What is Kjh ransomware? And how does it execute its attack?
Kjh ransomware is yet another addition to the Dharma ransomware family. This new Dharma variant uses a “.kjh” extension in marking its encrypted files. Based on the analysis done by security researchers, there is not much that has changed in this new variant as it still uses the same pattern in executing its attack as with other Dharma variants. The only noticeable change is the extension it uses as well as the email address.
As soon as it enters the system, Kjh ransomware will modify some Windows system files to gain administrative privileges. It executes two modules namely, data gathering and stealth protection modules. These modules are used to obtain data from the computer and to bypass any antivirus or security programs in the system. It also creates and alters some entries in the Windows Registry so it can run every time a user boots the computer.
It then implements its attack by scanning the computer for certain file types to target. According to researchers, just like the other versions of Dharma ransomware, Kjh ransomware targets files that have these extensions:
.PNG .PSD .PSPIMAGE .TGA .THM .TIF .TIFF .YUV .AI .EPS .PS .SVG .INDD .PCT .PDF .XLR .XLS .XLSX .ACCDB .DB .DBF .MDB .PDB .SQL .APK .APP .BAT .CGI .COM .EXE .GADGET .JAR .PIF .WSF .DEM .GAM .NES .ROM .SAV CAD Files .DWG .DXF GIS Files .GPX .KML .KMZ .ASP .ASPX .CER .CFM .CSR .CSS .HTM .HTML .JS .JSP .PHP .RSS .XHTML. DOC .DOCX .LOG .MSG .ODT .PAGES .RTF .TEX .TXT .WPD .WPS .CSV .DAT .GED .KEY .KEYCHAIN .PPS .PPT .PPTX ..INI .PRF Encoded Files .HQX .MIM .UUE .7Z .CBR .DEB .GZ .PKG .RAR .RPM .SITX .TAR.GZ .ZIP .ZIPX .BIN .CUE .DMG .ISO .MDF .TOAST .VCD SDF .TAR .TAX2014 .TAX2015 .VCF .XML Audio Files .AIF .IFF .M3U .M4A .MID .MP3 .MPA .WAV .WMA Video Files .3G2 .3GP .ASF .AVI .FLV .M4V .MOV .MP4 .MPG .RM .SRT .SWF .VOB .WMV 3D .3DM .3DS .MAX .OBJ R.BMP .DDS .GIF .JPG .CRX .PLUGIN .FNT .FON .OTF .TTF .CAB .CPL .CUR .DESKTHEMEPACK .DLL .DMP .DRV .ICNS .ICO .LNK .SYS .CFG
The encrypted data of Kjh ransomware are marked with the “.kjh” extension. It tries to urge users in paying the ransom as stated in its program window that contains the following message:
“All FILES ENCRYPTED “RSA1024”
All YOUR FILES HAVE BEEN ENCRYPTED!!! IF YOU WANT TO RESTORE THEM, WRITE US TO THE E-MAIL [email protected]
IN THE LETTER WRITE YOUR ID, YOUR ID ********
IF YOU ARE NOT ANSWERED, WRITE TO EMAIL:
[email protected]
YOUR SECRET KEY WILL BE STORED ON A SERVER 7 DAYS, AFTER 7 DAYS IT MAY BE OVERWRITTEN BY OTHER KEYS, DON’T PULL TIME, WAITING YOUR EMAIL
FREE DECRYPTION FOR PROOF
You can send us up to 1 file for free decryption. The total size of files must be less than 1Mb (non archived), and files should not contain valuable information. (databases,backups, large excel sheets, etc.)
DECRYPTION PROCESS:
When you make sure of decryption possibility transfer the money to our bitcoin wallet. As soon as we receive the money we will send you:
- Decryption program.
- Detailed instruction for decryption.
- And individual keys for decrypting your files.
!WARNING!
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.”
How does Kjh ransomware spread online?
Kjh ransomware proliferates in the same way as other variants of Dharma ransomware – via malicious spam emails. Malware-laden spam emails have the goal to deceive users into opening a malicious attachment carrying the Kjh ransomware. The attachment may be disguised as invoices, banking statements, receipts, and other seemingly important files that could quickly catch a user’s attention. Thus, you need to pay extra attention when opening suspicious-looking emails and be mindful of what you download online especially if it’s from a third-party source.
Eliminate Kjh ransomware using the removal guide provided below.
Step_1: You need to first close the program window of Kjh ransomware. However, if you can’t close it, you can end its process as well as other malicious processes of Kjh ransomware via the Task Manager. Simply tap the Ctrl + Shift + Esc keys to open it.
Step_2: Next, go to the Processes tab and look for the malicious process of Kjh ransomware and then right-click on each one of them and select End Process or End Task.
Step_3: Close the Task Manager and open Control Panel by pressing the Windows key + R, then type in “appwiz.cpl” and then click OK or press Enter.
Step_4: Look for dubious programs that might be related to Kjh ransomware and then Uninstall it/them.
Step_5: Close Control Panel and then tap Win + E to launch File Explorer.
Step_6: After opening File Explorer, navigate to the following directories below and look for Kjh ransomware’s malicious components like [random].exe and other suspicious-looking files and then erase them all.
- %TEMP%
- %APPDATA%
- %DESKTOP%
- %USERPROFILE%\Downloads
- C:\ProgramData\local\
Step_7: Close the File Explorer.
Before you proceed to the next steps below, make sure that you are tech-savvy enough to the point where you know exactly how to use and navigate your computer’s Registry. Keep in mind that any changes you make will highly impact your computer. To save you trouble and time, you can just use Restoro, this system tool is proven to be safe and excellent enough that hackers won’t be able to hack into it. But if you can manage Windows Registry well, then, by all means, go on to the next steps.
Step_8: Tap Win + R to open Run and then type in Regedit in the field and tap enter to pull up Windows Registry.
Step_9: Navigate to the listed paths below and look for the registry keys and sub-keys created by Kjh ransomware.
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop\
- HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Desktop\
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
Step_10: Delete the registry keys and sub-keys created by Kjh ransomware.
Step_11: Close the Registry Editor.
Step_12: Empty your Recycle Bin.
Try to restore your computer to its previous state using System Restore
Restoring your encrypted files using Windows Previous Versions feature will only be effective if Kjh ransomware hasn’t deleted the shadow copies of your files. But still, this is one of the best and free methods there is, so it’s definitely worth a shot.
To restore the encrypted file, right-click on it and select Properties, a new window will pop up, then proceed to Previous Versions. It will load the file’s previous version before it was modified. After it loads, select any of the previous versions displayed on the list like the one in the illustration below. And then click the Restore button.
Congratulations, you have just removed Kjh Ransomware in Windows 10 all by yourself. If you would like to read more helpful articles and tips about various software and hardware visit fixmypcfree.com daily.
Now that’s how you remove Kjh Ransomware in Windows 10 on a computer. On the other hand, if your computer is going through some system-related issues that have to get fixed, there is a one-click solution known as Restoro you could check out to resolve them.
This program is a useful tool that could repair corrupted registries and optimize your PC’s overall performance. Aside from that, it also cleans out your computer for any junk or corrupted files that help you eliminate any unwanted files from your system. This is basically a solution that’s within your grasp with just a click. It’s easy to use as it is user-friendly. For a complete set of instructions in downloading and using it, refer to the steps below
Perform a full system scan using Restoro. To do so, follow the instructions below.
