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OoPS Ransomware

Posted: June 5, 2017

Threat Metric

Ranking: 2,427
Threat Level: 8/10
Infected PCs: 30,899
First Seen: June 5, 2017
Last Seen: October 17, 2023
OS(es) Affected: Windows

The OoPS Ransomware is a variant of the Marlboro Ransomware, a Trojan that locks your files so that it can demand payment for the unlocking routine. Both free decryption programs and backups can help you recover without paying, which malware experts recommend, instead of transferring money to a con artist who may not be responsive. Many anti-malware programs also can block the OoPS Ransomware or its earlier version, or remove them before their attacks finish.

Winter Trojans Back Just in Time for Summer

The names Trojans use for 'advertising' their attack campaigns often show a given level of flexibility meant to confuse the victims and obfuscate software lineage. This fad of renaming old programs with minor or no changes to their payloads is one that malware expert often witness with file-encrypting threats, like the Marlboro Ransomware and its new version, the OoPS Ransomware particularly. Even though the OoPS Ransomware can cause non-negligible damage to your files, its distribution also hinges on the user making multiple security mistakes.

The OoPS Ransomware installation comes through a secondary threat, a Trojan downloader that malware experts see triggering off of threatening document macros. Such macro content may be disabled, by default, causing the victim to need to enable it manually before the drive-by-download can load. As expected, the documents are being sent to PCs through e-mail, with a high probability of targeting business organizations with theoretical high ransom-payment ratios.

If not blocked, the OoPS Ransomware encrypts dozens of different files, including MP3, MOV, MID, DOCX and SQL. The Trojan appends '.oops' extensions onto their names and, then, drops its ransom note. The latter shows a general encryption warning and a request for a Bitcoin payment to unlock your now-unreadable files.

Stopping Yourself from Saying Oops over Old Trojans

The OoPS Ransomware's extortion instructions are far from the worst malware analysts ever have seen and use well-considered formatting and information to make its ransom payments seem like the 'easy way' out of its attacks. However, appearances with threatening software often belie reality, and the Marlboro Ransomware program that the OoPS Ransomware uses as a base is highly decryptable. Victims should try using free decryption software or backups for recovering anything that the OoPS Ransomware encrypts before using more undesirable methods.

There also are several ways of stopping the OoPS Ransomware from installing and launching its attacks, which refrain from showing symptoms until they damage your files. Keeping macros disabled, scanning downloads with anti-virus or anti-malware utilities, and knowing the expected formats of spam e-mails can help keep a potential victim refrain from helping this threat unintentionally. Many anti-malware products also may delete the OoPS Ransomware or its predecessor, the Marlboro Ransomware.

The OoPS Ransomware is a classical demonstration of modern threat authors' dependency on the people they're attacking as readers might ever see. Too often, the environment allowing threats like the OoPS Ransomware to cause damage is one the fault of actions from PC users who aren't taking care of their PCs, even when it comes to something as simple as e-mails.

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