Do you know what Pr0tector Ransomware is?
Pr0tector Ransomware is a ransomware-type computer infection which might be associated with the CrySiS Ransomware family. It has been discovered recently (at the end of March, 2017) by malware analysts, but, as our team of experienced specialists has noticed, it acts like other ransomware infections do, so users should not expect any surprises from it. Following the successful infiltration, it scans the system and finds all valuable files, e.g. pictures, images, documents, etc. and then starts the encryption process. Our specialists say that it should encrypt users files soon after the entrance, so users should find out about its presence relatively quickly too. Ransomware infections are being developed by cyber criminals not to make users angry or cause them problems. They have only one goal in mind – to extract money from people and, unfortunately, they successfully do that. Without a doubt, Pr0tector Ransomware wants your money too, but you should not send cyber criminals behind it anything. Experts say that users should focus more on the deletion of this malicious application today.
Users who encounter Pr0tector Ransomware will find their files encrypted and having a new filename extension .pr0tect. This is not the only thing victims of Pr0tector Ransomware notice. Once files are successfully encrypted and can no longer be accessed by users, it drops a ransom note READ ME ABOUT DECRYPTION.txt. Users usually find it placed on their Desktops. It only tells users that their files have been encrypted, provides a “personal ID”, and informs users that they can buy the private key to unlock files by writing an email to pr0tector@india.com or pr0tector@tutanota.com. An email sent to bad people behind Pr0tector Ransomware should contain a unique ID located in the ransom note. The price of the unlock key is unknown, but it should be indicated for you and you should get the payment instructions if you write an email to the author of this malicious application. It might be the only way to get files back, but users should not rush to make a payment because they might not even receive this unlock key. The money paid will not be sent to you back either, meaning that you will suffer both your money and your files loss.
It does not necessarily mean that you have lost your files permanently if you are not going to send the required money to cyber criminals. There is a way to get files back, specialists say. In order to recover your data for free, you need to meet one criterion – you must have a backup of your most important files outside the computer. If you have never backed up your files before, you could not recover your data in this manner. In this case, our advice for you would be to wait for the decryption tool to be developed by specialists. In the meantime, you can also try out reputable data recovery tools, but, sadly, chances are low that you will get your files unlocked.
You already know how Pr0tector Ransomware acts, but there is still one thing you, most probably, do not know about it. We suspect that you have no idea how it has entered your computer. Research has revealed that it is spread just like other ransomware-type infections are, i.e. it usually travels as an attachment of spam emails. Users who open these emails might find a message addressed for them there, but Pr0tector Ransomware enters the computer only when a malicious attachment is opened. Stay away from emails that are placed in the Spam folder the next time, no matter that they look harmless or contain important-looking documents.
Our specialists cannot unlock files for you, but they can help you to delete Pr0tector Ransomware. In order to make it easier for you to erase this malicious application, manual removal instructions have been placed below this article. Of course, it would be best to delete Pr0tector Ransomware automatically if you are not sure that you have found and deleted the right malicious file associated with this ransomware-type threat.
Delete Pr0tector Ransomware
- Press Win+E.
- Open the following directories one by one to find the malicious file: %TEMP%, %USERPROFILE%\Downloads, %USERPROFILE%\Desktop, and %APPDATA%.
- Delete a malicious file you have opened recently.
- Empty the Recycle bin.
In non-techie terms:
Malicious applications are such threats which silently work behind users’ backs, so you might not even know that untrustworthy software is hiding deep on the system and performing malicious activities from there. Because of this, you should not be so sure that your PC is clean after the Pr0tector Ransomware removal. Luckily, you can quickly find out what the real situation is by performing a system scan with a reputable scanner.