LOTEP ransomware - How to remove

The newly-discovered Lotep virus is file-encrypting ransomware, and those hit by it wish to remove it and restore their files. While the latter may be impossible, that depends on each victim’s circumstances. The criminals responsible for Lotep demand a sum of money for fixing the files they broke, but they should not be listened to. The dangers of Lotep are a little deeper than just locked files.

ATTENTION!

Don’t worry, you can return all your files!

That’s how the ransom note to Lotep starts. It’s no different from the ransom notes of other STOP/DJVU viruses: Roland, Drume, Djvu. It also introduces the ransom size ($980 and $490 depending on how hastily you write to them, creating urgency and discouraging calm contemplation of the situation) and the e-mail addresses of Lotep’s criminals ([email protected], [email protected], and @datarestore on Telegram).

Moreover, your antivirus has probably been declawed by Lotep and can’t remove the virus, otherwise you probably wouldn’t be having this problem — antivirus tools seem to have no problem recognizing Lotep as malicious. Unfortunately, downloading a new antivirus tool has been made difficult for you — Lotep can alter your hosts file to stop you from going to cybersecurity websites.

The good news is that file-encrypting ransomware does not directly threaten to expose your files — they don’t have your data.

What’s the solution to Lotep?

The cyber extortionists should not be paid for decryption, because:

• It’s expensive.
• It finances criminal activities.
• The payment is irreversible.
• There’s a significant chance that you won’t get your files back anyway.
• Paying does not remove the virus, which runs repeatedly.
• Each encryption uses a new key, so one decryption key is useless for every other case.
• Your financial activities on the infected computer might be tracked.

That last one is a result of some members of the STOP/DJVU family often are distributed together with Azorult. That infection can steal passwords, so it’s really not advised to use the infected computer for anything important until you’ve cleaned it.

How did Lotep get on your computer?

Most likely, pirated or free software. A lot of the current STOP/DJVU victims downloaded a software crack (a little program that’s supposed to get around a commercial program’s copy protection) right before their computer was infected with ransomware. Piracy has always been risky for cybersecurity — Lotep is not the first or last virus to use it for distribution. Just remember to always scan the files that you download and do not dismiss the warnings that your antivirus gives you without first reading them.

Another way for Lotep to spread is freeware bundles. These are bursting with malware, but most of it is much milder than Lotep: scams, adware, toolbars. Be careful when downloading free software — if the monetization isn’t clear to you, that’s a reason to be suspicious. Lotep’s developers can just pay someone to include their virus in a bundle.

Lotep can also be installed through free software. Viruses sometimes are released after being disguised as a wanted, well-known program. It is incredibly easy to be caught by such a trick, especially when we’re a little distracted.

How does ransomware encryption work?

Lotep targets files that aren’t essential for the operating system to function. Then it locks the files by encrypting them.

Ordinarily, encryption is used for hiding secret information in such a way that if someone were to intercept a message, while it’s encrypted, it’s impossible to decipher the meaning. This is great for anonymous communication and for protecting our private data, and you can even encrypt your own files with a password to hide them from other people.

Since the inception of ransomware in 1989, when the first file-locking virus arrived on a floppy in the mail, cyber extortionists (including Lotep’s developers) are continuing the tradition of using encryption to hide people’s own files from them.

The files are turned to unreadable cipher using symmetric encryption. If the encryption was symmetric, the Lotep files should be decryptable. To avoid this, the criminals use public-key encryption on the symmetric key (in case of Lotep, online communication is required for a truly unique key to be used). So, as a victim of Lotep, you are stuck with broken files and an unusable decryption key. Lotep’s developers are eager to sell you your decrypted files back, but there other solutions.

How to remove LOTEP

Back up your encrypted files if you want to. Then scan your computer using an antivirus program, such as Spyhunter. You might need to do this in safe mode, as a lot of people have a problem getting antivirus programs to even work on their Lotep-infected machine.

Now, if you had backups, you can repopulate your Lotep-free computer with your files without the fear that they’ll be re-encrypted.

If you still have some lost files, check out STOPDecrypter at some point. This wonderful program, developed by @demonslay335, can decrypt some files that were encrypted with an offline key. As far as I know, it does not yet support Lotep, though.

Review your activities and see if you can make changes to your habits to reduce your exposure to viruses like Lotep. Of course, that won’t always work, so a safely kept backup of your files should absolutely be set up. With proper backups, you become invulnerable against ransomware.

Automatic Malware removal tools

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

 

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

Step 3. Restore LOTEP 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 LOTEP 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 LOTEP 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.