Litra Ransomware - How to remove

Looks like a new virus is attempting to extort people of their money — Litra ransomware. Litra can be recognized by the “.litra” extension appended to each encrypted file, as well as a pop-up window that announces “All of your personal files including documents, pictures, texts and other sensitive data are encrypted.”.

Litra lands on your PC, runs through your files, encrypts the files, and displays a ransom note to the victim, written in the form of questions and answers.

All of your personal files including documents, pictures, texts and other sensitive data are encrypted.

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS TO THEM
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* Can I get my files back?
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– Yes, you can get your files back by following these simple steps :
>REGISTER A NEW ADRESS AT : www.protonmail.com
>CONTACT : [email protected]

* How much money do I need?
======================
– The prices are somewhere between 100-350USD/EUR based on the sensitivity of your data.

* What if I don’t want to pay?
====================
– You’ll be left helpless. There is no way to decrypt your files without us, because the encryption key is not static (generated randomly).

* How much time do I have?
====================
– We are kind, so you have your entire lifetime to contact us.

Rules
We are not the people you really want to annoy. We will most probably block you, if you even try to “troll” us around. The key to get your files back are simple : > have patience… there is no better answer.

Discovered by S!Ri, Litra seems to be new and definitely targeted at individuals rather than businesses. I say that because the ransom demanded by the extortionists is quite low — “only” 100-350USD/EUR. Most ransomware out there asks for more, and the viruses targeted at businesses ask for a lot more — thousands and tens of thousands.

The e-mail address used by the extortionists is [email protected] — exactly the same as the one used for Dodger ransomware just a few weeks ago. I don’t know whether these are the same people, though.

How Litra infected your computer

Litra is still new, so there aren’t many stories from the victims (and, hopefully, Litra fails and there won’t be any victims). We can confidently guess how Litra could find its way to people’s computers.

There are some common ways that ransomware spreads:

• Remote Desktop Protocol.
• Pirated files and software bundles.
• Infected files spread through phishing.

Hacked Remote Desktop Protocol — this mostly applies to targeted attacks, usually businesses. A criminal connects to a computer remotely and installs malware.

Pirated files, software cracks, and freeware are responsible for spreading some ransomware infections. The victim thinks that they’re installing a specific program, but they’re actually running a virus — similarly to how the Aurora Cheat tool was distributing a remote access trojan. Malicious ads and fake updates could also work the same way.

Litra could come in an e-mail attachment or link, or be hosted available for download on DropBox (like Petya was) or some other website. The victim thinks they’re opening a file, but they’re running a virus, instead.

Can the files be restored?

Contacting the extortionists should be the last thing you do. There are a few other possible (but not certain) solutions.

It’s possible that a free decryptor is developed in the future. It’s been hinted that Litra is decryptable. Though it’s unlikely, it is possible: some very serious ransomware has had decryptors developed, such as GandCrab. So, check nomoreransom.org and the news about Litra from time to time.

It’s also possible that Litra does not properly encrypt local backups, in which case, you might have some success restoring files from Shadow Volume Copies.

Finally, if your files weren’t very important, or if you are able to restore them from some other source, such as redownload them, consider if you really need the encrypted files. Some online criminals mark the people who were willing and able to pay, and then target them later for other scams and extortion, which means that paying actually puts you at an increased risk of infections in the future.

If you do decide to pay the ransom, make sure to scan your computer afterward, too. It’s very common for ransomware to install other viruses, such as banking trojans that watch your activities that are connected to online banking. And don’t pay if you’re not willing to lose the money for nothing in return. Online extortionists aren’t known for being fair and honest.

The main defense against ransomware attacks is backups. Up-to-date, disconnected, complete backups of your files. Modern ransomware usually encrypts backups if they’re stored on the infected machine, but if you have backups or copies of your files stored somewhere separate, like a disconnected drive, or the cloud, you should be fine.

How to remove Litra

Luckily, the virus is detected by antivirus programs, as seen on this page. Scan your computer, Spyhunter should do the job.

After your computer is free of viruses, you can start using it normally again. Of course, improved security is important to avoid future problems (such as updated software, especially the operating system), but there is no way to guarantee that no virus will get on your computer. So backup your data and be calm knowing that your files are safe.

If you didn’t have backups when Litra hit you, check the guide below and try out the file recovery options.

Automatic Malware removal tools

How to recover Litra 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 Litra Ransomware has infiltrated to your system and then click “Next”.
• To start System restore click “Yes”.

 

Step 2. Complete removal of Litra 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 Litra Ransomware. You can check other tools here.  

Step 3. Restore Litra 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 Litra 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 Litra 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.