BlueHowl Ransomware

Posted: June 7, 2017

Threat Metric

The Threat Meter is a malware assessment that SpywareRemove.com's research team is able to give every identifiable malware threat. Our Threat Meter includes several criteria based off of specific malware threats to value their severity, reach and volume. The Threat Meter is able to give you a numerical breakdown of each threat's initial Threat Level, Detection Count, Volume Count, Trend Path and Percentage Impact. The overall ranking of each threat in the Threat Meter is a basic breakdown of how all threats are ranked within our own extensive malware database. The scoring for each specific malware threat can be easily compared to other emerging threats to draw a contrast in its particular severity. The Threat Meter is a useful tool in the endeavor of seeking a solution to remove a threat or pursue additional analytical research for all types of computer users.

The following fields listed on the Threat Meter containing a specific value, are explained in detail below:

Threat Level: The threat level scale goes from 1 to 10 where 10 is the highest level of severity and 1 is the lowest level of severity. Each specific level is relative to the threat's consistent assessed behaviors collected from SpyHunter's risk assessment model.

Detection Count: The collective number of confirmed and suspected cases of a particular malware threat. The detection count is calculated from infected PCs retrieved from diagnostic and scan log reports generated by SpyHunter.

Volume Count: Similar to the detection count, the Volume Count is specifically based on the number of confirmed and suspected threats infecting systems on a daily basis. High volume counts usually represent a popular threat but may or may not have infected a large number of systems. High detection count threats could lay dormant and have a low volume count. Criteria for Volume Count is relative to a daily detection count.

Trend Path: The Trend Path, utilizing an up arrow, down arrow or equal symbol, represents the level of recent movement of a particular threat. Up arrows represent an increase, down arrows represent a decline and the equal symbol represent no change to a threat's recent movement.

% Impact (Last 7 Days): This demonstrates a 7-day period change in the frequency of a malware threat infecting PCs. The percentage impact correlates directly to the current Trend Path to determine a rise or decline in the percentage.

Threat Level:	8/10
Infected PCs:	56

First Seen:	June 7, 2017
Last Seen:	May 14, 2022
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

The BlueHowl Ransomware is a Trojan that blocks your screen with its pop-up alert, encodes your files, and threatens to remove them if you don't pay its ransom demands. Use the strategies recommended in this article to avoid loading its screen-blocking feature, if required, and backups to recover after disinfecting your PC. PCs with anti-malware protection can remove the BlueHowl Ransomware during its installation routine and keep it from damaging your files.

A Trojan Campaign that Makes Your Monitor Howl

The nature of how they profit from their attacks means that most Trojans tend towards one of two extremes: making their presence extremely evident at the appropriate stage of infection or avoiding giving themselves away at all. One can observe an unusually brash example of the former methodology at work in the BlueHowl Ransomware, a file-encrypting Trojan with no known relatives, for the moment. This threat accompanies its attacks with intensive symptoms, but only after causing all its intended damages.

While malware experts still are verifying which algorithm the BlueHowl Ransomware uses, the Trojan's payload includes a file-encrypting feature that can block you from opening documents, photos or similar formats of media. While its encryption is a hidden, background process, the BlueHowl Ransomware also shows functions with very visible and audible symptoms, notably:

Initially, the BlueHowl Ransomware uses a text-to-speech feature to deliver a ransom message claiming that it will destroy your files within seventy-two hours (unless you pay its Bitcoin fee)
After this message, the BlueHowl Ransomware loads a Youtube clip of Europe's 'the Final Countdown' song. While it covers the visual content of the video, the threat actors use the audio as a background music for their text message.
Then, the BlueHowl Ransomware blocks the screen with its borderless pop-up window, a Web page showing its 0.2 Bitcoin ransom demands and its three-day countdown. The threat actors also provide a secondary, QR code-based payment mechanism.

Muting the Soundtrack of an Infected PC

The BlueHowl Ransomware targets English-based systems with its extortion campaign, which threatens to damage your files irrevocably while blocking other options of interaction with the computer. Most attacks barricading the user from essential UI elements are resolvable by rebooting your PC through an emergency startup device or by switching to the Safe Mode feature available in most modern operating systems. For a majority of users, tapping F8 while restarting the system will load the menu for advanced boot options, which can help you disable the BlueHowl Ransomware and other threats.

With the Trojan and its pop-up symptoms suppressed, most anti-malware programs should disinfect your PC without any further incidents. However, decrypting the files that are being locked by threats of this category may or may not be practical. Malware experts advise contacting trusted researchers in the anti-malware sector for assistance with data retrieval if your anti-malware programs don't remove the BlueHowl Ransomware before its attack.

As the thematic opposite of spyware, the relatively bombastic payload of the BlueHowl Ransomware creates undeserved revenue by methods that aren't in your best interest. Paying ransoms to file-encrypting threats is rarely of benefit to a victim, and protecting your files can keep you from behaving on a Trojan's schedule.

BlueHowl Ransomware

Threat Metric

A Trojan Campaign that Makes Your Monitor Howl

Muting the Soundtrack of an Infected PC

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