SURTR Ransomware 🔐 [DecryptMyData@mailfence.com].SURT Removal

The Surtr virus belongs to the ransomware type of malicious agent. A harmful program of such sort encrypts all the data on your PC (images, documents, excel tables, audio files, videos, etc) and appends its own extension to every file, creating the SURTR_README.hta files in every directory which contains 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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Surtr virus: what is known so far?

☝️ A scientifically correct denomination for the Surtr is “a ransomware-type malicious agent”.

The renaming will be executed according to the following scheme: .SURT. In the course of encryption, a file entitled, for example, “report.docx” will be altered to “report.docx.[DecryptMyData@mailfence.com].SURT”.

In each folder with the encrypted files, a SURTR_README.hta text document will be found. It is a ransom money memo. Therein you can find information on the ways of paying the ransom and some other information. The ransom note usually contains a description of how to buy the decryption tool from the Surtr developers. You can obtain this decoding tool after contacting decryptmydata@mailfence.com, decrypter@msgsafe.io, tokyo@yahooweb.co, dectokyo@onionmail.org, decdata@tutanota.com, decdata@msgsafe.io, ogerdecrypt@protonmail.com, d4nte@onionmail.org, johnd3crypt@gmail.com, Ogerdecrypt@protonmail.com, recoverme@msgsafe.io, ogerdecrypt@mailfence.com, amanda@onionmail.org, helpme@mailfence.com, decryptefile@aol.com, restorefiles@mailfence.com through email. That is how they do it.

Surtr Summary:

The SURTR_README.hta document coming in package with the Surtr ransomware states the following:

SurtrRansomware
 
OOPS ALL YOUR IMPORTANT FILES HAVE BEEN ENCRYPTED AND STOLEN !!

Notice : There is only one way to restore your data read the boxes carefully!

Attention :

☢ Do Not change file names.
☢ Do Not try to decrypt using third party softwares , it may cause permanent data loss .
☢ If you do not pay the fee within one month , your important files will be published in our public belog .

☢ Do not pay any money before decrypting the test files.
☢ You can use our 50% discount if you pay the fee within first 15 days of encryption . otherwise the price will be doubled.
☢ In order to warranty you , our team will decrypt 3 of your desired files for free.but you need to pay the specified price for the rest of the operation .
 
How To Decrypt :

☢ Your system is offline . in order to contact us you can email this address  DecryptMyData@mailfence.com  use this ID (0uUO3jsQBIbkZu) for the title of your email .
☢ If you weren't able to contact us within 24 hours please email :  Decrypter@msgsafe.io  
☢ If you didn't get any respond within 48 hours use this link (Not Available Now).send your ID and your cryptor name (SurtrRansomwareUserName) therefore we can create another way to contact you as soon as possible

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

An example of encrypted .SURT files.

How did my computer get infected with Surtr ransomware?

There are plenty of possible ways of ransomware injection.

There are currently three most exploited ways for criminals to have the Surtr virus working in your system. These are email spam, Trojan introduction and peer-to-peer networks.

If you access your mailbox and see emails that look like familiar notifications from utility services companies, delivery agencies like FedEx, Internet providers, and whatnot, but whose sender is unknown to you, beware of opening those letters. They are most likely to have a viral file attached to them. Therefore, it is even more dangerous to open any attachments that come with emails like these.

Another thing the hackers might try is a Trojan virus scheme. A Trojan is a program that infiltrates into your computer disguised as something legal. Imagine, you download an installer for some program you want or an update for some program. However, what is unpacked reveals itself a harmful agent that corrupts your data. As the installation file can have any title and any icon, you have to make sure that you can trust the resource of the things you’re downloading. The optimal way is to trust 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 Web. You can never know what you download until you get it. So you’d better be using trustworthy websites. Also, it is a good idea to scan the folder containing the downloaded items with the anti-malware utility as soon as the downloading is complete.

How to remove ransomware?

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

Remove Surtr 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 Surtr 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 “Surtr” 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 Surtr 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.

Often criminals would decode some of your files so you know that they really have the decryption program. Since Surtr virus is a relatively recent ransomware, security software engineers have not yet found a way to undo its work. Nevertheless, the decoding instruments are frequently updated, so the effective countermeasure may soon be available.

Understandably, if the hackers succeed in encrypting someone’s essential data, the hopeless person will most likely 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 send a wrong decryption key to the injured party. There were reports of criminals just vanishing after getting the money without even bothering to reply.

The optimal countermeasure to ransomware is to have aan OS restore point or the copies of your essential files in the cloud drive or at least on an external drive. Surely, that might be not enough. The most important thing could be that file you were working upon when it all happened. Nevertheless, it is something. It is also reasonable to scan your PC for viruses with the anti-malware utility after the OS restoration.

Surtr 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, Gayn, Agpo, Tgvv, and some others. The two main differences between them and the Surtr are the ransom amount and the encoding method. The rest is almost identical: documents become encrypted, their extensions changed, ransom notes are found in every folder containing encrypted files.

Some fortunate victims were able to decrypt the blocked files with the help of the free software provided by anti-ransomware 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. Remember, ransomware is a criminals’ instrument to lay their hands on the money of their victims.

How to avert ransomware infiltration?

Surtr ransomware has no endless power, so as any similar malware.

You can defend your computer from its infiltration taking three easy steps:

• Ignore any letters from unknown mailboxes with unknown addresses, or with content that has nothing to do with something you are waiting for (how 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 questionable email carefully. A hoax email will surely contain mistakes.
• Never use cracked or unknown software. Trojans are often distributed as an element of cracked products, possibly under the guise of “patch” preventing the license check. Understandably, untrusted programs are very hard to distinguish from trustworthy ones, as trojans may also have the functionality you need. You can try to find information on this program on the anti-malware message boards, but the optimal solution is not to use such software.
• And to be sure about the safety of the files you downloaded, check them with GridinSoft Anti-Malware. This program will be a perfect defense for your PC.

FAQ

🤔 Is it possible to open “.SURT” files?

There’s no way to do it, unless the files “.SURT” files are decrypted.

🤔 What should I do to make my files accessible as fast as possible?

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. All other solutions require time.

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

No way! Your encrypted files are no threat to your PC.

With the help of GridinSoft Anti-Malware, you can clean your PC off the actual threats. The malware that has infected your system is probably still functional and running scans every so often to arrest any new files you might create on your PC after the infection. As it has already been said, the Surtr virus does not come alone. It installs backdoors and keyloggers that can steal your account credentials and provide criminals with easy access to your system after some time.

🤔 What to do if the Surtr malware has blocked my PC and I can’t get the activation key.

In such an unfortunate situation, you need to prepare a flash memory card with a pre-installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to perform the cleaning. You see, the ransomware starts automatically as the system boots and encodes any new files created or brought into your machine. To suppress this process – use Safe Mode, which allows only the vital applications to run automatically. Consider reading our manual on running Windows in Safe Mode.

🤔 What can I do right now?

Some of the encrypted files can be found elsewhere.

• If you sent or received your critical files via email, you could still download them from your online mailbox.
• You may have shared images or videos with your friends or family members. Just ask them to send those images back to you.
• If you have initially got any of your files from the Web, you can try doing it again.
• Your messengers, social networks pages, and cloud storage might have all those files as well.
• Maybe you still have the needed files on your old PC, a notebook, mobile, flash memory, etc.

HINT: You can employ data recovery programs¹ to get your lost data back since ransomware blocks the copies of your files, removing the original ones. In the tutorial below, you can learn how to use PhotoRec for such a recovery, but be advised: you can do it only after you eradicate the ransomware itself with an anti-malware program.

1. Here’s the list of Top 10 Data Recovery Software Of 2023.