RarVault Ransomware

What is RarVault?

RarVault is a ransomware that supposedly encrypts files. Following successful infiltration, RarVault moves various files to a password-protected .rar archive stored in a "RarVault" folder, placed in the root partition (e.g., C:\, D:\, E:\, etc.). After "encrypting" victim's files, RarVault creates an htm file ("RarVault.htm") and places it on the desktop. This file redirects victims to RarVault's website, which contains a ransom-demand message.

Be aware that text in RarVault's website is written in Russian. Thus, this ransomware clearly targets users from Russia. The website states that the password of the .rar archive (containing the victim's files) is generated using AES-256 cryptography.

Therefore, it is impossible to extract the archive without a unique key (password) stored pn Command and Control (C&C) servers managed by developers of RarVault. To receive this key, victims must pay a ransom of 1 Bitcoin (currently equivalent to ~$611), however, it is also stated that the size of ransom may increase up to 50 Bitcoins depending on the importance of files.

Research shows, however, that these claims are often false - the size will probably remain the same. After paying the ransom, victims must contact cyber criminals via an email address provided (rarvault@ruggedinbox.com).

Note that developers of RarVault do not use the Tor network (which would allow them to remain anonymous and significantly diminish the chance of being apprehended by the authorities) - the website and email are stored on public servers. Furthermore, the virus moves files to the password-protected archive only, rather than encrypting them.

Therefore, we assume that the developers are amateur and have poor programming knowledge. Unfortunately, there are no tools currently capable of cracking the RarVault archive password. Therefore, the only solution to this problem is to restore files/system from a backup.

Screenshot of a message encouraging users to contact the developers of RarVault ransomware to decrypt their compromised data:

Although RarVault does not actually encrypt files, it shares many similarities with hundreds of other ransomware-type viruses, such as Flyper, Cerber3, Serpico, and Locky. All have identical behavior: the encrypt files and make ransom demands. Research shows that ransomware-type viruses often use asymmetric cryptography and, thus, the only major difference is size of ransom.

Developers often proliferate ransomware using spam emails (malicious attachments), peer-to-peer networks (such as Torrent), fake software updaters, and trojans.

Therefore, you should be very cautious when opening email attachments sent from unrecognized/suspicious addresses, and when downloading files/software from third party sources. Furthermore, keep your installed applications up-to-date and use a legitimate anti-virus/anti-spyware suite. The key to computer safety is caution.

Russian text presented on the RarVault website:

ОСНОВНЫЕ ВОПРОСЫ Что случилось с моими файлами? Доступ к Вашим файлам был временно заблокирован. Они помешены в архив (или несколько, в зависимости от количества дисков на вашем компьютере) и находятся в папке RarVault или в "корне" дисков (т.е. C:\RarVault\ D:\RarVault\ E:\RarVault\ или С:\ D:\ E:\ и т.д.). Как я могу восстановить мои файлы? Для восстановления файлов, Вам необходимо выслать на адрес: RarVault@ruggedinbox.com письмо и приложить к нему файлы "Rar_Vault_User.txt" и "Rar_Vault_User.rar" (находиться или в "корне" диска С:\ или C:\RarVault\), в которых содержится Ваш уникальный идентификационный номер, после этого пополнить свой личный кошелек (номер кошелька мы вышлем Вам на почту) на сумму - 1 Биткоин (около 250 USD, сумма может меняться, в зависимости от важности информации и составлять от 1 Биткоина до 50). До полного восстановления Ваших файлов, ни в коем случае нельзя удалять или перемещать файл "Rar_Vault_User.txt", для предотвращения смены Вашего уникального идентификационного номера. После пополнения Вашего кошелька, когда стоимость будет полностью погашена - Вам автоматически будет выслан пароль для разархивации. Увы, Вы не сможете разархивировать Ваши файлы без Вашего уникального пароля. Ни системные администраторы, ни программисты, ни антивирусные компании и даже разработчики программ-архиваторов не смогут Вам помочь. Учитывайте, что Ваши файлы в архиве защищены при помощи криптостойкого алгоритма шифрования AES-256 с функцией деривации ключа основанной на PBKDF2 с использованием HMAC-SHA256. Ваш пароль состоит их 127 любых символов на 2 языках. Пример: 4c5№Ф&63*99ыD07079975e84D4№8№00660#?(60C83A7068%+(06Ж9йр;66+9О&5D&C80О973:E00CрE00 г76**5Ж2)7ы+6р(г978_0ce9876992_?6F6003A№~08A) Подбор подобного пароля самыми современными компьютерами при помощи специального программного обеспечения займет около 300-500 лет. Для получения детальной технической информации Вы можете посетить: Wikipedia (AES-256) - это Ваш случай. Где я нахожусь? Для чего предназначается этот сайт? Вы находитесь в системе, при помощи которой Вы получите пароль, необходимый Вам для восстановления Вашей информации. Могу ли я обратиться к Вам после оплаты? Конечно, в течении 2 недель после осуществления Вами полной оплаты. Как я могу заплатить за восстановление данных? Каков процесс оплаты? Мы принимаем только BitCoin. Если у Вас уже есть Биткоины, Вы можете отправить их на Ваш личный кошелек, высланный Вам по почте. Если у Вас нет Биткоинов, Вам следует их приобрести через специальные обменники. Список обменников Вы можете просмотреть здесь. Я никогда не пользовался валютой Биткоин. Могу ли я оплатить иначе? К сожалению, нет. Мы принимаем только Биткоин. Более детальную информацию по оплате смотрите по ссылке. Могу ли я заплатить за восстановление, осуществив несколько транзакций? Да, мы рекомендуем Вам оплачивать восстановление данных несколькими транзакциями. Изначально Вы можете осуществить небольшую транзакцию, чтобы убедиться, что система принимает средства корректно. Убедитесь, что Биткоины были успешно зачислены Вам - для этого Вам необходимо перейти по ссылке https://blockchain.info в поле "Search" указать номер Вашего кошелька и посмотреть текущий счет и историю транзакций. После того, как первая транзакция была успешно зачислена, Вы можете оплатить оставшуюся сумму для получения уникального пароля восстановления. Как Вы будете знать, что оплатил именно я? Биткоин-кошелек, номер, которого Вы получили по почте, уникален и был выделен только для Вас. Таким образом, когда баланс Вашего Биткоин-кошелька изменится, наша система поймет, что заплатили именно Вы. Может ли цена за получения пароля повышаться? Да. Если Вы не оплатили в течении 10 дней, стоимость увеличится на 30%. И будет повышаться через каждые 10 дней. Дата блокировки данных заложена в Вашем уникальном идентификационном номере и учитывается при генерации пароля, т.е. если Вы ее измените вручную, то сгенерированный нашей системой для Вас пароль - не подойдет для Вашего архива. Я отправил средства на обменник, однако, система так и не выслала мне пароль? В первую очередь, Вам следует проверить баланс Вашего личного Биткоин-кошелька. Если средства были получены нашей системой в меньшем объеме, нежели тот, который Вы отправляли на обменник, это, скорее всего, означает, что обменником была удержана комиссия (до нескольких процентов от суммы платежа). Мой компьютер заражен Вашим вирусом? Нет. Мы используем только легитимное и лицензионное программное обеспечение, в соответствии с международным законодательством и международными нормами лицензионного права. А написание вирусов это противозаконное и уголовно наказуемое деяние. Мы всего лишь оказываем Вам платную услугу по восстановлению пароля от Вашего архива. Необычная ситуация Если Вы не можете найти ответы в этом разделе и думаете, что Ваша ситуация нестандартная, Вы можете написать нам RarVault@ruggedinbox.com.

Screenshot of RarVault ransomware folder in the victim's root partition:

RarVault ransomware removal:

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Video suggesting what steps should be taken in case of a ransomware infection:

Quick menu:

• What is Rarvault virus?
• STEP 1. Reporting ransomware to authorities.
• STEP 2. Isolating the infected device.
• STEP 3. Identifying the ransomware infection.
• STEP 4. Searching for ransomware decryption tools.
• STEP 5. Restoring files with data recovery tools.
• STEP 6. Creating data backups.

Reporting ransomware to authorities:

If you are a victim of a ransomware attack we recommend reporting this incident to authorities. By providing information to law enforcement agencies you will help track cybercrime and potentially assist in the prosecution of the attackers. Here's a list of authorities where you should report a ransomware attack. For the complete list of local cybersecurity centers and information on why you should report ransomware attacks, read this article.

List of local authorities where ransomware attacks should be reported (choose one depending on your residence address):

•  USA - Internet Crime Complaint Centre IC3
•  United Kingdom - Action Fraud
•  Spain - Policía Nacional
•  France - Ministère de l'Intérieur
•  Germany - Polizei
•  Italy - Polizia di Stato
•  The Netherlands - Politie
•  Poland - Policja
•  Portugal - Polícia Judiciária

Isolating the infected device:

Some ransomware-type infections are designed to encrypt files within external storage devices, infect them, and even spread throughout the entire local network. For this reason, it is very important to isolate the infected device (computer) as soon as possible.

Step 1: Disconnect from the internet.

The easiest way to disconnect a computer from the internet is to unplug the Ethernet cable from the motherboard, however, some devices are connected via a wireless network and for some users (especially those who are not particularly tech-savvy), disconnecting cables may seem troublesome. Therefore, you can also disconnect the system manually via Control Panel:

Navigate to the "Control Panel", click the search bar in the upper-right corner of the screen, enter "Network and Sharing Center" and select search result:

Click the "Change adapter settings" option in the upper-left corner of the window:

Right-click on each connection point and select "Disable". Once disabled, the system will no longer be connected to the internet. To re-enable the connection points, simply right-click again and select "Enable".

Step 2: Unplug all storage devices.

As mentioned above, ransomware might encrypt data and infiltrate all storage devices that are connected to the computer. For this reason, all external storage devices (flash drives, portable hard drives, etc.) should be disconnected immediately, however, we strongly advise you to eject each device before disconnecting to prevent data corruption:

Navigate to "My Computer", right-click on each connected device, and select "Eject":

Step 3: Log-out of cloud storage accounts.

Some ransomware-type might be able to hijack software that handles data stored within "the Cloud". Therefore, the data could be corrupted/encrypted. For this reason, you should log-out of all cloud storage accounts within browsers and other related software. You should also consider temporarily uninstalling the cloud-management software until the infection is completely removed.

Identify the ransomware infection:

To properly handle an infection, one must first identify it. Some ransomware infections use ransom-demand messages as an introduction (see the WALDO ransomware text file below).

This, however, is rare. In most cases, ransomware infections deliver more direct messages simply stating that data is encrypted and that victims must pay some sort of ransom. Note that ransomware-type infections typically generate messages with different file names (for example, "_readme.txt", "READ-ME.txt", "DECRYPTION_INSTRUCTIONS.txt", "DECRYPT_FILES.html", etc.). Therefore, using the name of a ransom message may seem like a good way to identify the infection. The problem is that most of these names are generic and some infections use the same names, even though the delivered messages are different and the infections themselves are unrelated. Therefore, using the message filename alone can be ineffective and even lead to permanent data loss (for example, by attempting to decrypt data using tools designed for different ransomware infections, users are likely to end up permanently damaging files and decryption will no longer be possible even with the correct tool).

Another way to identify a ransomware infection is to check the file extension, which is appended to each encrypted file. Ransomware infections are often named by the extensions they append (see files encrypted by Qewe ransomware below).

This method is only effective, however, when the appended extension is unique - many ransomware infections append a generic extension (for example, ".encrypted", ".enc", ".crypted", ".locked", etc.). In these cases, identifying ransomware by its appended extension becomes impossible.

One of the easiest and quickest ways to identify a ransomware infection is to use the ID Ransomware website. This service supports most existing ransomware infections. Victims simply upload a ransom message and/or one encrypted file (we advise you to upload both if possible).

The ransomware will be identified within seconds and you will be provided with various details, such as the name of the malware family to which the infection belongs, whether it is decryptable, and so on.

Example 1 (Qewe [Stop/Djvu] ransomware):

Example 2 (.iso [Phobos] ransomware):

If your data happens to be encrypted by ransomware that is not supported by ID Ransomware, you can always try searching the internet by using certain keywords (for example, a ransom message title, file extension, provided contact emails, crypto wallet addresses, etc.).

Search for ransomware decryption tools:

Encryption algorithms used by most ransomware-type infections are extremely sophisticated and, if the encryption is performed properly, only the developer is capable of restoring data. This is because decryption requires a specific key, which is generated during the encryption. Restoring data without the key is impossible. In most cases, cybercriminals store keys on a remote server, rather than using the infected machine as a host. Dharma (CrySis), Phobos, and other families of high-end ransomware infections are virtually flawless, and thus restoring data encrypted without the developers' involvement is simply impossible. Despite this, there are dozens of ransomware-type infections that are poorly developed and contain a number of flaws (for example, the use of identical encryption/decryption keys for each victim, keys stored locally, etc.). Therefore, always check for available decryption tools for any ransomware that infiltrates your computer.

Finding the correct decryption tool on the internet can be very frustrating. For this reason, we recommend that you use the No More Ransom Project and this is where identifying the ransomware infection is useful. The No More Ransom Project website contains a "Decryption Tools" section with a search bar. Enter the name of the identified ransomware, and all available decryptors (if there are any) will be listed.

Restore files with data recovery tools:

Depending on the situation (quality of ransomware infection, type of encryption algorithm used, etc.), restoring data with certain third-party tools might be possible. Therefore, we advise you to use the Recuva tool developed by CCleaner. This tool supports over a thousand data types (graphics, video, audio, documents, etc.) and it is very intuitive (little knowledge is necessary to recover data). In addition, the recovery feature is completely free.

Step 1: Perform a scan.

Run the Recuva application and follow the wizard. You will be prompted with several windows allowing you to choose what file types to look for, which locations should be scanned, etc. All you need to do is select the options you're looking for and start the scan. We advise you to enable the "Deep Scan" before starting, otherwise, the application's scanning capabilities will be restricted.

Wait for Recuva to complete the scan. The scanning duration depends on the volume of files (both in quantity and size) that you are scanning (for example, several hundred gigabytes could take over an hour to scan). Therefore, be patient during the scanning process. We also advise against modifying or deleting existing files, since this might interfere with the scan. If you add additional data (for example, downloading files/content) while scanning, this will prolong the process:

Step 2: Recover data.

Once the process is complete, select the folders/files you wish to restore and simply click "Recover". Note that some free space on your storage drive is necessary to restore data:

Create data backups:

Proper file management and creating backups is essential for data security. Therefore, always be very careful and think ahead.

Partition management: We recommend that you store your data in multiple partitions and avoid storing important files within the partition that contains the entire operating system. If you fall into a situation whereby you cannot boot the system and are forced to format the disk on which the operating system is installed (in most cases, this is where malware infections hide), you will lose all data stored within that drive. This is the advantage of having multiple partitions: if you have the entire storage device assigned to a single partition, you will be forced to delete everything, however, creating multiple partitions and allocating the data properly allows you to prevent such problems. You can easily format a single partition without affecting the others - therefore, one will be cleaned and the others will remain untouched, and your data will be saved. Managing partitions is quite simple and you can find all the necessary information on Microsoft's documentation web page.

Data backups: One of the most reliable backup methods is to use an external storage device and keep it unplugged. Copy your data to an external hard drive, flash (thumb) drive, SSD, HDD, or any other storage device, unplug it and store it in a dry place away from the sun and extreme temperatures. This method is, however, quite inefficient, since data backups and updates need to be made regularly. You can also use a cloud service or remote server. Here, an internet connection is required and there is always the chance of a security breach, although it's a really rare occasion.

We recommend using Microsoft OneDrive for backing up your files. OneDrive lets you store your personal files and data in the cloud, sync files across computers and mobile devices, allowing you to access and edit your files from all of your Windows devices. OneDrive lets you save, share and preview files, access download history, move, delete, and rename files, as well as create new folders, and much more.

You can back up your most important folders and files on your PC (your Desktop, Documents, and Pictures folders). Some of OneDrive’s more notable features include file versioning, which keeps older versions of files for up to 30 days. OneDrive features a recycling bin in which all of your deleted files are stored for a limited time. Deleted files are not counted as part of the user’s allocation.

The service is built using HTML5 technologies and allows you to upload files up to 300 MB via drag and drop into the web browser or up to 10 GB via the OneDrive desktop application. With OneDrive, you can download entire folders as a single ZIP file with up to 10,000 files, although it can’t exceed 15 GB per single download.

OneDrive comes with 5 GB of free storage out of the box, with an additional 100 GB, 1 TB, and 6 TB storage options available for a subscription-based fee. You can get one of these storage plans by either purchasing additional storage separately or with Office 365 subscription.

Creating a data backup:

The backup process is the same for all file types and folders. Here’s how you can back up your files using Microsoft OneDrive

Step 1: Choose the files/folders you want to backup.

Click the OneDrive cloud icon to open the OneDrive menu. While in this menu, you can customize your file backup settings.

Click Help & Settings and then select Settings from the drop-down menu.

Go to the Backup tab and click Manage backup.

In this menu, you can choose to backup the Desktop and all of the files on it, and Documents and Pictures folders, again, with all of the files in them. Click Start backup.

Now, when you add a file or folder in the Desktop and Documents and Pictures folders, they will be automatically backed up on OneDrive.

To add folders and files, not in the locations shown above, you have to add them manually.

Open File Explorer and navigate to the location of the folder/file you want to backup. Select the item, right-click it, and click Copy.

Then, navigate to OneDrive, right-click anywhere in the window and click Paste. Alternatively, you can just drag and drop a file into OneDrive. OneDrive will automatically create a backup of the folder/file.

All of the files added to the OneDrive folder are backed up in the cloud automatically. The green circle with the checkmark in it indicates that the file is available both locally and on OneDrive and that the file version is the same on both. The blue cloud icon indicates that the file has not been synced and is available only on OneDrive. The sync icon indicates that the file is currently syncing.

To access files only located on OneDrive online, go to the Help & Settings drop-down menu and select View online.

Step 2: Restore corrupted files.

OneDrive makes sure that the files stay in sync, so the version of the file on the computer is the same version on the cloud. However, if ransomware has encrypted your files, you can take advantage of OneDrive’s Version history feature that will allow you to restore the file versions prior to encryption.

Microsoft 365 has a ransomware detection feature that notifies you when your OneDrive files have been attacked and guide you through the process of restoring your files. It must be noted, however, that if you don’t have a paid Microsoft 365 subscription, you only get one detection and file recovery for free.

If your OneDrive files get deleted, corrupted, or infected by malware, you can restore your entire OneDrive to a previous state. Here’s how you can restore your entire OneDrive:

1. If you're signed in with a personal account, click the Settings cog at the top of the page. Then, click Options and select Restore your OneDrive.

If you're signed in with a work or school account,  click the Settings cog at the top of the page. Then, click Restore your OneDrive.

2. On the Restore your OneDrive page, select a date from the drop-down list. Note that if you're restoring your files after automatic ransomware detection, a restore date will be selected for you.

3. After configuring all of the file restoration options, click Restore to undo all the activities you selected.

The best way to avoid damage from ransomware infections is to maintain regular up-to-date backups.

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