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Ninja Ransomware

Posted: September 21, 2015

Threat Metric

Threat Level: 10/10
Infected PCs: 66
First Seen: September 17, 2015
Last Seen: March 21, 2020
OS(es) Affected: Windows

The Ninja Ransomware is a file encrypting Trojan that holds your files hostage in return for cash payments. Since paying third parties to decrypt your files has no guarantee of reciprocation, malware researchers consider almost any other means of preserving or restoring your files to be a preferable solution. As with other threatening programs that may try to block their deletion, removing the Ninja Ransomware may require using dedicated anti-malware software and strategies, such as scanning your computer from a sterile system boot environment.

A Stealthy Program's Exfiltration of Your File Data

The well-developed infrastructure for threat authors operating out of Russia may be anything but covert, but the individual distribution methods in use by these for-profit operations may use low-key, clandestine strategies for installation. The Ninja Ransomware is one Russia-based Trojan that may be using multiple means of installing itself to random targets, including mislabeled e-mail file attachments or compromised advertisement networks hosting exploit kits. Scanning any suspicious files prior to opening them and having strict browser security settings are, as usual, the most convenient methods of blocking attempts to install this threat automatically.

The Ninja Ransomware shows no inclinations towards being a product designed by well-funded ill-intended groups for infiltrating profitable targets like government branches or energy corporations. Instead, the Ninja Ransomware is expected to be targeting civilians in the wild with attacks that block their files. In theory, the Ninja Ransomware reverses its payload after a ransom payment is processed through an as of yet unidentified service.

Some of the standard symptoms of a Ninja Ransomware infection may include:

  • The Ninja Ransomware may modify your desktop by replacing it with a new image that delivers its ransom instructions via Cyrillic text.
  • The Ninja Ransomware may encrypt files on your computer – although essential operating system components should be unaffected. File encryption prevents the relevant file from being read or opened until you can reverse the process, usually by a specialized file decryptor application. Encrypted files also may have their names modified for identification purposes.

How to Keep Your Files from Being a Con-Artist's Profit Margin

Although past file-encrypting Trojans may have made a point of excluding Russia-based victims from their campaigns as a form of preemptive legal protection, the Ninja Ransomware explicitly targets victims of that region. While its strategy may be at odds with previous threats, the Ninja Ransomware does use similar techniques to these past threats, and, like them may be thwarted by the simple solution of a remote file backup. In some cases, free decryption utilities provided by various PC security institutions also may be able to recover any lost data.

The Ninja Ransomware shows no signs of being an especially advanced member of its threat category. However, the Ninja Ransomware still can cause meaningful damage to the contents of your PC and render your data potentially unrecoverable. Other than its most visible symptoms, the Ninja Ransomware will not leave telltale signs of its presence like legitimate software, such as an obvious memory process. As a result, uninstalling the Ninja Ransomware should use appropriate anti-malware tools when available.

PC users outside of Russia also may wish to keep in mind that most ransomware campaigns examined by malware experts eventually develop branches specific to multiple nations around the world, including most of Europe and North America.

Technical Details

Registry Modifications

The following newly produced Registry Values are:

Regexp file mask%PROGRAMFILES%\desk.bmp%PROGRAMFILES(x86)%\desk.bmp

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