KOK8 Ransomware

KOK8 Ransomware is a dangerous infection that does not have a full remedy as of yet, unfortunately. It means that we can remove the program from the affected computers, but some of the damage cannot be undone. That is quite common with ransomware infections, which is why computer security experts emphasize the importance of prevention. It is not that hard to avoid KOK8 Ransomware and other similar infections, but potential victims often think that they cannot happen to them. It only happens to someone else, but me. Yet, such attitude eventually leads to a number of undesirable situations.

Needless to say, it would be great if we could avoid KOK8 Ransomware altogether. In order to avoid this infection, we have to know how it spreads around. From what we know, it should be using the most common way for ransomware to reach its victims: Spam email. Spam email messages tend to come with file attachments. These file attachments carry either the infection itself or some Trojan that downloads the malicious payload onto the system the moment it is launched. Either way, users who want to avoid getting infected with ransomware must understand that opening all the attached files they receive from unfamiliar senders can be extremely risky.

As far as the origins are concerned, KOK8 Ransomware happens to be another version of the Matrix Ransomware. Matrix Ransomware might also be known as Matrix9643@yahoo.com Ransomware (depending on the researcher). Thus, we can expect both programs to be somewhat similar. It is only regrettable that we cannot apply the same decryption key across different programs from the same group. Every single ransomware infection requires a unique decryption key, and that is why sometimes it is not possible to decrypt the affected files immediately. Needless to say, KOK8 Ransomware requires a unique decryption tool, too.

When KOK8 Ransomware enters your computer, it scans the entire system looking for the files it can encrypt. Consequently, it encrypts files through the entire PC. It also drops two scripts on the infected system in the %AppData% directory. The filenames for the scripts are random, but they have the CMD and VBS extensions, so you can trace them and remove them manually. One of the dropped scripts is supposed to delete Shadow Volume copies (if present) upon the startup. Normally, if you have Shadow copies enabled, it should be possible to restore the encrypted files from them, but the ransomware makes sure you wouldn’t be able to use this option.

Aside from the scrip files, KOK8 Ransomware also drops a BMP extension file in the %AppData% directory that functions as the ransom note background. The ransom note says that all your files were encrypted, and now you have seven days to restore them. If you fail to contact these criminals within seven days, the unique decryption key will be deleted for good. Then the ransom note gives you an entire list of email addresses that you can use to contact these criminals.

Why do they have so many email addresses? To put it simply, there is no guarantee that just one email address would work. The server connection between the infection and its headquarters is usually very shaky, so it is very likely that one of the emails would go down before you even manage to reach them. And what if all emails stop working? Well, that just shows that you cannot trust KOK8 Ransomware. In fact, even if you were to get through to them, there is no guarantee that these people would issue the decryption key in the first place. Therefore, it is necessary to work on other ways to restore your files.

If you have a file backup in an external hard disk, you can just remove KOK8 Ransomware and the encrypted files together. After that, transfer the healthy files into a clean computer, and the job will be done.

On the other hand, if you do not have a file backup, you should look for other ways to retrieve at least some of your files. Quite often, users have a lot of their documents saved on their mobile devices without even realizing it. Perhaps you automatically save a lot of your data on a cloud, too. Please consider all your options.

How to Remove KOK8 Ransomware

1. Open your Downloads folder.
2. Delete the file that launched the infection.
3. Press Win+R and type %AppData%. Click OK.
4. Delete the random-name CMD and VBS script files, and the cReDZ91s.bmp ransom note file.
5. Scan your PC with SpyHunter.