Vo_ Ransomware

Posted: December 7, 2016

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:	8/10
Infected PCs:	342

First Seen:	December 7, 2016
Last Seen:	April 26, 2022
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

The Vo_ Ransomware is a Trojan whose family encrypts your files to lock them while also adding a new prefix or extension to each name. Its attacks also solicit Bitcoin payments, which its authors claim will pay for a decryption program to reverse the data blockade. Although these recovery methods are potentially costly for no gain, malware researchers do encourage removing the Vo_ Ransomware through the usual anti-malware tools.

Paying for What's Already Yours Again

For the creators of threatening software, copying previous threats can be an easy way to launch brand-new campaigns with barely any delay in deployment, but some threat actors take the time to design more personalized Trojans. Although the landscape of file-encryption Trojans already has been inundated by different families of these threats, malware experts have another one to add to the growing list: the Vo_ Ransomware.

The Vo_ Ransomware is unusual for having variants that prefer prepending prefixes to the names of any content they encrypt, although some sources also report of it using a '.vo' extension. Malware researchers can verify the Vo_ Ransomware and variants of it using the following strings, inserted at the beginning of file names:

'vo_'
'sp_'
'sq_'

These aesthetic changes are helpful for victims trying to identify the brand of file-encryption Trojan infecting their computers or servers. The Vo_ Ransomware blocks the files it modifies with a standard AES-RSA encryption function that encodes the contents of each file with a cipher whose key the Trojan protects with the RSA half of the algorithm. All content so affected is unusable without the decryption solution, which the Vo_ Ransomware's threat actors sell in exchange for Bitcoin payments.

Keeping the Call Sign of Threats Off Your Files

Malware researchers note evidence of older versions of the Vo_ Ransomware being active since the middle of 2015. While a victim may opt to pay the ransom the Vo_ Ransomware demands in its Notepad TXT-based instructions, doing so provides no protection from con artists taking the money without offering a decryption download. Protection from the Vo_ Ransomware's effects on your files can take the form of backups or advanced recovery software, although relying on local Shadow Copy data is inherently risky.

Geographical areas targeted by the Vo_ Ransomware's campaign include Korea and various English-speaking regions, with the infection exploits still under analysis. Threat actors often use e-mail tactics for installing Trojans of the Vo_ Ransomware's category, although direct attacks against weak passwords are a competitive second possibility. Changing passwords to ones not subject to being brute forced and scanning e-mail attachments with anti-malware software can remove network vulnerabilities and delete the Vo_ Ransomware, thereby avoiding the question of any ransom payment.

The Vo_ Ransomware embodies the continuing ingenuity of threat authors who have the programming know-how to create new threats without taking code from old ones. PC users should take heed of this recurring phenomenon in the threat industry and be just as attentive to updating their security solutions for blocking such threats on sight.

Vo_ Ransomware

Threat Metric

Paying for What's Already Yours Again

Keeping the Call Sign of Threats Off Your Files

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