Balaclava Ransomware

The Balaclava Ransomware is a file-locker Trojan or a threat that blocks documents, pictures, and similar media throughout your PC. It extorts money from those it attacks by delivering ransom demands in a text file, although users should explore all other recovery possibilities. Besides having backups for general-purpose data protection, optimal defenses consist of letting anti-malware tools identify and quarantine or remove the Balaclava Ransomware as necessary.

Trojans Wearing Masks, and Many Names, to Boot

The heir of a small but enlarging family of Trojans is getting itself seen with many aliases throughout April of 2020. Samples of the Balaclava Ransomware, including its 'Michael' and 'Jerry_glanville' variations, aren't doing much that isn't a well-known part of the threat landscape, including leveraging encryption without the user's consent as a restraint against opening digital media. The fact that this threat is seeing updates, however, along with changes in accounts, makes it evident that criminals still are seeking, and possibly finding, profits from the Balaclava Ransomware.

The Balaclava Ransomware, bearing the same name as the famous facial covering, is a 32-bit Windows program in all noted variants, so far. Executable, usually, is under one megabyte in size, which makes them highly portable and fast downloads – a relevant factor for drive-by-download attacks and some schemes. Although malware researchers haven't confirmed which algorithms the Balaclava Ransomware uses, it does encrypt and 'lock' files, which can include the user's local documents, archives, music, pictures, etc.

Depending on the variant, the Balaclava Ransomware may append one of the various extensions to the filename of every blocked piece of media. This feature coincides with its rotating contacts for negotiations, which it promotes through a text file that is, otherwise, identical in every version. The 'free demo' portion of this ransoming process is the only aspect that malware experts can endorse as being probably-safe for any victims, unlike the payment transactions.

Unmasking an Enemy before It's at the Throat of Your Files

Like the semi-open-source Hidden Tear project, Ransomware-as-a-Services like Scarab Ransomware, or the file-deleting Jigsaw Ransomware, the Balaclava Ransomware is as threatening as its victims enable it being approximately. The Trojan shows no signs of deleting local backups currently, although such a feature is includable and is a part of most file-locker Trojans' payload readily. Non-local backup content is especially the recommendation of malware analysts for countering the Balaclava Ransomware infections, and harmful encryption, in general.

Because of its numerous variants, estimating infection strategies for the Balaclava Ransomware's family is, necessarily, difficult. Criminals may introduce file-locking Trojans to servers through abusing open Remote Desktop features or cracking frail login credentials. The average user is, however, more likely to infect their PC after downloading a torrent or a warez site's file, enabling scripts in their browser, or opening an e-mail attachment that contains a corrupted macro.

Anti-malware services provide different measures of protection against most of the above techniques, except for inappropriate network configurations and password choices. They also should remove the Balaclava Ransomware.

The Balaclava Ransomware isn't much of a masked intruder since neither its goals nor its tactical attacks are mysterious or hidden. It is, however, another file-locking Trojan on a mountain of them, and eagerly converting weak security habits into ransoms.