Seto Ransomware is the brand-new addition to the colossal infamous Djvu Ransomware family that is currently targeting a large number of computer users around the world. Alike it’s other siblings; Seto file virus has been developed to extort money from the victims.
Spam e-mails campaign & fraudulent online advertising are considered to be the chief method of propagation of Seto crypto-virus. Once the system is infected, Seto Ransomware searches the system for the targeted files. When found, it encrypts the files with highly-complex Encryption Algorithm; hence it makes the files inaccessible to the user.
A ransom-demanding note suggests victims to pay ransom to the hackers in exchange of the unique private key & Seto decryption tool. The note claims paying the ransom to be the only possible solution to get the encrypted data back.
Please note that these claims are mere tricks to extort money from the victims. Paying ransom does not always yield positive result.
So, how can one decrypt .Seto files? What are the other possible ways of removing .Seto virus Ransomware from system? How can one prevent Seto file virus from infecting the system.
Read on to find answers to these questions-
Name | Seto |
Type | Ransomware |
Category | Malware |
Targeted OS | Windows |
Symptoms | It infiltrates your system with the motive to encrypt stored files. After successful encryption, the virus demands Ransom money to decrypt them. |
Damage | You cannot open a locked file without paying the asked ransom. Additionally, it may increase the malicious payload in your system. |
Removal | Download Removal Tool |
The ever-growing infamous Stop Djvu Ransomware family recently got a new member added to it. This recent strain has been named as Seto Ransomware as it adds .Seto extension to the file names after encrypting them.
Just like its siblings, Seto File Virus spreads its infection via various distribution channels such as spam e-mails, online advertising & unreliable software updater.
It doesn’t require any manual help to get installed on the system. Once installed, it searches the system for targeted file types & extensions. When found, Seto uses strong Encryption Algorithms such as RAS (Rivest–Shamir–Adleman) & AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) to encrypt the files. The encrypted files are instantly made inaccessible to the users & appended with .Seto extension.
A file named image.png might be renamed as “image.png.seto” after encryption.
Some of the files extensions at the target of Seto Ransomware are mentioned below:
Once the files are encrypted, Seto Ransomware drops a ransom-demanding note in every folder that contains .Seto files. The ransom note is a text document named as “_readme.txt”.
This ransom note covers the screen every-time a victims tries to access/open the encrypted file.
The ransom note contains instructions for the victims to get their data decrypted. A unique private key & Seto decrypter is required to restore the data encrypted by the crypto-virus.
The hackers demand a hefty amount of $980 (in Bitcoins) in exchange of the private key & decrypter software. The victims are asked to contact the hackers on gorentos@bitmessage.ch & gorentoshelp@firemail.cc.
The ransom-note promises a discount of 50% on the ransom amount (i.e., $480 in bitcoins) to the victims who contact the hackers within 72 hours of the encryption.
The Text in the Ransom Note Reads as Follows:
In order to gain the trust of the victims & make them believe that decryption is possible, the hackers offer to decrypt one file for absolutely no cost.
The victims are asked to send one file to the hackers on their e-mail address mentioned in the ransom-note. (The file should not contain any confidential/important information of the victim, the note suggests.)
The decrypted file is sent back to the victim as a proof/guarantee of decryption. Victims are then asked to pay the ransom via payment method suggested by the hackers. Hackers promise to send the private key & decryption software after payment has been made.
However, analysis by the cyber-security experts has shown that contacting the hackers & paying the Ransom amount goes in vain in most of the cases. Hackers often avoid responding the victims after the ransom amount has been received.
Therefore, victims of Stop Djvu Ransomware Variants are advised not to contact the hackers, regardless of the amount asked by hackers. Act wisely & do not let the cyber-criminals extort money.
Impacted users may either download Seto decrypter tool or follow manual removal guidelines to get rid of Seto Ransomware.
The cyber-criminals use various strategies for malware distribution which include –
Download Vipre Malware Remover
To restart the system to Safe Mode with Networking, if already switched ON then follow the below steps:
5 Once the system restarts, click on the username and enter the password (if any) to log in.
Once the system starts, ensure to use an account with administrative privilege to access Safe Mode with Command Prompt.
After the user enters admin credentials, Command prompt window is displayed wherein you are entitled to enter the below commands:
OR
OR
Continue to follow steps 4 & 5 of Method 2 to restore the System Files and settings.
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