Hceem Ransomware - How to remove

Extortion is a horrible way for criminals to profit from people who are only trying to live their life. Unfortunately, extortion is a problem not just in the real world, but online, too. A virus infects your computer, your files are locked up and money is demanded for fixing of the files.

Hceem is an example of a cryptovirus, also known as ransomware. Its name is based on the extension appended to the names of the encrypted files (.hceem). This extension is often, but not always, different for the various ransomware viruses.

flower.jpg -> flower.jpg.hceem

Hceem also drops a ransom note like this one:

RESTORE_HCEEM_DATA.txt

Attention!

Do not rename the ciphered files
Do not try to decrypt your data of the third-party software, it can cause constant data loss
You do not joke with files

To restore your files visit “http://mydatassuperhero.com” website. This website is safe

If this website is not available use reserve website “http://snatch6brk4nfczg.onion” in a TOR network. This website is safe. For visit this website it is necessary to install Tor browser (https://ww.torproject.org)

Your login: [login]
Your password: [password]
Your BTC address: [BTC address]

If all websites are not available write to us on email of [email protected]

Your keep this information in secret

Sometimes the ransomware is iterated upon and new versions with new extensions are distributed, but the ransom note remains the same. There are many other ransomware viruses, for example, DJVU, Matrix, GandCrab, that have many versions that are still coming out and infecting computers.

How to be ready for ransomware?

Create backups of your system, or at least your important files. Always keep the files up-to-date. You never know when your disk might fail, or a ransomware infection locks the files. Store the backups separately from your main computer so that a virus like Hceem cannot touch them.

Don’t pay criminals the ransom. For one, it’s possible for the Hceem developers to not be competent enough to decrypt the files, or they lose access to their email (even their provided websites do not work). Sometimes old cryptoviruses float around the web even when the criminals have long moved on, in which case paying the ransom is entirely pointless.

Don’t open risky files without scanning them first. Be careful of malicious spam emails — most current ransomware infections spread this way. If you get an email from an unknown sender (or even a known sender — some cybercriminals use more sophisticated techniques) with an attachment of a mysterious important document, be careful, scan the file before reading it, definitely do not enable the macros unless you know that the file is trustworthy.

Be careful when using filesharing services. Sometimes viruses are disguised as normal files in an effort to trick people to download them. Check the metadata and scan the file before running it.

How does ransomware lock files?

Encryption works by encoding text into an unrecognisable cipher. Techniques like this are used to protect confidential information, like passwords and banking information. Unfortunately, cybercriminals have found a use for encryption.

A cryptovirus infects a computer and starts a stealthy encryption process. The encrypted files cannot be read to find what they were originally, so the only way to restore them to be readable and useable is to decrypt them. For this, the decryption key is needed. The decryption keys are hidden with the developers and Hceem, and that’s what they are trying to sell you.

The developers of Hceem want to receive their ransoms in Bitcoin, a digital currency. Bitcoin is, unfortunately, (almost) anonymous, the transactions are irreversible, and actions with Bitcoin can be automated, which makes the currency useful for Hceem (and other cryptoviruses). Tor is used by the criminals for its privacy. The Tor network makes it very difficult to trace a user. Tor is legitimate and safe to use, but the developers of Hceem do benefit from this anonymity network.

How to remove Hceem

Scan your computer with Spyhunter, or another antivirus program, and remove the threats. This will not fix the encrypted files, but if you have a backup, you can restore the files from there. If you haven’t saved your files off your computer, Follow the guide at the bottom to try to recover your files.

How to recover Hceem Ransomware encrypted files and remove the virus

Step 1. Restore system into last known good state using system restore

1. Reboot your computer to Safe Mode with Command Prompt:

for Windows 7 / Vista/ XP

• Start → Shutdown → Restart → OK.
• Press F8 key repeatedly until Advanced Boot Options window appears.
• Choose Safe Mode with Command Prompt.

for Windows 8 / 10

• Press Power at Windows login screen. Then press and hold Shift key and click Restart.
• Choose Troubleshoot → Advanced Options → Startup Settings and click Restart.
• When it loads, select Enable Safe Mode with Command Prompt from the list of Startup Settings.

 

2.Restore System files and settings.

• When Command Prompt mode loads, enter cd restore and press Enter.
• Then enter rstrui.exe and press Enter again.
• Click “Next” in the windows that appeared.
• Select one of the Restore Points that are available before Hceem Ransomware has infiltrated to your system and then click “Next”.
• To start System restore click “Yes”.

 

Step 2. Complete removal of Hceem Ransomware

After restoring your system, it is recommended to scan your computer with an anti-malware program, like Spyhunter and remove all malicious files related to Hceem Ransomware. You can check other tools here.  

Step 3. Restore Hceem Ransomware affected files using Shadow Volume Copies

If you do not use System Restore option on your operating system, there is a chance to use shadow copy snapshots. They store copies of your files that point of time when the system restore snapshot was created. Usually Hceem Ransomware tries to delete all possible Shadow Volume Copies, so this methods may not work on all computers. However, it may fail to do so. Shadow Volume Copies are only available with Windows XP Service Pack 2, Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8. There are two ways to retrieve your files via Shadow Volume Copy. You can do it using native Windows Previous Versions or via Shadow Explorer. a) Native Windows Previous Versions Right-click on an encrypted file and select Properties → Previous versions tab. Now you will see all available copies of that particular file and the time when it was stored in a Shadow Volume Copy. Choose the version of the file you want to retrieve and click Copy if you want to save it to some directory of your own, or Restore if you want to replace existing, encrypted file. If you want to see the content of file first, just click Open.

b) Shadow Explorer It is a program that can be found online for free. You can download either a full or a portable version of Shadow Explorer. Open the program. On the left top corner select the drive where the file you are looking for is a stored. You will see all folders on that drive. To retrieve a whole folder, right-click on it and select “Export”. Then choose where you want it to be stored.

Step 4. Use Data Recovery programs to recover Hceem Ransomware encrypted files

There are several data recovery programs that might recover encrypted files as well. This does not work in all cases but you can try this:

• We suggest using another PC and connect the infected hard drive as slave. It is still possible to do this on infected PC though.
• Download a data recovery program.
• Install and scan for recently deleted files.

Note: In many cases it is impossible to restore data files affected by modern ransomware. Thus I recommend using decent cloud backup software as precaution. We recommend checking out Carbonite, BackBlaze, CrashPlan or Mozy Home.