BandarChor ransomware - How to remove

BandarChor virus has been active for a while now and security researchers assign it to the wildly growing family of crypto-ransomware. These infections are much more pressing and far-reaching than potentially unwanted programs (PUPs) that do not cause actual damage or threaten infected victims. Ransomware viruses prefer a more aggressive approach of causing undeniable jitters. BandarChor ransomware has been recognized to use AES-256 algorithm to encrypt files and make them as useful as an ashtray on a motorbike. People cannot open their data after it becomes corrupted and the only straw of hope is the message that hackers leave behind. However, we would never encourage to pay the fee for the decryption key. Stick with our article and find out how to dodge this BandarChor virus or to attempt to restore the damaged files.

About BandarChor ransomware

Like any other ransomware, BandarChor virus modifies your Windows Registry keys to be launched at the exact time that your other software applications are run, together with your entire computer system. Malicious files from this ransomware are probably hiding somewhere in the AppData, Temp, Roaming, Common or other directories and might seem as ordinary files from updates, documents or other random types of data. BandarChor virus does not wait around and gives itself a tour around your folders, searching for files that should be encrypted. The following files are just a small glimpse of the targeted data: .001 .113 .1cd .3gp .73b .a3d .abf .abk .accdb .ace .arj .as4 .asm .asvx .ate .avi .bac .bak .bck .bkf .bup .bvd .cdr .cer .cng .cpt .cryptra .csv .db3 .dbf .dco .doc .docx .dwg .enx .erf .fbf .fbk .fbw .fbx .fdb .fdp .gbk .gho .gzip .iv2i .jac .jbc .jpeg .jpg .kbb .key .keystore .ldf .m2v .m3d .max .mdb .mkv .mov .mpeg. After becoming encrypted by BandarChor virus, files will be noticed to have an extension appended to them. In this case, it is no ordinary addition: a long identification code and the email address: .id-{ID Number}[email protected]. That is why it is usually pretty clear which data was selected to be left bootless. BandarChor virus leaves a handy note (named fud.bmp) that lays down the law:

“Attention! Your computer was attacked by virus-encoder.
All your files are encrypted cryptographically strong, without the original key recovery is impossible!
To get the decoder and the original key, you need to write to us at the e-mail [email protected] with the subject “encryption” stating your id.
Write on the case, do not waste your and our time on empty threats.
Responses to letters only appropriate people are not adequate ignore.
[email protected]”

How to Decrypt Files Encrypted by BandarChor Ransomware?

Security researchers have not yet constructed a specific decryptor for this ransomware. However, we might have some advises on how you should proceed in case you are infected with BandarChor virus. Hackers try to engage in a conversation with their infected victims. During this chat, they will probably inform users about the conditions for sending the ransom to them. But, most importantly, they might offer to decrypt one file to demonstrate the fact that the decryption key really exists. You should definitely send them one of your encrypted files. With the corrupted one and the resurrected one you might use file recovery tools to find out how to recover the rest of your files. Before that you should copy all of the encrypted files and delete BandarChor ransomware. It should be general knowledge for anyone to be aware of the utility of backup storages. If you regularly upload your files there, ransomware viruses are not a threat what so ever.

How is BandarChor Ransomware Distributed?

BandarChor virus might be spread via spam letters or social networking sites. If you have gotten a letter from a source you had never communicated with, be very careful. It would be suggested not to even open such content and delete it as soon as you notice it. However, curious users might open these messages and go to the promoted link or download an attachment. This is one way how you might have gotten BandarChor ransomware but it has other tricks up its sleeve. If your friend sends a bizarre file to you on Facebook, do not click on it. Hackers might be spreading their malicious programs like this.

Ready to get rid of this BandarChor ransomware for good? We are here to help. A manual guide can be found down below, but it is more tricky than removing PUPs. It would be a more wise choice to select Spyhunter or Hitman for such important tasks.

How to recover BandarChor ransomware encrypted files and remove the virus

Step 1. Restore system into last known good state using system restore

1. Reboot your computer to Safe Mode with Command Prompt:

for Windows 7 / Vista/ XP

• Start → Shutdown → Restart → OK.
• Press F8 key repeatedly until Advanced Boot Options window appears.
• Choose Safe Mode with Command Prompt.

for Windows 8 / 10

• Press Power at Windows login screen. Then press and hold Shift key and click Restart.
• Choose Troubleshoot → Advanced Options → Startup Settings and click Restart.
• When it loads, select Enable Safe Mode with Command Prompt from the list of Startup Settings.

 

2.Restore System files and settings.

• When Command Prompt mode loads, enter cd restore and press Enter.
• Then enter rstrui.exe and press Enter again.
• Click “Next” in the windows that appeared.
• Select one of the Restore Points that are available before BandarChor virus has infiltrated to your system and then click “Next”.
• To start System restore click “Yes”.

 

Step 2. Complete removal of BandarChor ransomware

After restoring your system, it is recommended to scan your computer with an anti-malware program, like Spyhunter and remove all malicious files related to BandarChor virus. You can check other tools here.  

Step 3. Restore BandarChor ransomware affected files using Shadow Volume Copies

If you do not use System Restore option on your operating system, there is a chance to use shadow copy snapshots. They store copies of your files that point of time when the system restore snapshot was created. Usually BandarChor virus tries to delete all possible Shadow Volume Copies, so this methods may not work on all computers. However, it may fail to do so. Shadow Volume Copies are only available with Windows XP Service Pack 2, Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8. There are two ways to retrieve your files via Shadow Volume Copy. You can do it using native Windows Previous Versions or via Shadow Explorer. a) Native Windows Previous Versions Right-click on an encrypted file and select Properties → Previous versions tab. Now you will see all available copies of that particular file and the time when it was stored in a Shadow Volume Copy. Choose the version of the file you want to retrieve and click Copy if you want to save it to some directory of your own, or Restore if you want to replace existing, encrypted file. If you want to see the content of file first, just click Open.

b) Shadow Explorer It is a program that can be found online for free. You can download either a full or a portable version of Shadow Explorer. Open the program. On the left top corner select the drive where the file you are looking for is a stored. You will see all folders on that drive. To retrieve a whole folder, right-click on it and select “Export”. Then choose where you want it to be stored.

Step 4. Use Data Recovery programs to recover BandarChor ransomware encrypted files

There are several data recovery programs that might recover encrypted files as well. This does not work in all cases but you can try this:

• We suggest using another PC and connect the infected hard drive as slave. It is still possible to do this on infected PC though.
• Download a data recovery program.
• Install and scan for recently deleted files.

Note: In many cases it is impossible to restore data files affected by modern ransomware. Thus I recommend using decent cloud backup software as precaution. We recommend checking out Carbonite, BackBlaze, CrashPlan or Mozy Home.