{
	"id": "850fd8c3-2072-4db7-92c4-c2cc730d0b2f",
	"created_at": "2026-04-06T15:52:45.263815Z",
	"updated_at": "2026-04-10T03:21:43.244285Z",
	"deleted_at": null,
	"sha1_hash": "e73e95af2a887210f3920e3973ecc54fd67c7900",
	"title": "Ransomware Troubleshooting",
	"llm_title": "",
	"authors": "",
	"file_creation_date": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z",
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	"plain_text": "Ransomware Troubleshooting\r\nArchived: 2026-04-06 15:29:12 UTC\r\nRansomware Directory\r\nRansomware encrypts your files and sends you a warning that your files will only be released if you pay a ransom.\r\nThe ransom is usually a very hefty amount, and it increases if you don’t pay within a certain amount of time.\r\nRansomware: Holding Your Data Hostage for a Payment\r\nRansomware is a new form of malware that has a devastating effect on users who store important documents on\r\ntheir computer. This malware also looks for files that might not be business related, but they are still important to\r\nthe user such as pictures. Ransomware encrypts your files and sends you a warning that your files will only be\r\nreleased if you pay a ransom. The ransom is usually a very hefty amount, and it doubles or triples if you don’t pay\r\nwithin a certain amount of time.\r\nRansomware Background\r\nRansomware is basically cyber extortion. This type of software hasn’t been around for very long, but it’s an\r\nextremely nasty form of malware. Some users never get their files back even after they pay the ransom. Files\r\ninclude anything from documents to images to AutoCAD drawings.\r\nThe most popular ransomware was distributed in 2013. Its name was CryptoLocker. CryptoLocker was spread\r\nthrough standard malware vectors such as email or packaged software masquerading as another application. It was\r\nhttps://www.solvusoft.com/en/malware/ransomware/win32-wadhrama/\r\nPage 1 of 4\n\neven cleverly disguised as a harmless attachment to email, which took advantage of Windows default behavior of\r\nshowing an icon for the first extension in the file name without regarding the ending extension, which in this\r\nmalware’s case is EXE.\r\nOnce it runs on the computer, it searches for specific file types such as AutoCAD drawings, Microsoft Office\r\ndocuments, pictures, and OpenDocument documents. Once it found its target files, it encrypts the files using\r\npublic key cryptography. A popup is then shown asking the user for a ransom, which was usually $400. If the user\r\ndid not pay within a certain amount of hours, the ransom doubled.\r\nSome users paid the ransom, and they were lucky enough to get their files back. Others reported that they were\r\nnever given the key and were not able to recover files. ZDNet reported that the hackers were able to earn $27\r\nmillion from CryptoLocker.\r\nWhat Does Ransomware Do?\r\nCryptoLocker is just one example of ransomware, although it’s one of the most malicious. Ransomware can also\r\nlimit access to the computer itself. When users boot their computers, they are presented with a window that tells\r\nthem they must pay a ransom to access the machine. This is a step up from CryptoLocker, because users aren’t\r\nable to access anything on their machines.\r\nhttps://www.solvusoft.com/en/malware/ransomware/win32-wadhrama/\r\nPage 2 of 4\n\nUsers are again given a link to where they can pay for their files. While this doesn’t seem as bad as encrypting\r\nfiles, users aren’t able to access their machine at all, so they lose more in the end. Plus, they need to format their\r\nhard drive and recover their system using backups, provided those backups aren’t infected as well.\r\nIf the ransomware isn’t completely removed, the user has a chance of going through the same issue again.\r\nA newer form of ransomware poses as police. For instance, the Reveton trojan was a form of ransomware. The\r\nmalware identifies the geographic location of the user and uses this location to display a warning window on the\r\nuser’s desktop. For instance, if you are located in the US, the window displays a ransom note with the FBI logo.\r\nThe ransom note tells users that they were caught doing something illegal on their machine, and they need to pay a\r\nransom or go to jail.\r\nMost ransomware uses a high level of encryption. It uses a two-way system where one key is used to encrypt the\r\nfiles, and a second key is used to decrypt the files. The first key is used by the malware, and users pay for the\r\ndecryption key. The malware also uses AES and RSA encryption algorithms, which are virtually impossible to\r\ncrack. For this reason, most users gave in and paid the ransom instead of waiting for a fix.\r\nAfter CryptoLocker, another form of ransomware was released. It took advantage of an internal command line\r\napplication called PowerShell. PowerShell is similar to the Windows command line, except it uses internal\r\ncommands called cmdlets. It’s mostly used by system administrators, but desktop operating systems such as\r\nWindows 8 and Windows 7 also have PowerShell installed by default. The malware’s name is POSHCODER.\r\nBecause PowerShell cmdlets are native to Windows, POSHCODER would use the application to infect and\r\nencrypt files. Windows wouldn’t flag the application as malicious since most PowerShell cmdlets are native to the\r\noperating system and don’t normally pose a threat. The result was that POSHCODER was able to avoid detection\r\nfrom most antivirus applications including the Windows antivirus installed with the operating system.\r\nHow to Avoid Ransomware\r\nTo avoid data loss, all users should back up files. If the computer gets infected with ransomware, it’s sometimes\r\neasier to format the machine and restore the lost files. Ensure that you don’t keep your backups on the same\r\ncomputer, or ransomware will encrypt or block you from the backups as well. Keep important files in backups\r\nlocated on a cloud server. Users can also use external media such as a hard drive or RW-DVDs.\r\nhttps://www.solvusoft.com/en/malware/ransomware/win32-wadhrama/\r\nPage 3 of 4\n\nApplying software patches to applications with known threats is also a big issue. Most users skip important\r\nsecurity updates until it’s too late. Always apply patches when they are released. This includes operating system\r\npatches such as Windows Updates.\r\nEnsure that you don’t keep your backups on the same computer, or ransomware will encrypt or block you from the\r\nbackups as well.\r\nDon’t ever click on a link or download an application with a suspicious file attached. Some hackers gain access to\r\nother email addresses, and then send malicious software using the victim’s contact list. The recipient is more\r\ninclined to open an attachment from someone they know, but the message is often suspicious. Don’t open\r\nexecutable files without verifying with the sender first.\r\nKeep antivirus software updated, and scan your system occasionally with a full-system scan at night.\r\nRemoving Ransomware\r\nMost ransomware can’t be manually removed. Users need a specific program that removes ransomware from the\r\nsystem. Some anti-malware creators offer ways to remove malware and get files back. While this isn’t guaranteed,\r\nit is an option for people who are infected with the malware.\r\nThe best way to deal with ransomware is to always have an antivirus running that protects against them. McAfee,\r\nTrend Micro, and Symantec have specific ransomware removal tools and protection against further infection.\r\nTrend Micro even has a smartphone application that protects mobile device users.\r\nSource: https://www.solvusoft.com/en/malware/ransomware/win32-wadhrama/\r\nhttps://www.solvusoft.com/en/malware/ransomware/win32-wadhrama/\r\nPage 4 of 4",
	"extraction_quality": 1,
	"language": "EN",
	"sources": [
		"ETDA"
	],
	"references": [
		"https://www.solvusoft.com/en/malware/ransomware/win32-wadhrama/"
	],
	"report_names": [
		"win32-wadhrama"
	],
	"threat_actors": [],
	"ts_created_at": 1775490765,
	"ts_updated_at": 1775791303,
	"ts_creation_date": 0,
	"ts_modification_date": 0,
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