Do you know what Rapid Ransomware is?
The Rapid ransomware is a dangerous computer infection that accesses a computer surreptitiously to encrypt files. Ransomware is malicious software aimed at obtaining victims' money for the promissed decryption of the affected files; however, little is known about instances when attackers provide their victims with decryption codes or decryption software. The Rapid ransomware does not have a typical graphic user interface which is usually a program window containing information about the incident and instructions regarding the victim's further actions. The Rapid ransomware addresses its victims through notebook files (.txt), which are named distinctively so that the victim recognizes the files related to the fix of the issue. Once the ransomware infection is spotted, it is important to remove it from the computer because this infection encrypts files only when they are opened or launched.
Research on the Rapid ransomware has revelead that the infection is available as two varients, both of which have similar features. The two variants add the extension .rapid to encrypted files and creates ransom notes in .txt files. The file names used by the infections are "How Recovery Files" and "How Decryt Files". In the case with the variant that creates the file "How Recovery File", the file recovery.txt is also created in the %APPDATA% directory, and the file created is used as a point of execution, which means that the ransom note is launched at every system startup. The analysis of the variants detected has shown that the two variants of the Rapid ransomware copy themselves to the %APPDATA% directory as info.exe, but one of the variants also encrypts the copy made. Additionally, the variant that successfully places its copy in the %APPDATA% directory deletes Windows shadow copies so that victims cannot restore any backups created by the Volume Shadow Copy service.
Rapid Ransomware screenshot
Scroll down for full removal instructions
The Rapid ransomware does not display a ransom warning in a program window, but it does encourage the victim to act. A typical ransom note would have a countdown or deadline for the money submission and would contain information about how the payment should be made. Usually, the Bitcoin currency is requested; however, the Rapid ransomware provides the victim only with the email address to contact attackers. It has been found that the different variants of the Rapid ransomware show different emails: rapid@rape.lol and rapid@airmail.cc. Nevertheless, there is no need to use these email addresses because paying up would be a complete waste of money. The attackers are not likely to be interested in restoring the encrypted data, so the possibility of regaining your lost data after submitting the ransom fee is extremely low. Cyber crooks involved in ransomware production have already earned substantial revenues, so, if you do not want to be one of those who have lost their money, ignore the fact that the Rapid ransomware is monetization malware and remove the infection from the computer.
After removing the infection, which you can do with the help of the removal guidelines, you should take measures to prevent similar incidents in the future. Many ransomware infections are spread by spam, but other malware distribution methods, such as RDP configurations and pop-up ads are also common. When connected to the Internet, use your common sense and avoid questionable websites, commercial offers or software programs. Most of all, keep the operating system and software updated and do not forget that your computer can become an easy target for malware if you keep the operating system unprotected.
Our removal guide should help you remove the Rapid ransomware manually, but you can also use a reputable anti-malware program. The security tool available below can terminate the Rapic ransomware for you, so consider implementing a powerful tool if you want to be safe while online.
How to remove Rapid Ransomware
- Check the desktop for recently downloaded files and delete them.
- Check the Downloads directory for recently downloaded files and delete anything questionable.
- Press Win+R and type in %APPDATA%. Click Ok.
- Find the info.exe and delete it if it is present.
- Empty the Recycle bin.
In non-techie terms:
The Rapid ransomware is a dangerous computer infection that encrypts a file and remains active to encrypt a new one once the file is launched. The threat creates ransom notes in the form of .txt files in very affected directory for the victim to notice, but the ransom warning does not contain the sum of the fee. Instead of the ransom fee, the Rapic ransomware provides the attackers' email address. It is highly important to remove the infection instead of paying up, and you can get rid of the infection manually or with the help of reputable anti-malware.