Safety specialist Tomas Meskauskas was the person who, for the first time, revealed the Tox gucci virus, which falls within the ransomware type of malicious agent. Malware of this type encrypts all user’s data on the computer (images, documents, excel tables, audio files, videos, etc) and appends its specific extension to every file.
What is Tox gucci virus?
☝️ A strictly accurate designation for the Tox gucci is “a ransomware-type malicious agent”.
The pattern of renaming is this: GUCCI. In the process of encryption, a file named, for instance, “report.docx” will be changed to “report.docx.id[9ECFA84E-3208].[tox].GUCCI”.
The ransom note usually contains a description of how to purchase the decryption tool from the tamperers. That is how they do it.
Tox gucci outline:
| Name | Tox gucci Virus |
| Extension | .GUCCI |
| Detection | Ursu.885954, MSIL/FiryWorm-A, Worm.Agent.MSIL |
| Symptoms | Your files (photos, videos, documents) get a .GUCCI extension and you can’t open them. |
| Fix Tool | See If Your System Has Been Affected by Tox gucci virus |
The note accompanying the Tox gucci malware states the following:
All your files have been encrypted! All your files have been encrypted due to a security problem with your PC. If you want to restore them: write us to the TOX messenger: tox: CD54A20BCCDAA8209805BB8D4BDE15D542A66CF6E155783ECBE7549D0D6FBD0A59C16E9FD95C You can download TOX messenger here hxxps://tox.chat/ Write this ID in the title of your message 9ECFA84E-3208 You have to pay for decryption in Bitcoins. The price depends on how fast you write to us. After payment we will send you the tool that will decrypt all your files. Free decryption as guarantee Before paying you can send us 1 file for free decryption. The total size of files must be less than 5Mb (non archived), and files should not contain valuable information. (databases,backups, large excel sheets, etc.) How to obtain Bitcoins The easiest way to buy bitcoins is LocalBitcoins site. You have to register, click \'Buy bitcoins\', and select the seller by payment method and price. hxxps://localbitcoins.com/buy_bitcoins Also you can find other places to buy Bitcoins and beginners guide here: hxxp://www.coindesk.com/information/how-can-i-buy-bitcoins/ Attention! Do not rename encrypted files. Do not try to decrypt your data using third party software, it may cause permanent data loss. Decryption of your files with the help of third parties may cause increased price (they add their fee to our) or you can become a victim of a scam. We also want to notify you that the most important data of your company was copied by us, but we guarantee the confidentiality of private information and information about this incident in case of successful cooperation. Otherwise, we reserve the right to monetize our services by selling your information at specialized auctions.
In the image below, you can see what a folder with files encrypted by the Tox gucci looks like. Each filename has the “.GUCCI” extension appended to it.
That is how encrypted “.GUCCI” files look.
How did Tox gucci ransomware end up on my PC?
There are many possible ways of ransomware injection.
Nowadays, there are three most exploited ways for criminals to have the Tox gucci virus acting in your system. These are email spam, Trojan infiltration and peer-to-peer networks.
If you access your inbox and see letters that look like familiar notifications from utility services companies, postal agencies like FedEx, web-access providers, and whatnot, but whose “from” field is strange to you, beware of opening those emails. They are very likely to have a ransomware item enclosed in them. So it is even riskier to download any attachments that come with emails like these.
Another option for ransom hunters is a Trojan horse model1. A Trojan is a program that infiltrates into your computer pretending to be something else. Imagine, you download an installer of some program you want or an update for some program. However, what is unpacked turns out to be a harmful agent that compromises your data. Since the update package 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 optimal way is to trust the software developers’ official websites.
As for the peer-to-peer networks like BitTorrent 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 websites. Also, it is a good idea to scan the directory containing the downloaded items with the anti-malware utility as soon as the downloading is done.
How to remove the Tox gucci virus?
It is crucial to inform you that besides encrypting your data, the Tox gucci virus will most likely deploy the Azorult Spyware on your PC to get access to credentials to different accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). The mentioned program can extract your logins and passwords from your browser’s auto-filling cardfile.
Sometimes racketeers would decrypt few of your files to prove that they really have the decryption program. Since Tox gucci virus is a relatively new ransomware, security software designers have not yet found a way to undo its work. Nevertheless, the anti-ransomware tools are frequently updated, so the solution may soon arrive.
Understandably, if the malefactors do the job of encrypting someone’s critical files, the desperate person will probably comply with their demands. Nevertheless, paying a ransom does not necessarily mean that you’re getting your data back. It is still dangerous. After receiving the money, the racketeers may send a wrong decryption key to the victim. There were reports about criminals just disappearing after getting the money without even bothering to reply.
The optimal safety measure against ransomware is to have aan OS restore point or the copies of your critical files in the cloud drive or at least on an external disk. Of course, that might be not enough. The most important thing could be that file you were working upon when it all started. Nevertheless, it is something. It is also reasonable to scan your drives with the antivirus program after the system restoration.
There are other ransomware products, besides Tox gucci, that work similarly. For instance, Jhdd, Tuid, Ghas, and some others. The two major differences between them and the Tox gucci are the ransom amount and the encoding method. The rest is the same: documents become inaccessible, their extensions changed, ransom notes appear in each directory containing encoded files.
Some fortunate people were able to decrypt the arrested files with the help of the free tools provided by anti-ransomware developers. Sometimes the criminals accidentally send the decoding key to the wronged in the ransom note. Such an extraordinary fail allows the victim to restore the files. But naturally, one should never rely on such a chance. Make no mistake, ransomware is a criminals’ technology to lay their hands on the money of their victims.
How сan I avert ransomware attack?
Tox gucci ransomware doesn’t have a superpower, so as any similar malware.
You can protect your computer from ransomware infiltration in three easy steps:
- Never open any letters from unknown senders with strange addresses, or with content that has likely no connection to something you are expecting (can you win in a lottery without even taking part in it?). If the email subject is more or less something you are expecting, check all elements of the dubious email carefully. A hoax letter will always contain mistakes.
- Never use cracked or untrusted programs. Trojan viruses are often distributed as a part of cracked products, most likely under the guise of “patch” to prevent the license check. But potentially dangerous programs are difficult to distinguish from trustworthy software, because trojans sometimes have the functionality you seek. You can try to find information on this software product on the anti-malware message boards, but the best solution is not to use such software.
- And finally, to be sure about the safety of the objects you downloaded, scan them with GridinSoft Anti-Malware. This software will be a powerful shield for your personal computer.
Reasons why I would recommend GridinSoft2
There is no better way to recognize, remove and prevent ransomware than to use an anti-malware software from GridinSoft3.
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 PC for Tox gucci 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.
FAQ
🤔 Can I somehow access “.GUCCI” files?
Unfortunately, no. You need to decipher the “.GUCCI” 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. If not, there is still a function of System Restore but it needs a Restore Point to be previously saved. All other solutions require time.
🤔 You have advised using GridinSoft Anti-Malware to get rid of the Tox gucci virus. Does it mean that all my files, currently encrypted, will be removed too?
Of course not. Your encrypted files are no threat to your PC.
GridinSoft Anti-Malware will remove active viruses from your system. The malware that has infected your system is most likely still functional and it scans your system periodically to encode any new files you might create on your computer after the attack. As it has already been said, the Tox gucci malware does not come alone. It installs backdoors and keyloggers that can steal your account credentials and provide hackers with easy access to your computer after some time.
🤔 What should I do if the Tox gucci ransomware has blocked my computer and I can’t get the activation key.
If that happened, you need to prepare a flash memory drive with a pre-installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to do the cleaning. The point is that the ransomware starts automatically as the system boots and encrypts any new files created or imported into your system. To suppress this process – use Safe Mode, which allows only the vital programs to run automatically. Consider reading our manual on booting Windows in Safe Mode.
🤔 What could help the situation 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 might have shared images or videos with your friends or family members. Just ask them to send those pictures back to you.
- If you have initially got 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 computer, a notebook, cellphone, external storage, etc.
HINT: You can use file recovery programs4 to retrieve your lost information since ransomware arrests the copies of your files, deleting the authentic ones. In the video below, you can learn how to recover your files with PhotoRec, but be advised: you can do it only after you kill the ransomware itself 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 TOX GUCCI Ransomware & Recover PC
Name: TOX GUCCI Virus
Description: TOX GUCCI Virus is a ransomware-type infections. This virus encrypts important personal files (video, photos, documents). The encrypted files can be tracked by a specific .GUCCI 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.
- 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.
