BTC Ransomware

Posted: November 7, 2016

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:	2/10
Infected PCs:	77

First Seen:	November 7, 2016
Last Seen:	October 4, 2022
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

The BTC Ransomware, also referred to as the BTCLocker Ransomware or the BTC Virus, is a Trojan that blocks your files by encrypting them, a function that reorganizes their internal data via a cipher. Encryption attacks by the BTC Ransomware include its creation of a ransom message for the supposed purpose of paying to get your data returned, although the transaction comes with no guarantees. Standard safety practices for PC usage, including making backups and having anti-malware products for removing the BTC Ransomware infections, remain recommended.

Another Cryptocurrency Coin in an Extortionist's Pocket

The dualism of technological advancement inevitably facilitates certain types of misdeeds, even while providing law-abiding citizens with innovative ways to participate in society and the economy. For con artists developing or merely administrating Trojan campaigns, one of the most significant of such advancements has been the rise of Bitcoin. Along with other cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin allows con artists to use Trojans like the BTC Ransomware to extort money through transactions that are fast, simple, and essentially untraceable.

The BTC Ransomware enacts its ransom tactic through file-encrypting attacks similar to those of the Crysis Ransomware and the Troldesh Ransomware families. The BTC Ransomware can encrypt content such as documents, images, audio clips or compressed archives. Programs associated with these files no longer can be opened until you decrypt them, a service that the BTC Ransomware holds behind a Bitcoin-based paywall.

Malware experts also correlated the BTC Ransomware with many of the symptoms seen in other file-encrypting Trojans, including:

The BTC Ransomware drops a Notepad message onto the desktop with details on how to contact its threat actors and initiate the ransom proceedings. The grammar in use suggests that the BTC Ransomware's threat actors are availing themselves of an automatic translation service instead of being native English speakers.
Victims should be able to identify all content that the BTC Ransomware encrypts by the insertion of its '.BTC' extension into every file name. The Trojan doesn't remove any original extension (for example, 'workdocument.doc' would become 'workdocument.doc.BTC').

Making Sure that a Bitcoin Thief's Accounts are as Empty as Possible

Although the PC security sector has yet to develop a free decryption option for the BTC Ransomware, PC owners can continue using other data storage options that nullify the threat behind its extortion attempts. Malware experts wouldn't suggest relying on local backups or default, Windows rollback-based solutions exclusively. On the other hand, backups on external drives and cloud services often are capable of avoiding any deletion attempts by the BTC Ransomware and threats like it.

When not recovering from a successful the BTC Ransomware infection, PC owners also can implement protections such as avoiding unsafe Remote Desktop settings, disabling in-browser scripts that are subject to hosting exploits, or scanning their downloads before opening them. Anti-malware suites able to detect and delete the BTC Ransomware when it hasn't had an opportunity to scan your drive and encrypt its contents can provide one of the cheapest recovery options for any system.

Malware experts haven't confirmed any other threats with direct relations to the BTC Ransomware, but, if cryptocurrencies continue fulfilling their promise of privacy in cash transactions, the distribution of similar Trojans in the wild is all but certain.

BTC Ransomware

Threat Metric

Another Cryptocurrency Coin in an Extortionist's Pocket

Making Sure that a Bitcoin Thief's Accounts are as Empty as Possible

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