IPA Virus

Posted: September 21, 2012

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.

Ranking:	6,142
Threat Level:	2/10
Infected PCs:	3,359

First Seen:	September 21, 2012
Last Seen:	October 15, 2023
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

The IPA Virus is a ransomware Trojan that detects the victim's country by the IP address and displays a nationality-specific pop-up alert while the IPA Virus blocks your computer. Although the IPA Virus's pop-up claims to be a legal notice from the International Police Association, the real IPA is unaffiliated with all variants of the IPA Virus and doesn't make a habit of designing Trojans that lockdown random PCs. Besides its efforts to borrow the legitimacy of a real law enforcement organization, the IPA Virus is like any other ransomware Trojan and requests that you pay a fine before you can resume normal computer usage. However, SpywareRemove.com malware experts can recommend a cheaper solution than that: using anti-malware software for deleting the IPA Virus and ignoring its fraudulent pop-up warnings.

The IPA Virus Attacks: When the Police 'Protect and Serve' Criminals Instead of Their Victims

The IPA Virus usually is technically-detected as a variant of the Lockscreen family of Trojans, and, like other members of that family, the IPA Virus isn't incapable of self-propagation. However, IPA Virus may be distributed through networks or removable devices by related PC threats, and both spam e-mails and malicious websites with drive-by-download exploits are prominent infection vehicles for similar ransomware Trojans. SpywareRemove.com malware researchers note that denizens of Europe are particularly in danger from IPA Virus attacks, which include variants for France, Spain, Germany and various English-speaking regions.

Even if you miss how the IPA Virus infects your PC, missing the actual infection is all but impossible, since the IPA Virus will immediately display a screen-wide pop-up that blocks the Windows interface upon a reboot. This pop-up alleges that your machine has been locked due to a variety of embarrassing crimes (such as viewing child pornography). The reality behind this pop-up is that the IPA Virus is simple a scam to make you panic and spend money on a fake legal fine before you stop to consider how improbable it is the police been capable of locking your PC through a remote Trojan. SpywareRemove.com malware analysts stress that, as fraudulent and illegal software, the IPA Virus should be disregarded, and all of its legal warnings should be considered fake.

Putting an End to the IPA Virus's Rotten Beat

The IPA Virus may be unable to fulfill any legal threats that the IPA Virus makes, but its pop-up can still block your computer and prevent you from accessing other programs – including all of your shortcuts, the Windows Start Menu and the rest of the Windows taskbar. SpywareRemove.com malware research team has found several methods to bypass this screen-covering attack, which is common to similar ransomware Trojans like 'Votre ordinateur est bloqué' Belgium Ransomware and West Yorkshire Ransomware. Some of the most easily-implemented techniques for blocking the IPA Virus's attacks are outlined below:

If using Windows, Safe Mode can be accessed from the advanced boot menu. This menu will display once you tap F8 during a reboot (but before Windows begins to load). Safe Mode will disable most unnecessary programs, including, hopefully, the IPA Virus.
If Safe Mode fails to block the IPA Virus, SpywareRemove.com malware experts recommend booting your PC from a removable drive device – for example a USB thumb drive. This will allow you to use any anti-malware software of your choice to delete the IPA Virus while being certain that the IPA Virus is inactive. However, you should be careful to scan any removable devices to guarantee that they aren't infected by related PC threats with worm distribution functions.

Technical Details

Additional Information

The following URL's were detected:

redirit1.me

The following messages's were detected:

#	Message
1	El ordenador suyo esta bloqueado El ordenador suyo fue bloqueado por el sistema del control informativo automatizado
2	Votre ordinateur est bloqué Votre ordinateur a été bloqué par le système de contrôle automatique informationnel
3	Your computer is locked Your computer was locked by the system of automated information control