The Wgbkr virus belongs to the ransomware type of malicious agent. Harmful software of such sort encrypts all the data on your computer (images, documents, excel tables, audio files, videos, etc) and adds its specific extension to every file, leaving the isJD_HOW_TO_DECRYPT.txt files in each folder with the encrypted files.
What is Wgbkr?
☝️ A strictly correct designation for the Wgbkr would be “a ransomware-type infection”.
Wgbkr will add its own .wgbkr extension to the name of each encoded file. For example, an image named “photo.jpg” will be renamed to “photo.jpg.wgbkr”. Likewise, the Excel sheet named “table.xlsx” will end up as “table.xlsx.wgbkr”, and so forth.
In each folder that contains the encrypted files, a isJD_HOW_TO_DECRYPT.txt file will be found. It is a ransom money memo. Therein you can find information about the ways of contacting the racketeers and some other information. The ransom note usually contains a description of how to buy the decryption tool from the racketeers. That is it.
Wgbkr summary:
| Name | Wgbkr Virus |
| Extension | .wgbkr |
| Ransomware note | isJD_HOW_TO_DECRYPT.txt |
| Detection | Adware.NeoBar.Generic, Trojan:Win32/Tnega.PKD!MTB, Win32/TrojanDownloader.Agent.DGM |
| Symptoms | Your files (photos, videos, documents) have a .wgbkr extension and you can’t open them. |
| Fix Tool | See If Your System Has Been Affected by Wgbkr virus |
In the screenshot below, you can see what a folder with files encrypted by the Wgbkr looks like. Each filename has the “.wgbkr” extension appended to it.
That is how encrypted “.wgbkr” files look.
How did my computer get infected with Wgbkr ransomware?
There are many possible ways of ransomware infiltration.
Nowadays, there are three most popular methods for criminals to have the Wgbkr virus settled in your system. These are email spam, Trojan infiltration and peer networks.
If you open your inbox and see emails that look just like notifications from utility services providers, postal agencies like FedEx, web-access providers, and whatnot, but whose addresser is strange to you, be wary of opening those emails. They are most likely to have a malicious file attached to them. Therefore, it is even riskier to open any attachments that come with letters like these.
Another thing the hackers might try is a Trojan file model1. A Trojan is a program that infiltrates into your machine pretending to be something different. For example, you download an installer of some program you need or an update for some service. However, what is unboxed turns out to be a harmful program that compromises your data. Since the installation wizard can have any title and any icon, you’d better be sure that you can trust the resource of the things you’re downloading. The best way is to trust the software companies’ 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 Web. You can never guess what you download until you get it. Our suggestion is that you use trustworthy websites. Also, it is reasonable to scan the directory containing the downloaded items with the antivirus as soon as the downloading is complete.
How do I get rid of the Wgbkr virus?
It is crucial to note that besides encrypting your files, the Wgbkr virus will most likely install the Azorult Spyware on your computer to seize your credentials to different accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). The mentioned spyware2 can derive your credentials from your browser’s auto-filling data.
Often criminals would unblock few of your files so you know that they really have the decryption program. Since Wgbkr virus is a relatively recent ransomware, security software designers have not yet found a method to undo its work. Nevertheless, the decoding instruments are constantly upgraded, so the effective countermeasure may soon be available.
Of course, if the criminals succeed in encoding someone’s essential files, the desperate person will most likely fulfill their demands. Despite that, paying a ransom gives no guarantee that you’re getting your files back. It is still dangerous. After obtaining the money, the racketeers may send a wrong decryption code to the injured party. There were reports of ransomware developers just disappearing after getting the money without even bothering to reply.
The best solution against ransomware is to have a system restore point or the copies of your critical files in the cloud drive or at least on an external drive. Obviously, that might be not enough. Your 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 antivirus program after the system is rolled back.
There are other ransomware products, besides Wgbkr, that work similarly. For instance, Nnqp, Mljx, Hudf, and some others. The two basic differences between them and the Wgbkr are the ransom amount and the method of encryption. The rest is almost identical: documents become inaccessible, their extensions altered, ransom notes appear in each folder containing encoded files.
Some lucky victims were able to decrypt the arrested files with the aid of the free software provided by anti-malware experts. Sometimes the racketeers mistakenly send the decryption code to the wronged in the ransom readme. Such an extraordinary fail allows the victim to restore the files. But of course, one should never rely on such a chance. Remember, ransomware is a tamperers’ instrument to lay their hands on the money of their victims.
How do I avert ransomware infiltration?
Wgbkr ransomware has no superpower, so as any similar malware.
You can armour your system from ransomware infiltration in three easy steps:
- Ignore any emails 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 lottery without participating in it?). In case the email subject is likely something you are expecting, check all elements of the questionable email with caution. A fake email will always have a mistake.
- Do not use cracked or unknown software. Trojans are often shared as an element of cracked products, most likely under the guise of “patch” preventing the license check. But untrusted programs are very hard to tell from reliable ones, as trojans may also have the functionality you need. Try to find information about this software product on the anti-malware forums, but the best way 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 powerful defense for your system.
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 computer.
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 Wgbkr 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
🤔 How can I open “.wgbkr” files?Is it possible to open“.wgbkr” files?
There’s no way to do it, unless the files “.wgbkr” files are decrypted.
🤔 The encrypted files are very important to me. How can I decrypt them quickly?
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. There are other ways to beat ransomware, but they take time.
🤔 If GridinSoft deletes the Wgbkr malware, will it also delete my files that were encrypted?
Absolutely not! Your encrypted files are no threat to your PC.
With the help of GridinSoft Anti-Malware, you can clean your computer off the actual viruses. The virus that has attacked your system is probably still functional and running scans periodically to arrest any new files you might create on your computer after the initial attack. As it has been mentioned above, the Wgbkr malware comes with the company. It installs backdoors and keyloggers that can take your account passwords by trespass and provide criminals with easy access to your PC in the future.
🤔 What actions should I take if the Wgbkr virus has blocked my computer and I can’t get the activation code.
In such an unfortunate situation, you need to prepare a flash memory drive with a previously installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to do the cleaning. You see, the ransomware runs automatically as the system launches and encrypts any new files created or imported into your PC. To suppress this process – use Safe Mode, which allows only the essential programs to run automatically. Consider reading our manual on booting Windows in Safe Mode.
🤔 And what should I do now?
Many of the encrypted files might still be within your reach
- If you sent or received 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 relatives. Just ask them to give those images back to you.
- If you have initially downloaded any of your files from the Internet, you can try doing it again.
- Your messengers, social networks pages, and cloud storage might have all those files too.
- It might be that you still have the needed files on your old computer, a laptop, phone, flash memory, etc.
USEFUL TIP: You can use file recovery utilities5 to get your lost data back since ransomware blocks the copies of your files, deleting the original ones. In the video below, you can see how to use PhotoRec for such a recovery, but be advised: you won’t be able to do it before you remove the virus 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 WGBKR Ransomware & Recover PC
Name: WGBKR Virus
Description: WGBKR Virus is a ransomware-type infections. This virus encrypts important personal files (video, photos, documents). The encrypted files can be tracked by a specific .wgbkr 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.
