The ransom note will further state that BBBW ransomware virus has compromised the entire database of the infected computer including documents, videos, pictures and all other data that are potentially very important to the victim. And considering that a complex encryption key was used to accomplish it, the victim therefore has no other choice than to comply by paying the ransom fee. To pave way for that, two emails will be attached, namely support@sysmail.ch and helpsupportmanager@airmail.cc. which the victim would be expected to interface with for further directives. In addition to that, decryption service rates will also be included as well as terms/conditions of payment. They will emphasize that paying as soon as possible attracts certain benefits such as 50% discount if the victim could pay within 72 hours i.e. 3 days of being notified. In other words, instead of paying a ransom fee of $980 they would only have to pay $490. However, once the 3 days elapses, only the maximum fee would be acceptable. If the victim decides to reach out to them via the emails provided, the crooks would clarify that ransom payments can only be made by purchasing cryptocurrency that is equivalent to the ransom fee and transferring same to a wallet address they would make available. The idea behind this is apparently to stay off the radar and remain untraceable. In order to gain the confidence of the victim as per their capability to restore the files once ransom is paid, they sometimes suggest that excerpts of the compromised files be sent across to them for test decryption. Similar to official FBI’s guidelines, our in-house cybersecurity experts equally advice against any form of ransom payment to cybercriminals. The major reasons why victims are advised not to pay ransom is listed below:

Paying ransom does not guarantee file recovery/decryptionPaying ransom makes funds available to cybercriminals thus enabling them to expand their activities and spread more malwareWhen ransom fees are paid to cybercriminals, they would be encouraged to continue in their criminal activities since they would find it profitable.

Furthermore, this virus is notorious for dropping Trojans like AZORULT and VIDAR on the already infected computer. These Trojans can steal vital personal information like banking details, software login details, cryptocurrency wallets, browsing history, saved passwords etc. without the victim being aware. Such sensitive information in the wrong hands can lead to further blackmail and loss of money. For those that are already victims of STOP/DJVU cyber-attack, you’re advised to remove BBBW ransomware virus as soon as possible. This can be done effectively by scanning updated antivirus software while the computer is set up on Safe Mode/Networking to ensure that no trace of the virus would be left. Any good antivirus can be used to do this but always ensure its efficacy has already been established. Our team’s top pick is INTEGO Antivirus because it demonstrates excellent computer malware detection rates and provides real-time protection. Additionally, we suggest downloading RESTORO to identify and repair virus damage inflicted on Windows OS files.

Ransomware Summary

REPAIR VIRUS DAMAGE

Ransomware distribution methods used by cybercriminals

The most common method used by cybercriminals in distributing STOP/DJVU variants such as BBBW virus is through downloading of malicious torrents. In this method, they would infect pirated software copies with malware and they become activated once they are opened by unsuspecting users. Over the years, various types of popular software copies including the so-called “cracks”, key generators and other pirated license activation tools have been deceptively cloned and uploaded to online torrent platforms by cybercriminals. The most frequently clickbait-used software names are listed below:

Internet Download Manager;Adobe Photoshop;Tenorshare 4ukey;AutoCad;Opera browser;Fifa 20;Corel Draw;VMware Workstation;Cubase;Adobe Illustrator;League of Legends;KMSPico (illegal Windows activation tool).

Therefore, users of computer software contents are advised to stay away from online torrent libraries or rogue sites offering “100% working” and “full” paid software versions for free. They may appear attractive on the face value since they are advertised to cost little or nothing relative to the genuine ones. However, downloading such contents will put the user at serious risk of malware infection. Also, such activity is fraudulent and those involved in it could be prosecuted by the original content developers for copyright infringement. Instead of partaking in such risky activities, we recommend that users should always source for their software needs from official platforms or third party agents endorsed by the original content developers. Remember that whatever amount you will be asked to pay to obtain it legitimately can never be compared to the insane ransom fees cybercriminals slam on their victims. Also, you won’t be putting your personal sensitive data at risk. Other methods of distributing ransomware include malicious email attachments whereby cybercriminals would create highly convincing emails and attach documents formatted on DOCX, PDF or XLS. They usually make use of these particular three because they allow JavaScript and other macro functions that enable the attachment of payload. The worrisome part is that trying to decipher which email is genuine or not has become increasingly difficult in recent times. The cybercriminals now mirror their malware carrying email to appear just like random genuine ones. They also use official names like Invoice, Order Summary or Tracking Details among others. Sometimes, they may decide to hide their identity by using email spoofing techniques to disguise the sender’s address. Therefore, caution is advised when opening emails especially when such email is suspicious. For those that have fallen victim already to STOP/DJVU ransomware, it will be in your best interest to avoid dubious websites that claim to offer decryption services because they’re scam since such do not exist at the moment. Do not throw caution to the wind with the mindset that the worst has been done already because other ransomware versions like ZORAB can still be spread through such fake STOP/DJVU decryptors.

More information about the virus

This section comes in handy for victims that may be wondering about the extent of damage that was inflicted on their computer system following BBBW ransomware attack. It discusses about the technical aspect of the ransomware. The first thing it does is to establish build.exe or build2.exe executables as well as winupdate.exe. Afterwards, it makes connection with https[:]//api.2ip.ua/geo.json before saving the outcome in geo.json file. At this point, the malware would commence the process of extracting details concerning the computer such as its geolocation, latitude and longitude, zip code, time zone into geo.json file. It also saves various hardware and software details into information.txt file. These pieces of information would eventually be sent to the central database. Shown in the screenshot below is how a typical geo.json file looks like. See an example of information.txt file created by the virus below. The virus then profiles the geolocation of computer against their list of encryption-exempted countries that include Ukraine, Russia, Kazachstan, Syria, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia and Belarus. If the shows positive to any of the listed countries, it will instantly abort its mission but if otherwise, it will proceed by extracting online encryption key domiciled in their server. It will attach same to the victim’s ID before saving them in the bowsakkdestx.txt file and to the PersonalID.txt file. You can see examples of these files shown below. In cases whereby the malware couldn’t extract an online ID, it will resort to the use of offline encryption ID. The difference between the two is that offline ID is uniform for all victims of the same variant while online ID is unique for each victim. The implication is that offline ID enhances the possibility to decrypt .bbbw files in the future. For more information, check this guide on possibilities of STOP/DJVU affected data decryption. When it gets to this point, the ransomware then proceeds to the data encryption process by scanning every folder and encrypting them with Salsa20 before using the RSA-2048 key to secure the encryption. While this is taking place, the virus will also mark each file with more extensions. Shown here is a screenshot of _readme.txt ransom note the virus drops in all the folders. Afterward, the virus will delete the Volume Shadow Copies by leveraging the Command Prompt task as shown here: vssadmin.exe Delete Shadows /All /Quiet Lastly, the virus would blacklist certain domains by adding them to the Windows HOSTS file by mapping them to a local host IP. This function will effectively prevent the victim from having access to any of the blacklisted websites. The DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN error message may appear whenever they try to log in. The idea behind this is to prevent the victim from getting any form of help online.At this point, the virus would drop more malware on the already compromised computer such as VIDAR Trojan.

Remove BBBW Ransomware Virus and Recover Your Files

For victims who unfortunately had their files encrypted by this malware variant, you’re advised to inform the appropriate authorities about the incident while you equally remove BBBW ransomware virus ASAP. You can make use of the detailed steps provided below as a guide. When removing the virus, it is recommended to boot your computer set through Safe Mode with Networking because it will hibernate certain functions and enable the antivirus to work perfectly. However, use of genuine and reputable antivirus is strongly advised, for instance, INTEGO Antivirus. Additionally, you may want to download RESTORO to repair Windows OS files damaged by computer malware. Steps to follow after complete BBBW ransomware virus removal as recommended by our experts:

It is very important to get in touch with relevant law enforcement agencies within your area and inform them about the cyber-attack.Make use of your backup device to restore your lost files but always ensure that the malware is totally removed before plugging any external device to your computer.Change all passwords that were used on the compromised computer without delay.Learn possible ways through which files infected with STOP/DJVU variants can be decrypted.

Nevertheless, computer users can’t afford to be careless with their activities and therefore should avoid all the risk factors outlined in this article. It is always better to prevent a ransomware attack than trying to manage the fallout. OUR GEEKS RECOMMEND Our team recommends a two-step rescue plan to remove ransomware and other remaining malware from your computer, plus repair caused virus damage to the system: GeeksAdvice.com editors select recommended products based on their effectiveness. We may earn a commission from affiliate links, at no additional cost to you. Learn more. Get INTEGO ANTIVIRUS for Windows to remove ransomware, Trojans, adware and other spyware and malware variants and protect your PC and network drives 24/7. This VB100-certified security software uses state-of-art technology to provide protection against ransomware, Zero-Day attacks and advanced threats, Intego Web Shield blocks dangerous websites, phishing attacks, malicious downloads and installation of potentially unwanted programs. Use INTEGO Antivirus to remove detected threats from your computer. Read full review here. RESTORO provides a free scan that helps to identify hardware, security and stability issues and presents a comprehensive report which can help you to locate and fix detected issues manually. It is a great PC repair software to use after you remove malware with professional antivirus. The full version of software will fix detected issues and repair virus damage caused to your Windows OS files automatically. RESTORO uses AVIRA scanning engine to detect existing spyware and malware. If any are found, the software will eliminate them. Read full review here.

Method 1. Enter Safe Mode with Networking

Before you try to remove BBBW Ransomware Virus virus, you must start your computer in Safe Mode with Networking. Below, we provide the easiest ways to boot PC in the said mode, but you can find additional ones in this in-depth tutorial on our website – How to Start Windows in Safe Mode. Also, if you prefer a video version of the tutorial, check our guide How to Start Windows in Safe Mode on Youtube. Instructions for Windows XP/Vista/7 users Instructions for Windows 8/8.1/10/11 users Now, you can search for and remove BBBW Ransomware Virus files. It is very hard to identify files and registry keys that belong to the ransomware virus, Besides, malware creators tend to rename and change them repeatedly. Therefore, the easiest way to uninstall such type of a computer virus is to use a reliable security program such as INTEGO Antivirus. For virus damage repair, consider using RESTORO.

Method 2. Use System Restore

In order to use System Restore, you must have a system restore point, created either manually or automatically. Instructions for Windows XP/Vista/7 users Instructions for Windows 8/8.1/10/11 users After restoring the system, we recommend scanning the system with antivirus or anti-malware software. In most cases, there won’t be any malware remains, but it never hurts to double-check. In addition, we highly recommend checking ransomware prevention guidelines provided by our experts in order to protect your PC against similar viruses in the future.

Alternative software recommendations

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Removing spyware and malware is one step towards cybersecurity. To protect yourself against ever-evolving threats, we strongly recommend purchasing a Premium version of Malwarebytes Anti-Malware, which provides security based on artificial intelligence and machine learning. Includes ransomware protection. See pricing options and protect yourself now.

System Mechanic Ultimate Defense If you’re looking for an all-in-one system maintenance suite that has 7 core components providing powerful real-time protection, on-demand malware removal, system optimization, data recovery, password manager, online privacy protection and secure driver wiping technology. Therefore, due to its wide-range of capabilities, System Mechanic Ultimate Defense deserves Geek’s Advice approval. Get it now for 50% off. You may also be interested in its full review.

Disclaimer. This site includes affiliate links. We may earn a small commission by recommending certain products, at no additional cost for you. We only choose quality software and services to recommend.

Decrypt BBBW files

Fix and open large BBBW files easily:

It is reported that STOP/DJVU ransomware versions encrypt only the beginning 150 KB of each file to ensure that the virus manages to affect all files on the system. In some cases, the malicious program might skip some files at all. That said, we recommend testing this method on several big (>1GB) files first.

STOP/DJVU decryption tool usage guide

STOP/DJVU ransomware versions are grouped into old and new variants. BBBW Ransomware Virus is considered the new STOP/DJVU variant, just like BPTO, ISWR, ISZA, BPSM, ZOUU, MBTF, ZNSM (find full list here). This means full data decryption is now possible only if you have been affected by offline encryption key. To decrypt your files, you will have to download Emsisoft Decryptor for STOP DJVU, a tool created and maintained by a genius security researcher Michael Gillespie. Note! Please do not spam the security researcher with questions whether he can recover your files encrypted with online key - it is not possible. In order to test the tool and see if it can decrypt BBBW files, follow the given tutorial.

Meanings of decryptor’s messages

The BBBW decryption tool might display several different messages after failed attempt to restore your files. You might receive one of the following messages: Error: Unable to decrypt file with ID: [example ID] This message typically means that there is no corresponding decryption key in the decryptor’s database. No key for New Variant online ID: [example ID]Notice: this ID appears to be an online ID, decryption is impossible This message informs that your files were encrypted with online key, meaning no one else has the same encryption/decryption key pair, therefore data recovery without paying the criminals is impossible. Result: No key for new variant offline ID: [example ID]This ID appears to be an offline ID. Decryption may be possible in the future. If you were informed that an offline key was used, but files could not be restored, it means that the offline decryption key isn’t available yet. However, receiving this message is extremely good news, meaning that it might be possible to restore your BBBW extension files in the future. It can take a few months until the decryption key gets found and uploaded to the decryptor. We recommend you to follow updates regarding the decryptable DJVU versions here. We strongly recommend backing up your encrypted data and waiting.

Victims of BBBW Ransomware Virus should report the Internet crime incident to the official government fraud and scam website according to their country:

In the United States, go to the On Guard Online website.In Australia, go to the SCAMwatch website.In Germany, go to the Bundesamt für Sicherheit in der Informationstechnik website.In Ireland, go to the An Garda Síochána website.In New Zealand, go to the Consumer Affairs Scams website.In the United Kingdom, go to the Action Fraud website.In Canada, go to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.In India, go to Indian National Cybercrime Reporting Portal.In France, go to the Agence nationale de la sécurité des systèmes d’information.

If you can’t find an authority corresponding to your location on this list, we recommend using any search engine to look up “[your country name] report cyber crime”. This should lead you to the right authority website. We also recommend staying away from third-party crime report services that are often paid. It costs nothing to report Internet crime to official authorities. Another recommendation is to contact your country’s or region’s federal police or communications authority.