Trojan.PornoAsset

Trojan.PornoAsset is a dangerous infection that can lock your screen and disable you from running any program. The goal of this program is to force you into paying a “fine,” and because this infection demands a ransom, we classify it as a ransomware Trojan. Although it might seem as if you have no other way to get your PC running normally again without paying the requested sum of money, our researchers have found an easy way to eliminate it. If you wish to remove Trojan.PornoAsset from your PC, this is the report you need to read. Besides learning how to eliminate this infection, you will also learn about the distribution and the activity of malicious software. This information might help you prevent the infiltration of other malicious threats in the future, which is why we do not recommend skipping it.

According to our research, Trojan.PornoAsset is primarily targeted at Windows users living in Russia. This threat might be spread using spam email attachments, malicious software bundles, and various other deceptive methods, but it is always hidden to ensure successful infiltration. Once installed, this threat locks your screen with an irremovable message in Russian. This message informs that your computer was found to be used for watching and distributing child pornography and that you need to pay a “fine” of 900 rubles for the lockdown to be disabled. Of course, fines are unlikely to be issued by locking down your computer, which is a sign that you are dealing with a scam. Nevertheless, many computer users are intimidated by the threats expressed via the screen-locking message. One of the statements suggests that further legal action would be taken if the fine of 900 rubles was not paid within 24 hours. Another statement (see it below) suggests that data supposedly encrypted on your PC will be lost if you attempt deleting the message.

Внимание! Данные на компьютере зашифрованы и любая попытка удалить программу приведет к невозможности их восстановления!

Although Trojan.PornoAsset is targeted at computer users living in Russia, we have found that this threat can enter any computer. The problem is that the message will not show up if Russian is not used for non-Unicode programs. In that case, all the threats and demands and lies will translate to combinations of symbols and characters that make no sense. Needless to say, this causes many problems. Although users that encounter such message will not pay a ransom – because they will not know it is expected of them – they will not be able to use their computers either. If you are dealing with this kind of a mess, you should follow the same removal instructions. Deleting Trojan.PornoAsset is extremely important because this infection is completely unpredictable, and you might be at serious risk if you do not handle it appropriately. This threat could open up backdoors for other malicious threats to enter, jeopardize your virtual security, and harm your personal files. Unfortunately, because it is set up to automatically start upon Windows start, it does not matter how many times you restart your PC, the infection will remain intact. While testing this infection, we have found that rebooting the PC in Safe Mode does not help either.

You can run your operating system using a CD or USB to delete Trojan.PornoAsset, but we have found a quicker way to eliminate it from your operating system. This removal method includes rebooting your PC with Command Prompt. Have you done this before? Even if you have not, we are sure you can successfully perform this task by following the steps below. Once you reboot your computer, you will need to launch Registry Editor and delete a malicious file. This is where things get tricky. The malicious EXE file of this ransomware Trojan does not have a permanent name. Instead, its name consists of random numbers. Luckily, the location of this file is permanent, and you should be able to locate, identify, and remove it successfully. Unfortunately, installing anti-malware software capable of deleting malware automatically is not possible unless you disable the lockdown, which you can do by eliminating the malicious file and the registry keys. Of course, once you remove the ransomware, you should implement anti-malware software to clean the remaining threats (if they exist) and keep your PC protected in the future.

Reboot in Command Prompt

Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7:

1. Restart the PC (you can use the power button).
2. Wait for the BIOS screen to load and continuously tap F8 until a boot options menu appears.
3. Using arrow keys select Safe Mode with Command Prompt and tap Enter.
4. Wait for the PC to reboot and Command Prompt to appear.

Windows 8 and Windows 8.1:

1. Open Windows in Metro UI and click the Power button.
2. Hold the Shift key and select Restart.
3. Open the Troubleshooting menu and click Advanced options.
4. Click Startup Settings, click Restart, and wait for the restart to begin.
5. Select F6 to reboot in Safe Mode with Command Prompt.

Windows 10:

1. Click the Windows logo on the Taskbar and select Power.
2. Hold Shift key on your keyboard and select Restart.
3. Open the Troubleshooting menu and click Advanced options.
4. Click Startup Settings, click Restart, and wait for the restart to begin.
5. Select F6 to reboot in Safe Mode with Command Prompt.

Trojan.PornoAsset Removal

1. In the Command Prompt window type regedit and tap Enter (on the keyboard).
2. In the Registry Editor menu at the top click File.
3. Select Import to open the Import Registry File window.
4. Type %homedrive% into the address bar at the top and tap Enter.
5. Right-click and Delete the malicious file. Close the window to go back to the Registry Editor.
6. Using the pane on the left navigate to HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ (or HKLM\Software\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\).
7. Click Winlogon and find the Userinit value.
8. Right-click this value and select Delete (delete it if the value data represents the malicious file).
9. Restart your computer in Normal Mode.