How to uninstall the Monkserenen ransomware from the infected machine?

What is Monkserenen?

As a rule, most ransomware variants are designed to encrypt files (make them inaccessible) and generate a ransom note. It is also common that they rename every encrypted file. Monkserenen renames files by appending ".crypted_monkserenen@tvstar_com" as the file extension.

For example, it renames a file named "1.jpg" to "1.jpg.crypted_monkserenen@tvstar_com", "2.jpg" to "2.jpg.crypted_monkserenen@tvstar_com", and so forth.

Also, Monkserenen creates the "how_to_back_files.html" file (its ransom note) in all folders that contain affected data. It is noteworthy that Monkserenen is part of the GlobeImposter ransomware family.

As stated in Monkserenen's ransom note (the "how_to_back_files.html" HTML file), documents, images, databases, and other files have been encrypted, and decryption without a unique key is impossible. Files can be decrypted with the software called "MONKSERENEN DECRYPTOR".

This software can be purchased from the attackers. In order to receive payment information (price of the decryption software and cryptocurrency wallet address that needs to be used to make the payment), victims have to send their ID monkserenen@tvstar.com with the word "encryption" as an email subject.

An email can have up to three encrypted files attached to it. Those files will be decrypted for free.

Although, they cannot be larger than ten megabytes. It is also stated that attempts to decrypt files using third-party tools may corrupt them. Also, it is mentioned that victims should contact the attackers for payment details as soon as possible because the attackers will store the decryption tools on their server temporarily.

Unfortunately, there is no third-party tool that can decrypt files encrypted by the Monkserenen ransomware. Cybercriminals behind this ransomware variant are the only ones who have the right decryption tool and can decrypt files.

Although it is never recommended to pay any cybercriminals for a decryption tool: quite often, victims who pay a ransom get scammed - they do not receive any decryption tool. When there is no third-party decryption tool freely available for download on the Internet, the only way to recover files without losing money is to restore them from a backup.

It is noteworthy that malware of this type can be designed to encrypt new files or spread itself further (infect other computers on the network). In order to avoid that, victims need to uninstall ransomware from the already infected computer.

Screenshot of a message encouraging users to pay a ransom to decrypt their compromised data:

Most ransomware variants are designed to encrypt files and provide victims with instructions on how to contact the attackers, pay them a ransom, and some other details. Usually, the only main differences are the size of a ransom and the cryptographic algorithm (symmetric or asymmetric) that a specific ransomware variant uses to encrypt files.

Typically, victims cannot decrypt their files without the right decryption tools that only the attackers behind ransomware have. Free data recovery is possible only when ransomware has some bugs, flaws, a free decryption tool is available for download on the Internet, or victims have a data backup.

Therefore, it is important to create data backups regularly and keep them on a remote server (like Cloud) or an unplugged storage device. There are many different ransomware variants, a couple examples are Oplatabtc3, Cum, and Lookfornewitguy.

How did ransomware infect my computer?

Most cybercriminals use Trojans, emails, unreliable sources for downloading files, programs, unofficial software updaters, and illegal activation tools to distribute ransomware and other malicious software. There is a certain type of trojans that can install other software of this kind.

Once a trojan of this type is installed on the operating system, it can install its payload (in this case, ransomware). Emails that cybercriminals use to deliver malware contain a malicious attachment or a malicious link designed to download such a file.

Examples of files cybercriminals use when they deliver malware via email: Microsoft Office documents, PDF documents, JavaScript files, archive files like ZIP, RAR, executable files (like .exe). Recipients infect their computers when they download and open that malicious file.

Peer-to-Peer networks like torrent clients, eMule, unofficial websites, various third-party downloaders, download pages for freeware, etc., are channels that cybercriminals often use to distribute malware as well. In such cases, malware is distributed by disguising malicious files as harmless, regular.

Cybercriminals succeed when users download and open those files. Third-party (fake) software updaters infect systems by directly installing malware on them or exploiting bugs, flaws of installed, outdated software.

Unofficial software activation tools ("cracking" tools) infect computers when they are bundled with malware. It is important to mention that it is very common for these tools to are used to trick users who try to avoid paying for software into installing malicious software on their computers.

Threat Summary:

Name	Monkserenen virus
Threat Type	Ransomware, Crypto Virus, Files locker
Encrypted Files Extension	.crypted_monkserenen@tvstar_com
Ransom Demanding Message	how_to_back_files.html
Cyber Criminal Contact	monkserenen@tvstar.com
Detection Names	Avast (Other:Malware-gen [Trj]), BitDefender (Generic.Ransom.GlobeImposter.F7811FCC), ESET-NOD32 (Win32/Filecoder.FV), Kaspersky (Trojan-Ransom.Win32.Purgen.ld), Microsoft (Ransom:Win32/Ergop.A), Full List Of Detections (VirusTotal)
Symptoms	Cannot open files stored on your computer, previously functional files now have a different extension (for example, my.docx.locked). A ransom demand message is displayed on your desktop. Cyber criminals demand payment of a ransom (usually in bitcoins) to unlock your files.
Distribution methods	Infected email attachments (macros), torrent websites, malicious ads.
Damage	All files are encrypted and cannot be opened without paying a ransom. Additional password-stealing trojans and malware infections can be installed together with a ransomware infection.
Malware Removal (Windows)	To eliminate possible malware infections, scan your computer with legitimate antivirus software. Our security researchers recommend using Combo Cleaner. ▼ Download Combo Cleaner To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. 7 days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by Rcs Lt, the parent company of PCRisk.com read more.

How to protect yourself from ransomware infections?

Website links and attachments in irrelevant emails sent from unknown, suspicious addresses should not be opened. It is common that links or files in such emails are sent by cybercriminals who attempt to trick recipients into installing malware on their computers.

Software and files should not be downloaded through third-party downloaders, Peer-to-Peer networks, unofficial pages, or other channels of this kind. It is recommended to use trustworthy, official sites and direct download links for that.

Installed programs have to be updated and activated using implemented functions (or tools) that their official developers provide. It is never safe to use other (third party, unofficial) tools because they can be bundled with malware.

Also, it is not legal to activate licensed software with 'cracking' tools and use hacked software. Additionally, it is advisable to regularly scan a computer for malware and do it with an up-to-date and reputable antivirus or anti-spyware suite.

If your computer is already infected with Monkserenen, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate this ransomware.

Text presented in Monkserenen ransomware's html file ("how_to_back_files.html"):

Attention! All your files are encrypted.
Your documents, photos, databases and other important files have been encrypted cryptographically strong, without the original key recovery is impossible! To decrypt your files you need to buy the special software - "MONKSERENEN DECRYPTOR" Using another tools could corrupt your files, in case of using third party software we dont give guarantees that full recovery is possible so use it on your own risk.
If you want to restore files, write us to the e-mail: monkserenen@tvstar.com In subject line write "encryption" and attach your personal ID in body of your message also attach to email 3 crypted files. (files have to be less than 10 MB)
It is in your interest to respond as soon as possible to ensure the recovery of your files, because we will not store your decryption keys on our server for a long time.

Your personal ID
-

Screenshot of files encrypted by Monkserenen (".crypted_monkserenen@tvstar_com" extension):

Monkserenen ransomware removal:

Instant automatic malware removal: Manual threat removal might be a lengthy and complicated process that requires advanced IT skills. Combo Cleaner is a professional automatic malware removal tool that is recommended to get rid of malware. Download it by clicking the button below:
▼ DOWNLOAD Combo Cleaner By downloading any software listed on this website you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. 7 days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by Rcs Lt, the parent company of PCRisk.com read more.

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

Quick menu:

• What is Monkserenen 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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