Smash Ransomware

The Smash Ransomware is a Trojan that threatens to delete your files after a countdown, while also offering the victim an option (most likely leading to ransom demands) to prevent this consequence. Because the Smash Ransomware includes numerous incomplete or partially-working features, PC users don't need to enact any data restoration strategies for counteracting this threat's payload. Regardless, malware experts recommend removing the Smash Ransomware with your anti-malware tools for your PC's safety.

A Mushroom that's Less Poisonous than One Might Assume

When lying to one's victims is such an indispensable part of most threat campaigns, it shouldn't surprise readers to learn that many Trojans aren't honest about how they attack your computer. The Smash Ransomware, one threat malware experts recently detected, delivers false information about deleting your files. Because such attacks are genuine parts of other campaigns, such as the Jigsaw Ransomware, the Smash Ransomware's bluff is believable and could push a victim into paying a ransom for no reason.

The Smash Ransomware also shows notable differences from most screen-locking and file-encrypting Trojans that malware experts saw throughout the past year. Its payload includes a string of Windows pop-up windows announcing its presence in poor English. Clicking past the message brings the PC user to a fake 'file kill timer,' shown as a progress bar, along with an image of a Nintendo's Mario-brand mushroom. The Smash Ransomware claims that it will delete 'all of your files forever' at the timer's conclusion, and provides a field for entering an unlock key, as well as what appears to be a ransom payment button.

Many of the Smash Ransomware's features are incomplete placeholder material, with the underlying code consisting of functions with no contents besides their names and accepted parameters. Malware experts can confirm that the Smash Ransomware can't delete, encrypt, or otherwise modify your local files currently, making this Trojan almost harmless.

Smashing a Trojan Whose Threats are Bigger than Its Features

Regrettably, the sloth of the Smash Ransomware's coder hasn't extended to all features of this work-in-progress, which can restrict your access to various, essential security applications. As a Windows-specific threat, the Smash Ransomware blocks programs including the Registry Editor and Task Manager. Although the Smash Ransomware can't be auto-terminated easily while it's running, this screen-locker Trojan lacks any auto-start exploits, and PC owners should try restarting their computers as a first disinfection step.

The Smash Ransomware most likely is an amateur effort or even a joke program and shows few of the professional characteristics malware experts see in high-level threats. A PC compromised by the Smash Ransomware does harbor real security issues, such as being unable to determine which memory processes are open, and you should remove this Trojan according to the same guidelines one would follow against any threat. After rebooting your computer, let your anti-malware security solutions delete the Smash Ransomware and all associated threats that may have installed it.

Most threat campaigns don't abide by the concept of honesty being the best policy, and the occasional surfacing of Trojans like the Smash Ransomware does everything possible to prove the dangers of taking a Trojan at its word.