Cobra Ransomware

The Cobra Ransomware is a Trojan from the Crysis Ransomware family, and like other members, it can block your files by encipheringing them with a protected cipher. This threat may damage both local and network-accessible media, as well as create two formats of messages asking the victim to contact a threat actor for a recovery solution. Having safe backups is a valuable defense against all file-locking Trojans, and malware experts only recommend uninstalling the Cobra Ransomware with a dedicated anti-malware program, in an offline environment preferably.

A New Crisis to Sink Its Teeth into Your Media

Byproducts of the Ransomware-as-a-Service sub-sector of the threatening software industry continue being potentially unpredictable dangers to PC users without adequate investment in backups or proactive security procedures. The well-explored Crysis Ransomware family is just adding one more member, the Cobra Ransomware, which malware experts could identify by November of this year only. Although the overall goal of this threat is blocking files for money, its threat actors avoid any immediate references to ransoms and use other social engineering tricks to convince the victims to be receptive to their offers.

Although this family often uses manual, remote desktop-based methods of introducing its members, the Cobra Ransomware's infection exploits still are under investigation. However its threat actors or victims might install it, the Cobra Ransomware uses a concealed memory process without a UI to search the infected PC and any connected devices (such as other PCs on local networks or portable storage) for files that it can block by encrypting them. Traditional formats of media in the most danger of being locked by these attacks include Word documents, PDF documents, archives, spreadsheets and pictures.

Once it blocks these files, the Cobra Ransomware creates two 'ransom note' style messages for the victim, one in a TXT format, and one in an HTA (or advanced HTML) format. These instructions provide the victim with an e-mail address to contact for recovering their files and an offer of a free 'demo' of their recovery services. Discrepancies between the above messages make it unclear how many files the threat actors are willing to recover before requiring the user to pay an unspecified ransom sum, such as Bitcoins.

Loosening the Coils of the Cobra Ransomware

Old versions of the Crysis Ransomware often lock files via currently non-secure methods that allow third-party decryption tools to reverse the damages without any long-term effects. However, modern variants like the Cobra Ransomware use different enciphering settings that may render your files locked permanently unless you take the risk of paying the Trojan's admin. Blocked data is recognizable easily by searching for content with the '.cobra' extension appended, as well as an ID number and the threat actor's bracketed e-mail address. If possible, malware experts recommend against paying the ransom.

Because the Cobra Ransomware's family also includes features for erasing local backups and compromising local networks, users suspecting an infection should disable all network connections and unplug any non-essential, peripheral storage devices. Traditional anti-malware programs have high-rates for identifying different versions of the Crysis Ransomware and should delete the Cobra Ransomware during its install attempt automatically if they're active. Non-localized backups, such as copies saved on cloud services, are the only reliable means any victims have of saving any media that this Trojan locks.

The nature of RaaS Trojan development means that a 'new' threat like the Cobra Ransomware can be created and released into the wild within a very short span of time. Users should remember that network vulnerabilities, e-mail spam, and password-phishing attacks are still-relevant dangers that could help Trojans like the Cobra Ransomware gain access to their files, whether their documents are worth pennies or millions of dollars.