Home Malware Programs Ransomware '.howcanihelpusir File Extension' Ransomware

'.howcanihelpusir File Extension' Ransomware

Posted: December 16, 2016

The '.howcanihelpusir File Extension' Ransomware is a variant of the SamSam Ransomware, a Trojan that blocks files on servers associated with specific business industries, such as medical institutions. Victims can continue expecting their content to be locked behind an unbreakable cipher, theoretically, until they submit to the ransom demands of the Trojan's threat actors. Standard anti-malware solutions can delete the '.howcanihelpusir File Extension' Ransomware, while conscientious backup strategies can limit its potential for harm.

Getting Your Server the Worst Kind of Help

While the threat actors responsible for disseminating the SamSam Ransomware are estimated as acquiring hundreds of thousands of US dollars in profits, they appear to be interested in climbing even closer to their first million. Other security institutions caught the first samples of a new version of SamSam Ransomware recently, which malware analysts can confirm as having the same essential payload as the earlier Trojan. This new addition, the '.howcanihelpusir File Extension' Ransomware, has a new ransom note and extension for what's an otherwise mirror image payload.

Although the '.howcanihelpusir File Extension' Ransomware is more likely to be targeting business servers than personal systems, its payload doesn't require any form of network connectivity. When it's run, the '.howcanihelpusir File Extension' Ransomware uses an AES-based cipher to lock most files unrelated to the host operating system. Their filenames also receive the '.howcanihelpusir' extension, which is a new addition to this version of the Trojan.

The '.howcanihelpusir File Extension' Ransomware also deposits a new file either on your desktop or in the folders containing any encrypted content: an HTML Web page relaying its ransoming demands. Although the '.howcanihelpusir File Extension' Ransomware's threat actors already have profited from similar campaigns substantially, malware analysts warn that they still may not provide workable decryption solutions in every case necessarily, even if you pay them.

Helping Yourself to Free Trojan Solutions

For file-encrypting Trojans, the '.howcanihelpusir File Extension' Ransomware comes from a unique position. Its attacks are more likely of being targeted deployments against businesses than against recreational computer users, and threat actors usually will install it only after they gain widespread server access. Leaked or brute-forced passwords are common sources of these security breaches particularly. Using complicated, unique passwords with regular rotations can lower the chances of a hacker gaining access to your servers.

Malware analysts have yet to find distinct vulnerabilities that would allow the '.howcanihelpusir File Extension' Ransomware's encrypted files to be recovered by any free apps. Since this Trojan's threat actors have high rates of success with their extortion demands, any vulnerable business entities should consider backing all server data up to external drives or servers requiring additional permissions to access.

While most professional anti-malware products should be able to identify and remove the '.howcanihelpusir File Extension' Ransomware, the possible permanence of its payload is a reminder that the impact of a Trojan's attacks can last much longer than the infection.

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