The Bully Ransomware ([email protected])

The Bully falls within the ransomware type of infection. Ransomware of such sort encrypts all the data on your computer (photos, documents, excel tables, music, videos, etc) and adds its own extension to every file, creating the read_it.txt text files in each directory with the encrypted files.

The bully virus: what is known so far?

The bully will add its extra .HAHAHAIAMABULLY extension to the title of every encoded file. For example, an image named “photo.jpg” will be altered to “photo.jpg.HAHAHAIAMABULLY”. Just like the Excel file with the name “table.xlsx” will be altered to “table.xlsx.HAHAHAIAMABULLY”, and so forth.

In each folder with the encrypted files, a read_it.txt text document will be created. 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 most probably contains instructions on how to purchase the decryption tool from the tamperers. You can get this decryptor after emailing [email protected]. That is pretty much the scheme of the malefaction.

The bully Summary:

The read_it.txt document accompanying the The bully ransomware states the following:

the bully ransomware
oh no it seems like your files has been STOLEN and ENCRYPTED!!! to decrypt your file pay us all your lunch money at [email protected]
_________________________
WARNING!
do not try to decyrpt your files with 3rd party decryotors or your files will be gone and u might get scammed

In the image below, you can see what a folder with files encrypted by the The bully looks like. Each filename has the “.HAHAHAIAMABULLY” extension added to it.

How did The bully ransomware end up on my PC?

There are plenty of possible ways of ransomware injection.

There are currently three most exploited methods for hackers to have the The bully virus working in your digital environment. These are email spam, Trojan injection and peer file transfer.

• If you access your mailbox and see emails that look like familiar notifications from utility services providers, delivery agencies like FedEx, Internet providers, and whatnot, but whose sender is strange to you, be wary of opening those letters. They are most likely to have a malware item enclosed in them. Thus it is even riskier to open any attachments that come with letters like these.
• Another option for ransom hunters is a Trojan virus scheme. A Trojan is a program that infiltrates into your machine disguised as something else. For example, you download an installer of some program you want or an update for some service. However, what is unpacked reveals itself a harmful agent that encodes your data. Since the installation wizard can have any name and any icon, you’d better be sure that you can trust the source of the stuff you’re downloading. The optimal thing is to trust the software companies’ official websites.
• As for the peer-to-peer networks like BitTorrent 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 resources. 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 finished.

How do I get rid of ransomware?

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

How сan I avert ransomware injection?

The bully ransomware has no superpower, so as any similar malware.

You can defend your system from ransomware infiltration within three easy steps:

• Never open any emails from unknown mailers with strange 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 participating in it?). In case the email subject is likely something you are waiting for, scrutinize all elements of the questionable email with caution. A fake letter will surely contain mistakes.
• Avoid using cracked or unknown software. Trojans are often spreaded as an element of cracked software, possibly under the guise of “patch” which prevents the license check. Understandably, potentially dangerous programs are difficult to distinguish from trustworthy ones, as trojans may also have the functionality you need. You can try searching for information on this program on the anti-malware message boards, but the optimal solution is not to use such software.

Frequently Asked Questions

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

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

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

If the “.HAHAHAIAMABULLY” files contain some really important information, then you probably have them backed up. Otherwise, you might try to employ System Restore. The only question is whether you have saved any Restore Points that would be helpful now. There are other ways to beat ransomware, but they take time.

🤔 What actions should I take if the The bully virus has blocked my computer and I can’t get the activation code.

🤔 And what should I do now?

Some of the blocked files can be found elsewhere.

• If you exchanged your important files by email, you could still download them from your online mail server.
• You might have shared photographs or videos with your friends or relatives. Simply ask them to send those pictures back to you.
• If you have initially downloaded any of your files from the Internet, you can try downloading them again.
• Your messengers, social media 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, mobile, external storage, etc.

HINT: You can employ data recovery programs¹ to get your lost data back since ransomware encrypts the copies of your files, removing the original ones. In the video below, you can learn how to recover your files with PhotoRec, but remember: you won’t be able to do it before you remove the ransomware itself with an antivirus program.

1. Here are Top 10 Data Recovery Software Of 2024.