Bestdecoding@cock.li Ransomware Removal Guide

Do you know what Bestdecoding@cock.li Ransomware is?

Malicious infections from the Crysis/Dharma Ransomware family do not stop emerging, and the latest one to join the party is Bestdecoding@cock.li Ransomware. The predecessors of this malicious threat are Backdata@qq.com Ransomware, Helpfilerestore@india.com Ransomware, and Newsantaclaus@aol.com Ransomware, to name a few. Although it appears that these infections were created by different parties, our researchers indicate that they are practically identical. There are only a few insignificant differences that we mention in the report. Ultimately, all of these threats attack Windows operating systems, encrypt personal files, and demand money for a “decryption tool” that might not even exist. We certainly have not seen one. Ideally, you take time to protect your operating system and files against this threat, but if you need to remove Bestdecoding@cock.li Ransomware already, get rid of this infection as soon as possible.

Spam emails might be flooding your inbox, but not all of them are the same. Some might be promoting annoying advertisements and offers, while others could be set up to expose you to malware installers and launchers. It is enough to click a seemingly harmless file to open, and Bestdecoding@cock.li Ransomware is automatically executed. You are not supposed to realize this because if you can find and delete the infection before files are encrypted, you might stop the rest of the attack. However, files are encrypted very fast, and you are unlikely to notice anything out of the ordinary. After the encryption, you might find that you can no longer open your files and that the “id-[ID].[bestdecoding@cock.li].best” extension is added to their names. Before that, however, you should be introduced to the infection’s window (the name of the window is also the name of the infection). This window displays a message that is meant to make you email bestdecoding@cock.li or best@decoding.biz. You are supposed to do that in 24 hours, but we do not recommend doing it at all. Instead, close the window and start deleting malware elements.Bestdecoding@cock.li Ransomware Removal GuideBestdecoding@cock.li Ransomware screenshot
Scroll down for full removal instructions

If you contact the creator of Bestdecoding@cock.li Ransomware, they will make you think that their decryption tool is what you need. As mentioned before, we do not even know if this tool exists. Moreover, there are no guarantees, and you do not know what would happen if you paid money for it. If you emailed the attackers, they would, surely, send you a Bitcoin wallet address and ask you to send a very specific sum of money to that wallet. After that, it is most likely that you would never hear from the attackers again. If you close the window, Bestdecoding@cock.li Ransomware still can use “FILES ENCRYPTED.txt” on the Desktop and in the local drive to remind you that you should email the criminals. Note that while this action might seem innocent, your personal email address would be exposed to the attackers, and who knows what they could do with that? Quite possibly, they would send more misleading emails with malware.

Files cannot be restored, and paying the ransom to the creators of Bestdecoding@cock.li Ransomware is a bad idea. It appears that there isn’t much to do, and so we advise that you remove this malicious threat as soon as possible. The infection is operated using the launcher, but a few other components are created, and you need to remove those too. If you want to, try to delete Bestdecoding@cock.li Ransomware using the guide below, but since we cannot give you the exact location of the launcher file, we cannot know if you will succeed. On the other hand, we are 100% sure that your operating system would be cleared from all threats if you implemented anti-malware software. Use this software to eliminate all infections and then secure your system to prevent malware from invading the system again.

Remove Bestdecoding@cock.li Ransomware

  1. Delete the file named Info.hta in these directories:
    • %APPDATA%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\
    • %ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\
    • %ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Application Data\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\
    • %WINDIR%\System32\
    • %APPDATA%\
  2. Delete the file named [unknown name].exe in these directories:
    • %WINDIR%\System32\
    • %APPDATA%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\
    • %ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\
    • %ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Application Data\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\
  3. In Registry Editor go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run.
  4. Delete the values linked to Info.hta and [unknown name].exe files.
  5. Delete the file named FILES ENCRYPTED.txt on the Desktop and the local drive (C:\).
  6. Empty Recycle Bin.
  7. Use a trusted malware scanner to check if there are any leftovers that must be deleted.

N.B. To access directories in steps 1-2: tap Win+E to launch Explorer and use the quick access field to enter paths to the directories you want to access.
To access Registry Editor in 3: tap Win+R keys to launch RUN and enter regedit.exe into the dialog box to launch the utility.

In non-techie terms:

Having files encrypted by Bestdecoding@cock.li Ransomware is a nightmare that we are sure you did not expect. The threat basically destroys your files, and even though their shells can still be found on your PC, their data inside is scrambled to make it unreadable. Although the attackers suggest that you can restore your personal files using their decryption tool, this tool is used as bait to make you pay a huge ransom. To learn details about the payment you are pushed into contacting cyber criminals. We do not recommend emailing them or paying the ransom because that is, first of all, risky and, second, isn’t likely to get you anywhere. What you should focus on is the removal of Bestdecoding@cock.li Ransomware, which we advise doing using anti-malware software. You might be able to use the guide below, but if you care about your system’s protection in the future, use this opportunity to employ reliable security software.