WinBan Ransomware

Posted: June 19, 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:	61

First Seen:	June 19, 2017
Last Seen:	December 28, 2020
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

The WinBan Ransomware is a Trojan that blocks your screen with alerts claiming that Microsoft is banning your copy of the Windows OS. Although these attacks are fake and don't indicate any problems with your Windows license or installation, they can harm your access to the user interface. Use anti-malware products to remove the WinBan Ransomware before it locks the screen or uninstalls it afterward, once you disable its pop-up.

Windows Running Rampant, but not for the Reasons You Think

Even though the 'Blue Screen of Death' epidemic is closer to extinction than ever before, many threat actors are using its notoriety for enabling attacks that lock random PCs. These screen-locking functions are often just the first step in an attempt to make the users pay to get access to their desktop, with the money going to con artists, rather than Microsoft. However, threats like the WinBan Ransomware do provide visual cues to help attentive victims tell the difference between a Trojan infection and a real warning from Windows.

File data related to that Trojan implies that the WinBan Ransomware's author is operating from Romania, but the actual payload uses an English-based text strictly. When it launches, the WinBan Ransomware generates a borderless HTML window that imitates a Windows login screen. Instead of providing an error code, the WinBan Ransomware claims that your copy of the OS is under attack from an 'unsolveable [SIC] threat' and offers to let the user reinstall Windows (while also wiping their media) or verify it at a fee.

The latter is the WinBan Ransomware's ransom-collecting method, which uses a Gmail address to negotiate a price to unlock your PC. While the Trojan claims that the associated address is to get into contact with a Microsoft technical assistant, malware experts emphasize that this is a hoax with no legitimate connections to that company or your OS.

Revoking a Wrongfully Issued Ban of Your PC

PC users with any degree of passing familiarity with the Windows systems also should be aware that Microsoft doesn't use pop-ups to lock your desktop or ask for payments to technical support departments over e-mail addresses. Severe and numerous typos in the WinBan Ransomware's warnings also could help a victim identify this tactic on sight with little trouble. Samples of the WinBan Ransomware so far examined by malware experts are responsive to the code '4N2nfY5nn2991' for removing the pop-up, although changes to the password could necessitate other recovery strategies.

Screen-locking threats may install themselves over sophisticated delivery methods, such as forged e-mail attachments or HTML exploit kits, but you also may encounter them after opening files from insecure sources like torrents and piracy websites. Scanning every suspicious file before opening it will let your anti-malware tools detect threats like the WinBan Ransomware and delete them before they attack your PC. Otherwise, disabling the 'screen locker' functions by any means necessary and removing the WinBan Ransomware with a thorough anti-malware scan may be the only way of regaining access to your desktop interface.

The WinBan Ransomware's author has put only a little effort into crafting his fake Windows alert. However, an ugly pop-up attack is still a potentially threatening one, and threat actors will not stop creating screen-locking threats like this one until their victims stop paying them.

Technical Details

File System Modifications

Tutorials: If you wish to learn how to remove malware components manually, you can read the tutorials on how to find malware, kill unwanted processes, remove malicious DLLs and delete other harmful files. Always be sure to back up your PC before making any changes.

The following files were created in the system:

dotnetfx35setup.exe

File name: dotnetfx35setup.exe
Size: 77.82 KB (77824 bytes)
MD5: dc36fbe164b622b96235e4c55fc84fbc
Detection count: 30
File type: Executable File
Mime Type: unknown/exe
Group: Malware file
Last Updated: December 28, 2020