armory: fast, efficient, up-to-date. It is appropriate to use it as an emergency help at the slightest suspicion of infection.

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Secles virus: what is known so far?

The renaming will be executed according to this scheme: id[victim_id].[Telegram_contact].secles. After the encryption, a file named, for example, “report.docx” will be altered to “report.docx.id[DYz8jzMo].[t.me_secles1bot].secles”.

In every folder with the encrypted files, a ReadMe.txt text file will be found. It is a ransom money memo. It contains information about the ways of paying the ransom and some other information. The ransom note usually contains instructions on how to purchase the decryption tool from the Secles developers. You can obtain this decoding tool after contacting Telegram contact via email. That is how they do it.

Secles Overview:

The ReadMe.txt document accompanying the Secles malware states the following:

to recover your data install telgram messanger at @seclesbot ( hxxps://t.me/secleslbot ) you will talk with support using the bot , admin will be monitoring if for any reason bot is not avaiable you can find link and id of new bot at our onion site 2kksm7oobarkoedfnkihgsa2qdvfgwvr4p4furcsopummgs5y37s6bid.onion you will need to install for browser for onion sites ( hxxps://www.torproject.org/download/ ) you dont need to install for if our telegram bot is working, the bot gets banned once a while


you id is : -


you will get two sample decryption (decoding) before any payment for free this is strong ransomware, any day you waste without paying is one business day you waste our price is reasonable,the wasted days will cost you more

 

some notes:
1-although illegal and bad but this is business,you are our client after infection and we will treat you respectfully like a client


2-do not delete files at c:\\secles , if you want to reinstall windwos take a backup of the folder (dont waste time trying to get anything out of them ,they are encrypted with out public key and cant be read without our private keys)


3-do not play with encrypted file, take a backup if you want to waste some time playing with them


4-if you take a middleman do deal with us directly , take one with good reputation ,we always provide decryptor after payment and only ask for one payment , if you take a random middle man from internet he may take you money and not pay as and disappear or lie to you


5-police can\'t help you , we are excpericed hackers and we don\'t leave footprints behind , even if we did police wont risk ther million dollar worth zero day exploits for catching us, instead what they do get sure of is you never pay us and you suffer loss your data


6-if some of your files don\'t have our extention but do not open ,they are encrypted all other files and will decrypt normally ,they just have not been renamed to get our extension 

In the picture below, you can see what a directory with files encrypted by the Secles looks like. Each filename has the “.secles” extension added to it.

An example of encrypted .secles files.

How did Secles ransomware end up on my PC?

There is a huge number of possible ways of ransomware infiltration.

There are currently three most popular methods for criminals to have the Secles virus planted in your system. These are email spam, Trojan introduction and peer-to-peer networks.

• If you open your inbox and see letters that look like familiar notifications from utility services companies, postal agencies like FedEx, Internet providers, and whatnot, but whose mailer is strange to you, be wary of opening those letters. They are very likely to have a ransomware file enclosed in them. So it is even riskier to download any attachments that come with letters like these.
• Another thing the hackers might try is a Trojan horse model. A Trojan is an object that infiltrates into your computer disguised as something different. For instance, you download an installer for some program you want or an update for some program. However, what is unboxed turns out to be a harmful agent that corrupts your data. As the update file can have any title and any icon, you have to make sure that you can trust the resource of the stuff you’re downloading. The best thing is to use the software developers’ official websites.
• As for the peer file transfer protocols like torrents or eMule, the danger is that they are even more trust-based than the rest of the Internet. You can never know what you download until you get it. Our suggestion is that you use 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 complete.

How do I get rid of ransomware?

It is important to note that besides encrypting your data, the Secles virus will probably deploy Vidar Stealer on your computer to seize your credentials to different accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). That program can extract your credentials from your browser’s auto-filling data.

Remove Secles with Gridinsoft Anti-Malware

We have also been using this software on our systems ever since, and it has always been successful in detecting viruses. It has blocked the most common Ransomware as shown from our tests with the software, and we assure you that it can remove Secles as well as other malware hiding on your computer.

To use Gridinsoft for remove malicious threats, follow the steps below:

1. Begin by downloading Gridinsoft Anti-Malware, accessible via the blue button below or directly from the official website gridinsoft.com.

2.Once the Gridinsoft setup file (setup-gridinsoft-fix.exe) is downloaded, execute it by clicking on the file.

3.Follow the installation setup wizard's instructions diligently.

4. Access the "Scan Tab" on the application's start screen and launch a comprehensive "Full Scan" to examine your entire computer. This inclusive scan encompasses the memory, startup items, the registry, services, drivers, and all files, ensuring that it detects malware hidden in all possible locations.

Be patient, as the scan duration depends on the number of files and your computer's hardware capabilities. Use this time to relax or attend to other tasks.

5. Upon completion, Anti-Malware will present a detailed report containing all the detected malicious items and threats on your PC.

6. Select all the identified items from the report and confidently click the "Clean Now" button. This action will safely remove the malicious files from your computer, transferring them to the secure quarantine zone of the anti-malware program to prevent any further harmful actions.

8. If prompted, restart your computer to finalize the full system scan procedure. This step is crucial to ensure thorough removal of any remaining threats. After the restart, Gridinsoft Anti-Malware will open and display a message confirming the completion of the scan.

Remember Gridinsoft offers a 6-day free trial. This means you can take advantage of the trial period at no cost to experience the full benefits of the software and prevent any future malware infections on your system. Embrace this opportunity to fortify your computer's security without any financial commitment.

Trojan Killer for “Secles” removal on locked PC

In situations where it becomes impossible to download antivirus applications directly onto the infected computer due to malware blocking access to websites, an alternative solution is to utilize the Trojan Killer application.

There is a really little number of security tools that are able to be set up on the USB drives, and antiviruses that can do so in most cases require to obtain quite an expensive license. For this instance, I can recommend you to use another solution of GridinSoft - Trojan Killer Portable. It has a 14-days cost-free trial mode that offers the entire features of the paid version. This term will definitely be 100% enough to wipe malware out.

Trojan Killer is a valuable tool in your cybersecurity arsenal, helping you to effectively remove malware from infected computers. Now, we will walk you through the process of using Trojan Killer from a USB flash drive to scan and remove malware on an infected PC. Remember, always obtain permission to scan and remove malware from a computer that you do not own.

Step 1: Download & Install Trojan Killer on a Clean Computer:

1. Go to the official GridinSoft website (gridinsoft.com) and download Trojan Killer to a computer that is not infected.

2. Insert a USB flash drive into this computer.

3. Install Trojan Killer to the "removable drive" following the on-screen instructions.

4. Once the installation is complete, launch Trojan Killer.

Step 2: Update Signature Databases:

5. After launching Trojan Killer, ensure that your computer is connected to the Internet.

6. Click "Update" icon to download the latest signature databases, which will ensure the tool can detect the most recent threats.

Step 3: Scan the Infected PC:

7. Safely eject the USB flash drive from the clean computer.

8. Boot the infected computer to the Safe Mode.

9. Insert the USB flash drive.

10. Run tk.exe

11. Once the program is open, click on "Full Scan" to begin the malware scanning process.

Step 4: Remove Found Threats:

12. After the scan is complete, Trojan Killer will display a list of detected threats.

13. Click on "Cure PC!" to remove the identified malware from the infected PC.

14. Follow any additional on-screen prompts to complete the removal process.

Step 5: Restart Your Computer:

15. Once the threats are removed, click on "Restart PC" to reboot your computer.

16. Remove the USB flash drive from the infected computer.

Congratulations on effectively removing Secles and the concealed threats from your computer! You can now have peace of mind, knowing that they won't resurface again. Thanks to Gridinsoft's capabilities and commitment to cybersecurity, your system is now protected.

Sometimes racketeers would unblock some of your files so you know that they do have the decryption tool. As Secles virus is a relatively recent ransomware, safety measures developers have not yet found a method to reverse its work. However, the decryption tools are constantly upgraded, so the effective countermeasure may soon arrive.

Of course, if the malefactors do the job of encrypting victim’s critical data, the desperate person will probably comply with their demands. Nevertheless, paying to criminals gives no guarantee that you’re getting your files back. It is still risky. After receiving the ransom, the racketeers may send a wrong decryption key to the injured party. There were reports about criminals just vanishing after getting the money without even bothering to reply.

The best countermeasure to ransomware is to have a system restore point or the copies of your essential files in the cloud drive or at least on an external disk. Surely, that might be insufficient. Your most crucial thing could be that file you were working on when it all started. Nevertheless, it is something. It is also reasonable to scan your drives with the anti-malware utility after the OS restoration.

There are other ransomware products, besides Secles, that work similarly. For instance, Ebaka, Noose, Zeroguard, and some others. The two major differences between them and the Secles are the ransom amount and the method of encryption. The rest is the same: documents become blocked, their extensions altered, ransom notes are found in each folder containing encoded files.

Some fortunate victims were able to decode the blocked files with the aid of the free tools provided by anti-ransomware developers. Sometimes the hackers accidentally send the decryption key to the wronged in the ransom readme. Such an epic fail allows the victim to restore the files. But naturally, one should never rely on such a chance. Remember, ransomware is a bandits’ instrument to lay their hands on the money of their victims.

How сan I avoid ransomware infection?

Secles ransomware doesn’t have a superpower, so as any similar malware.

You can protect your computer from its injection taking three easy steps:

• Ignore any letters from unknown senders with unknown addresses, or with content that has likely no connection to something you are expecting (can you win in a lottery without participating in it?). In case the email subject is likely something you are expecting, scrutinize all elements of the dubious letter carefully. A hoax letter will always have a mistake.
• Avoid using cracked or unknown software. Trojan viruses are often shared as a part of cracked software, possibly under the guise of “patch” preventing the license check. Understandably, potentially dangerous programs are difficult to distinguish from trustworthy software, as trojans sometimes have the functionality you need. You can try to find information on this program on the anti-malware message boards, but the best way is not to use such software.
• And to be sure about the safety of the objects you downloaded, check them with GridinSoft Anti-Malware. This software will be a perfect shield for your personal computer.

Frequently Asked Questions

🤔 Can I somehow access “.secles” files?

Negative. That is why ransomware is so frustrating. Until you decode the “.secles” files you will not be able to access them.

🤔 I really need to decrypt those “.secles” files ASAP. How can I do that?

If the “.secles” files contain some really important information, then you probably have them backed up. If not, there is still a function of System Restore but it needs a Restore Point to be previously saved. The rest of the methods require patience.

🤔 Will GridinSoft Anti-Malware remove all the encrypted files alongside the Secles virus?

Of course not. The encrypted files are not harmful, so they won’t be deleted.

GridinSoft Anti-Malware will delete actual infections from your system. The virus that has attacked your computer is must be still functional and launching checks every so often to arrest any new files you might create on your PC after the attack. As it has been mentioned above, the Secles virus comes with the company. It installs backdoors and keyloggers that can steal your account credentials and provide hackers with easy access to your PC after some time.

🤔 What should I do if the Secles ransomware has blocked my PC and I can’t get the activation key.

In such an unfortunate situation, you need to have a memory stick with a pre-installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to execute the procedure. The point is that the ransomware starts automatically as the system launches and encrypts any new files created or brought into your computer. To stop this process – use Safe Mode, which allows only the vital programs to run automatically. Consider reading our manual on running Windows in Safe Mode.

🤔 What can I do right now?

Some of the blocked data can be found elsewhere.

• If you exchanged your important files through 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 post 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 media pages, and cloud disks might have all those files too.
• Maybe you still have the needed files on your old PC, a notebook, cellphone, memory stick, etc.

HINT: You can use file recovery utilities¹ to retrieve your lost information since ransomware encrypts the copies of your files, removing the original ones. In the video below, you can learn how to use PhotoRec for such a recovery, but be advised: you can do it only after you kill the ransomware itself with an anti-malware program.

1. Here’s the list of Best Data Recovery Software Of 2023.