The Zxcvb virus falls within the Dharma ransomware family. Ransomware of this type encrypts all the data on your computer (photos, text files, excel tables, audio files, videos, etc) and adds its extra extension to every file, leaving the FILES ENCRYPTED.txt text files in every directory with the encrypted files.
Zxcvb virus: what is known so far?
☝️ A strictly accurate denomination for the Zxcvb is “a Dharma family ransomware-type infection”.
The scheme of renaming is this: id-xxxxxx.[contact_email].zxcvb. During the encryption, a file entitled, for instance, “report.docx” will be turned into “report.docx.id-9ECFA84E.[paymoney@onionmail.org].zxcvb”.
In every folder with the encrypted files, a FILES ENCRYPTED.txt file will appear. It is a ransom money note. Therein you can find information about the ways of paying the ransom and some other remarks. The ransom note most probably contains a description of how to purchase the decryption tool from the racketeers. You can obtain this decoding tool after contacting paymoney@onionmail.org via email. That is pretty much the scheme of the malefaction.
Zxcvb summary:
| Name | Zxcvb Virus |
| Ransomware family1 | Dharma ransomware |
| Extension | .zxcvb |
| Ransomware note | FILES ENCRYPTED.txt |
| Contact | paymoney@onionmail.org |
| Detection | Trojan:Win32/Anomaly!C, Trojan:Win32/NgrBot.MA!MTB, Trojan:Win32/ButeRat.MA!MTB |
| Symptoms | Your files (photos, videos, documents) have a .zxcvb extension and you can’t open them. |
| Fix Tool | See If Your System Has Been Affected by Zxcvb virus |
The FILES ENCRYPTED.txt document accompanying the Zxcvb ransomware states the following:
all your data has been locked us You want to return? write email paymoney@onionmail.org or zxcvb@onionmail.com
In the picture below, you can see what a directory with files encrypted by the Zxcvb looks like. Each filename has the “.zxcvb” extension added to it.
An example of encrypted .zxcvb files.
How did my computer get infected with Zxcvb ransomware?
There are plenty of possible ways of ransomware infiltration.
Nowadays, there are three most popular ways for evil-doers to have the Zxcvb virus planted in your digital environment. These are email spam, Trojan infiltration and peer-to-peer file transfer.
If you open your mailbox and see emails that look like familiar notifications from utility services companies, delivery agencies like FedEx, Internet providers, and whatnot, but whose “from” field is unknown to you, beware of opening those emails. They are very likely to have a malicious file enclosed in them. Therefore, it is even riskier to download any attachments that come with letters like these.
Another thing the hackers might try is a Trojan horse model2. A Trojan is an object that infiltrates into your machine pretending to be something different. For instance, you download an installer for some program you want or an update for some service. But what is unboxed reveals itself a harmful agent that corrupts your data. As the installation wizard can have any name 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 companies’ official websites.
As for the peer networks like BitTorrent or eMule, the threat 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. So you’d better be using trustworthy websites. 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 done.
How to remove the Zxcvb virus?
It is crucial to inform you that besides encrypting your data, the Zxcvb virus will most likely deploy the Azorult Spyware on your PC to seize your credentials to various accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). That spyware3 can derive your logins and passwords from your browser’s auto-filling cardfile.
Often racketeers would decode some of your files so you know that they indeed have the decryption program. Since Zxcvb virus is a relatively new ransomware, safety measures developers have not yet found a method to undo its work. Nevertheless, the anti-ransomware tools are frequently updated, so the solution may soon be available.
Understandably, if the evildoers do the job of encrypting victim’s critical data, the hopeless person will most likely comply with their demands. Nevertheless, paying to criminals does not necessarily mean that you’re getting your data back. It is still risky. After obtaining the money, the racketeers may send a wrong decryption key to the victim. There were reports about malefactors just disappearing after getting the money without even bothering to reply.
The optimal solution against 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 storage. Of course, that might be insufficient. The most crucial thing could be that file you were working on when it all went down. Nevertheless, it is something. It is also advisable to scan your PC for viruses with the antivirus program after the OS restoration.
There are other ransomware products, besides Zxcvb, that work similarly. For instance, Qqlc, Ccew, Qqmt, and some others. The two major differences between them and the Zxcvb are the ransom amount and the method of encryption. The rest is almost identical: documents become blocked, their extensions altered, ransom notes are found in every directory containing encrypted files.
Some lucky users were able to decode the arrested files with the aid of the free tools provided by anti-ransomware developers. Sometimes the racketeers accidentally send the decoding key to the victims in the ransom note. Such an epic fail allows the injured part to restore the files. But naturally, one should never expect such a chance. Remember, ransomware is a bandits’ technology to lay their hands on the money of their victims.
How do I avert ransomware infiltration?
Zxcvb ransomware doesn’t have a endless power, neither does any similar malware.
You can armour your system from ransomware attack in several easy steps:
- Ignore any letters from unknown senders with strange addresses, or with content that has likely no connection to something you are waiting for (how can you win in a lottery without participating in it?). If the email subject is more or less something you are waiting for, scrutinize all elements of the dubious letter with caution. A hoax email will always have mistakes.
- Avoid using cracked or unknown programs. Trojan viruses are often distributed as an element of cracked software, most likely under the guise of “patch” which prevents the license check. Understandably, potentially dangerous programs are very hard to distinguish from reliable ones, as trojans may also have the functionality you need. You can try searching for information about this program on the anti-malware forums, but the optimal way is not to use such programs at all.
- And finally, to be sure about the safety of the files you downloaded, use GridinSoft Anti-Malware. This software will be a perfect defense for your system.
Reasons why I would recommend GridinSoft4
There is no better way to recognize, remove and prevent ransomware than to use an anti-malware software from GridinSoft5.
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 system for Zxcvb 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 finished, 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.
Frequently Asked Questions
🤔 Are the “.zxcvb” files accessible?
Negative. That is why ransomware is so frustrating. Until you decode the “.zxcvb” files you will not be able to access them.
🤔 What should I do to make my files accessible as fast as possible?
It’s good if you have fаr-sightedly saved copies of these important files elsewhere. 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.
🤔 You have advised using GridinSoft Anti-Malware to get rid of the Zxcvb virus. Does it mean that all my files, currently encrypted, will be removed too?
No way! Unlike the ransomware program itself, the encrypted files do not jeopardize your system.
GridinSoft Anti-Malware will remove active infections from your PC. The ransomware that has infected your system is must be still active and launching checks periodically to encode any new files you might create on your PC after the attack. As it has been mentioned above, the Zxcvb malware comes with the company. It installs backdoors and keyloggers that can steal your account credentials and provide malefactors with easy access to your PC after some time.
🤔 What actions should I take if the Zxcvb ransomware has blocked my computer and I can’t get the activation key.
If that happened, you need to prepare a flash memory card with a pre-installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to perform the cleaning. The point is that the ransomware runs automatically as the system boots and encrypts any new files created or imported into your machine. To stop this process – use Safe Mode, which allows only the essential applications to run automatically. Consider reading our manual on booting Windows in Safe Mode.
🤔 And what should I do now?
Some of the encrypted files can be located elsewhere.
- If you exchanged your critical files via email, you could still download them from your online mailbox.
- You might have shared photographs or videos with your friends or relatives. Simply ask them to post those images back to you.
- If you have initially got any of your files from the Internet, you can try doing it again.
- Your messengers, social media pages, and cloud drives might have all those files as well.
- It might be that you still have the needed files on your old computer, a portable device, phone, flash memory, etc.
USEFUL TIP: You can employ data recovery utilities6 to get your lost data back since ransomware arrests the copies of your files, removing the original ones. In the tutorial below, you can see how to recover your files with PhotoRec, but remember: you won’t be able to do it before you remove the virus with an anti-malware program.
Also, you can contact the following official 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.
I need your help to share this article.
It is your turn to help other people. I have written this article to help people like you. You can use the buttons below to share this on your favorite social media Facebook, Twitter, or Reddit.
Brendan SmithHow to Remove ZXCVB Ransomware & Recover PC
Name: ZXCVB Virus
Description: ZXCVB Virus is a ransomware-type infections. This virus encrypts important personal files (video, photos, documents). The encrypted files can be tracked by a specific .zxcvb extension. So, you can't use them at all.
Operating System: Windows
Application Category: Virus
User Review
( votes)References
- My files are encrypted by ransomware, what should I do now?
- 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.
