Priapos Ransomware

Posted: May 26, 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:	10/10
Infected PCs:	5

First Seen:	May 26, 2017
Last Seen:	October 16, 2019
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

The Priapos Ransomware is a Trojan that can lock your files through enciphering them with an algorithm, such as the AES, before showing a pop-up ransom message. Because attacks of this nature have the potential for causing damage to local content that isn't necessarily fixable, keeping backups can help recover without needing to consider the risks of ransoms. Removing the Priapos Ransomware with dedicated anti-malware software, while not able to decrypt your files, can prevent any further loss of data.

Erecting Trojans for Collecting More Bitcoins

While a majority of threat actors prefer building off of the work of others, some still exercise sufficient work ethics to craft hand-made Trojans. As an emerging threat with no relatives subject to the verification of malware analysts, the Priapos Ransomware is a demonstration of how file-encrypting payloads still are a profitable and easily-developed business model for con artists. Since the Trojan is using extension names referencing a Greek deity represented by phallic imagery, the new the Priapos Ransomware brand also could be a disrespectful play on words.

Although the above symptom references the Greek mythology, the Priapos Ransomware delivers all its ransoming demands in English. Before doing so, it enciphers media (examples include documents, spreadsheets, pictures, archives, and slideshows) using what malware experts conclude is a variant of the AES encryption standard currently. This attack doesn't damage the OS but also occurs as a concealed background process, allowing the Priapos Ransomware to take your local files hostage before showing its demands.

The Priapos Ransomware generates HTA ransom notes similar in format to those of the Globe Ransomware family, with lengthy instructions on buying Bitcoins and claims that the attack is a non-specific 'security problem with your PC.' Malware analysts also are seeing some builds of the Priapos Ransomware with glitches that prevent the pop-up from launching, although victims still can load it through a text viewer like Notepad manually.

Shrinking the Priapos Ransomware's Profits Down to Size

The Priapos Ransomware is showing itself in small numbers and, despite occasional bugs, is under distribution against live systems by its threat actors. While the installation exploits in use are unidentified, malware analysts suggest avoiding suspicious e-mail attachments, contact with dangerous websites, and using lax password policies particularly. Almost all infection vectors in use by file-encrypting threats like the Priapos Ransomware are subject to prevention by safe user behavior and basic anti-malware protection appropriately.

The Priapos Ransomware doesn't have freeware decoding solutions yet, and preventing infections and backing up your files are the two, definitive ways of keeping a Trojan attack from damaging your media permanently. Cloud servers and secondary storage devices are widely recognized as ideal for limiting the impact of these attacks, although the Priapos Ransomware may remove local backups like the Shadow Copies.

Although any quality anti-malware suite should find deleting the Priapos Ransomware a simple act, erasing the damage it causes is much more subject to chance. While the Priapos Ransomware may not be anyone's idea of a 'divine' program, it's just as able to cause harm with all the permanency of a decree from on high.