Lukitus Ransomware

Posted: August 17, 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:	6/10
Infected PCs:	10,631

First Seen:	August 17, 2017
Last Seen:	February 21, 2023
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

The Lukitus Ransomware is part of the '.locky File Extension' Ransomware family. These threats can modify the internal data of various files to lock them from opening and also will show symptoms such as changing file names and creating messages asking their victims to buy a decryptor. Freeware solutions for unlocking the content that the Lukitus Ransomware attacks aren't available currently and users should strive to protect themselves by making regular backups or deleting the Lukitus Ransomware through their anti-malware protection automatically.

You've Got (Harmful) Mail

Although the techniques involved are analyzed thoroughly, threat actors still are appreciating the exploitable nature of e-mail messages for pushing threatening software to arbitrary targets. Two of the most hard-working examples of harmful spamming for the month, using the Blank Slate and the Necurs families, now are starting to distribute a new variant of the '.locky File Extension' Ransomware. The new Trojan, the Lukitus Ransomware, is an e-mail attachment that may or may not have an accompanying message trying to disguise it as another content kind, such as a workplace document.

Like other members of its family, the Lukitus Ransomware is a Windows-based Trojan that's compatible with most versions of that OS. When running, it uses the AES-256 and RSA-2048 enciphering techniques to block different files on your computer, including documents, pictures, archives or databases. Malware experts also verify that the Lukitus Ransomware overwrites their names, but also adds '.lukitus' extensions for easy identification.

Once it finishes blocking all local media, the Lukitus Ransomware deposits updated variants of this family's ransom notes, which include an image file (possibly to replace the desktop's wallpaper) and two HTML files. Victims are asked to pay Bitcoin fees to gain access to the threat actor's custom file-unlocking software, with current ransoms of 0.15 (or roughly 280 USD).

Ducking under the Latest in File-Locking Dilemmas

The Lukitus Ransomware's family uses a secure encryption method that isn't vulnerable to cracking by third party researchers especially. Since malware experts estimate the development of a free Lukitus Ransomware decryptor as being relatively unlikely, any victims have no better options for protecting their files than having backups that date to before the infection. Store your backups on removable hard drives or protected cloud services to keep them out of risk of deletion or corruption by threats of this classification.

The Blank Slate spamming campaign is unusual for its lack of message content meant to disguise the attachments as another file. However, Necurs and other spam-based campaigns often will portray installers for threats like the Lukitus Ransomware as being invoices, messages from fax machines, or other, safe content. Scanning files with anti-malware programs can help with identifying and removing the Lukitus Ransomware before it can compromise your PC and its data.

While con artists are experimenting with different ways to infect other systems, threats like the Lukitus Ransomware don't need to be creative with their payloads to be problematic necessarily. The same attributes that make encryption into a security benefit also can make it a danger for any computer owners who are not bothering to back up their work or implement standard anti-malware protection.

Lukitus Ransomware

Threat Metric

You've Got (Harmful) Mail

Ducking under the Latest in File-Locking Dilemmas

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