Remove YaKo Virus (.YaKo Files Ransomware) – Xorist Ransomware

YaKo – General Info

The YaKo mean a ransomware-type infection. The virus comes from the Xorist ransomware family. YaKo was elaborated particularly to encrypt all major file types. When the file is encrypted people are not able to use them. YaKo adds the “.YaKo” extension for each file encrypted by it. For example, the file “myphoto.jpg“, once encrypted by YaKo, will be renamed into “myphoto.jpg.YaKo“. As soon as the encryption is completed, YaKo places a special text file into every folder containing the encrypted data.

The message given by YaKo text file requesting the ransom is definitely the like the statements given by other ransomware representatives coming from the Xorist clan. It literally discusses that the info is encrypted and that the only way to restore it is to use a an unique decryption key. Unfortunately, this is definitely true. The type of cryptography mechanism applied by YaKo is still not appropriately examined. Still, it is definitely particular that each victim may be given the specific decryption key, which is totally distinct. It is impossible to restore the files without the key available.

Another technique of YaKo is that the victims cannot access to the key. The key is stored on a particular server run by the frauds related to YaKo ransomware. To get the key and recover the important information people need to pay the ransom.

Nevertheless, regardless of the asked for amount, people must stay away from paying the ransom virus. Cyber frauds are unfair, so they tend to completely disregard what their victims feel about the issue, even when the payment reaches their pockets. This is why paying the ransom generally does not give any positive outcome and people just lose their money for absolutely nothing.

We highly encourage that you do not contact these crooks and certainly do not transfer money into their accounts. It is said to admit that there are no utilities able to crack YaKo ransomware and to recover the information data free of charge. Thus, the only best decision is to recover the lost information from the available backup.

Virus Summary

Name	YaKo Ransomware
File Extension	.YaKo
Type	Ransomware
Family	Xorist
Short Description	The ransomware encrypts all the data stored on your system and requires a ransom to be paid on your part supposedly to recover your important files.
Symptoms	File encryption by the ransomware is performed by means of the AES and RSA encryption algorithms. Once the encryption is completed, the ransomware adds its special YaKo extension to all the files modified by it.
Distribution Method	Spam Emails, Email Attachments
Similar Infections	Zacapa, Vanole, Dungeon
Removal Tool	GridinSoft Anti-Malware

Bear in mind that the internet is now overwhelmed with threats that look comparable to YaKo ransomware. It is similar Zacapa and many other ransomware-type threats. Destructive programs of such kind are generally elaborated to encrypt important data and to set forth the demand prior to the user to pay the ransom. The peculiarity of all such ransomware threats is that all apply a similar algorithm to generate the special decryption key for information decryption.

Hence, as long as the ransomware is still being developed or has some hidden bugs, manually recovering the information is just not feasible. The only way to avoid the loss of your important information is to routinely create backups of your important information.

Keep in mind that even if you create such backups, they must be placed into a special storage utility not connect to your main PC. You may use the USB Memory Stick or external hard disk drive for this purpose, or refer to the help of the cloud storage. If you store your backup files on your common system they may be encrypted along with other files, so it’s certainly not a good storage place.

How did ransomware infect my system?

There are several methods used by online frauds to distribute YaKo ransom virus. Although it is uncertain how precisely YaKo injects your computer, there are some leaks through which it may infiltrate the system:

• integration with third-party apps, especially freeware;
• spam e-mails from unknown senders;
• sites rendering free hosting services;
• pirated peer-to-peer (P2P) downloads.

Frequently YaKo virus may be presented as some legitimate software, for instance, in the pop-ups advising users to carry out some essential software updates. This is the typical trick used by online frauds to persuade people into downloading and installing YaKo infection manually, by methods of their direct participation in the installation process.

Additionally, the criminals may refer to numerous e-mail spam tactics to inject harmful codes into PC. So, they may describe to sending unsolicited spam emails with tricky notifications promoting users to download the attachments or click on certain download links, for example, the ones encouraging users to open some video, files, tax reports or invoices.

Needless to mention, opening such files or clicking on such dangerous links may seriously harm the PC. Fictitious Adobe Flash Player upgrade informs may result in YaKo virus injection. When it comes to the cracked software, these illegally downloaded programs may also contain malicious codes resulting in YaKo secret installation. Finally, injection of YaKo may happen by ways of Trojans that privately get injected into the system and set up malicious utilities without the user’s permission.

Is there any way to prevent the injection of YaKo ransomware?

Despite the fact that there is no 100% guarantee to prevent your computer from getting infected, there are some pieces of guidance we wish to show with you. First off, be really cautious when you surf the web and especially while downloading totally free programs. Stay away from opening suspicious email attachments, especially when the sender of the email is not familiar to you.

Bear in mind that some freeware installers may consist of other unwanted utilities in the bundle, so they may be harmful. Ensure that your current antivirus and your entire operating system is always appropriately updated.

Obviously, downloading pirated software is unlawful and may result in essential damage to be made for your PC. Hence, stay away from downloading cracked software. You are also strongly recommended to reconsider your existing security software and potentially switch to another security solution that can render far better services of defending your Windows.

Below please find the quotation from the YaKo text file:

In your attention!!!

Hello, your server is very vulnerable, that\'s why you became a victim of ransomware
All your files are currently encrypted
However, there is also good news, the files can be decrypted if you pay 0.1 bitcoin.
All you have to do is follow the steps below.

Buy 0.1 bitcoin, you can easily buy bitcoin from this sites:
www.localbitcoins.com
www.paxful.com

Send the amount to this wallet: 1LTG4TiX9NyLSzyXQPFm6ANGRRAZH7D45R
After submitting, contact me at this email address: yakomoko@protonmail.com
With this subject: YAKOMOKO-391029301

Immediately after this you will receive an email with the keys and a small tutorial for decrypting the files.

Here\'s another list of where to buy bitcoin:
hxxps://bitcoin.org/en/exchanges

Screenshot of files with “.YaKo” extension added by the ransomware:

Use GridinSoft Anti-Malware to remove YaKo ransomware from your computer

1.Download GridinSoft Anti-Malware.

You can download GridinSoft Anti-Malware by clicking the button below:

  GridinSoft Anti-Malware

2. Double-click on the setup file.

When setup file has finished downloading, double-click on the setup-antimalware-ag.exe file to install GridinSoft Anti-Malware on your computer.

An User Account Control asking you about to allow GridinSoft Anti-Malware to make changes to your device. So, you should click “Yes” to continue with the installation.

3. Press Install button for run GridinSoft Anti-Malware.

3.Once installed, GridinSoft Anti-Malware will automatically run.

4. Wait for the GridinSoft Anti-Malware scan to complete.

GridinSoft Anti-Malware will automatically start scanning your computer for Win Speedup 2018 and other malicious programs. This process can take a 20-30 minutes, so we suggest you periodically check on the status of the scan process.

5. Click on “Clean Now”.

When the scan has completed, you will see the list of infections that GridinSoft Anti-Malware has detected. To remove them click on the “Clean Now” button in right corner.