Xlockr ransomware - How to remove

This late July 2018, a new ransomware named Xlockr was noticed in the virtual wild, looking for potential victims who would be willing to pay $100 dollars to unlock their encrypted files. This crypto infection has not been very well researched since it’s fairly new, but the information that we have found is enough to help those who actually got infected by the notorious Xlockr virus. What is interesting that the ransom note is not displayed a usual text format in Notepad (like many Hidden Tear copies) but in a similar pop-up window like WannaCry ransomware.

The ransom note mentions that you can pay only in 3 days and each minute will cost an additional $1. Although there is no data on what happens after the given time and if the hackers delete your decryption key or automatically remove personal files (like StalinLocker), we advise not to wait and risk your precious virtual memories and documents and to try removing Xlockr ransomware before it does more damage.

What does Xlockr virus do

Xlockr is a crypto demanding virus, also known as ransomware. It is one of the most notorious types of malware because even if you manage to remove it, you have to deal with locked files, which can be decrypted only by the hackers that have the unique key for each victim. Although ransomware is becoming less popular and pushed out by newer viruses such as crypto miners, it still infects many gullible users that just happen to visit a shady website, click on a malicious link or download an illegal torrent.

Firslty, right after the Xlockr malware enters the system it stops any antivirus protection so that it could make more changes and succeed in further infection steps. Then ransomware adds own copies to the registry so that everytime you restart your PC Xlockr would still be there and no protection would consider it as a malicious software. Once this is all done and Xlockr is fully settled it starts looking for files with certain extensions (like .jpg, .png, .mp4, .mp3, .pdf, .avi, .flv, .doc and etc.) which will be encrypted later.

Xlockr virus is using asymmetric AES cipher to encrypt the targeted files. Just like any other crypto demanding threat Xlockr selects personal files over the system files to encrypt so that the victim would have a compromised but still working computer they could use to pay the ransom, moreover, people are more willing to pay the hackers for their treasured memories that become not accessible anymore. After this step, which takes only a Couple moments, Xlockr virus displays the ransom note message to the user to give instructions on what happened and how to pay/contact the crooks.

The generated ransom note called ‘Uninstall’ will appear and display this text:

Sorry! Your files have been encrypted!
What Happened to My Computer?
Your important files are encrypted.
Many of your documents, photos, videos, databases and other files are no longer accessible because they have been encrypted. Maybe you are busy looking for a way to recover your files, but do not waste your time. Nobody can recover your files without our decryption service.
Can I Recover My Files?
Sure. We guarantee that you can recover all your files safely and easily. But you have not so enough time.
If you want to decrypt all your files, you need to pay.
You only have 3 days to submit the payment. It will be increase $1 every minute.

Payment will be raised!

If you don’t pay
Your files will be lost!

At the moment it is not clear what extension Xlockr ransomware adds to the encrypted files, but you can find out which files are locked just by clicking on them and checking if they load or not. If you see the ransom note you can be sure that your computer has already been compromised and it is too late for the prevention.

How Xlockr ransomware spreads

Xlockr is a type of virus that is distributed by hackers illegally using socially engineered emails with infected attachments. The letters are all different and can be anything, eg. resumes, invoices, free invitations, receipts, job offers, government letters and etc. Hackers also use geo targetting to select the best intrusion approach to make the Malspam even more believable so that the person will definitely click on it.

While malicious attachments are the most popular way of spreading amongst the ransomware, Xlockr they can also be injected from compromised emails and ads, downloaded by other viruses in your computer, brought from external hard drives and devices, unsafe P2P networks and so on. Since there are so many distribution techniques you must always be careful when using your PC and follow this Ultimate guide to protect against ransomware.

How to get rid of Xlockr ransomware and restore files

Deleting Xlockr from your computer can be really easy if you know what programs to use. 2-viruses.com team has been dealing with various types of malware for years and the two anti-spyware tools that are worth recommending are Spyhunter. We have made more reviews on other security products as well, so feel free to pick the software that matches your requirements the most. Unfortunately uninstalling Xlockr ransomware is not going to get your encrypted files back.

Automatic Malware removal tools

Only after the successful virus removal, you can start trying to restore your data. At the moment there is no specific decryptor for Xlockr virus, but take a look to the guide below on how to do the Shadow Copy Restore.

How to delete Xlockr without software

If you cannot install any malware removing software you will have to get rid of Xlockr ransomware manually. It is much harder than just an automatic tool elimination but is possible if you follow our step-by-step guide thoroughly. Later if you still are not sure if you removed it completely or want to feel safe make sure to run a quick scan with some reliable antivirus program.

How to recover Xlockr 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 Xlockr ransomware has infiltrated to your system and then click “Next”.
• To start System restore click “Yes”.

 

Step 2. Complete removal of Xlockr 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 Xlockr ransomware. You can check other tools here.  

Step 3. Restore Xlockr 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 Xlockr ransomware 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 Xlockr 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.