'.aesir File Extension' Ransomware

Posted: November 22, 2016

Threat Metric

The Threat Meter is a malware assessment that SpywareRemove.com's research team is able to give every identifiable malware threat. Our Threat Meter includes several criteria based off of specific malware threats to value their severity, reach and volume. The Threat Meter is able to give you a numerical breakdown of each threat's initial Threat Level, Detection Count, Volume Count, Trend Path and Percentage Impact. The overall ranking of each threat in the Threat Meter is a basic breakdown of how all threats are ranked within our own extensive malware database. The scoring for each specific malware threat can be easily compared to other emerging threats to draw a contrast in its particular severity. The Threat Meter is a useful tool in the endeavor of seeking a solution to remove a threat or pursue additional analytical research for all types of computer users.

The following fields listed on the Threat Meter containing a specific value, are explained in detail below:

Threat Level: The threat level scale goes from 1 to 10 where 10 is the highest level of severity and 1 is the lowest level of severity. Each specific level is relative to the threat's consistent assessed behaviors collected from SpyHunter's risk assessment model.

Detection Count: The collective number of confirmed and suspected cases of a particular malware threat. The detection count is calculated from infected PCs retrieved from diagnostic and scan log reports generated by SpyHunter.

Volume Count: Similar to the detection count, the Volume Count is specifically based on the number of confirmed and suspected threats infecting systems on a daily basis. High volume counts usually represent a popular threat but may or may not have infected a large number of systems. High detection count threats could lay dormant and have a low volume count. Criteria for Volume Count is relative to a daily detection count.

Trend Path: The Trend Path, utilizing an up arrow, down arrow or equal symbol, represents the level of recent movement of a particular threat. Up arrows represent an increase, down arrows represent a decline and the equal symbol represent no change to a threat's recent movement.

% Impact (Last 7 Days): This demonstrates a 7-day period change in the frequency of a malware threat infecting PCs. The percentage impact correlates directly to the current Trend Path to determine a rise or decline in the percentage.

Threat Level:	8/10
Infected PCs:	49

First Seen:	November 22, 2016
Last Seen:	August 18, 2020
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

The '.aesir File Extension' Ransomware is a Trojan that damages your files by encrypting them, blocking the content until you decrypt it back to the previous format. Attempted installations for the '.aesir File Extension' Ransomware occur through e-mail attacks utilizing disguised attachments currently. Although your anti-malware programs can't decrypt any lost data, they can delete the '.aesir File Extension' Ransomware or any Trojan droppers that might infect your PC.

Another Tap from the Not-So-Divine on Your Files

For PC users who are careful to avoid visiting hostile sites or use easily-broken passwords, there are few avenues of attack left open for a threat actor. One method equally applicable to both a business entity and a personal computer user is spam e-mails, which can craft a Trojan dropper into looking like a document or important legal notice. It's this last disguise that malware experts can confirm as being at play in the '.aesir File Extension' Ransomware campaign, a new branch of the '.locky File Extension' Ransomware.

The '.aesir File Extension' Ransomware stays within theme earlier pioneered by the '.thor File Extension' Ransomware by using the Norse mythology to theme its extension tag, which it appends to the name of each file it encodes. The '.aesir' string is less meaningful than the '.aesir File Extension' Ransomware's actual encoding process, an encryption-based attack that blocks the content from opening. Although malware analysts ascertain that the '.aesir File Extension' Ransomware does target a limited list of data types, the list includes hundreds of different ones, putting almost any data that isn't a program's executable, or your Windows OS, at risk.

Like most of its kin, the '.aesir File Extension' Ransomware also creates messages asking for money to decode and restore your files. The '.aesir File Extension' Ransomware uses both Web page and BMP image-based ransom notes and a slightly different name format for each, in comparison to other variants of the '.locky File Extension' Ransomware. Malware experts found no other, significant changes between the Trojans, including any new decryption vulnerabilities.

Keeping Your Money out of the Eyes of False Gods

The '.aesir File Extension' Ransomware is not susceptible to current decryption solutions that the public can download and use for free. Since ransom-based transactions for buying decryption assistance often backfire on the victims, malware experts emphasize the viability of backups, instead. Few Trojans possess any features meant for compromising traditional backup services such as the cloud storage, although some may encode any files they can access through a network-mapped drive.

The '.aesir File Extension' Ransomware and the rest of its family often use misleading or semi-random names for their components, particularly the DLL-based installation vehicle. Victims should let their anti-malware programs determine which files are corrupted and quarantine or remove the '.aesir File Extension' Ransomware when appropriate.

Disguises for this campaign theme themselves after Internet Service Provider warnings about spam activity from your computer. While you never should take such statements lightly, malware experts also gently remind any readers that these alerts never are a sufficient justification for opening strange ZIP archives like the ones carrying the '.aesir File Extension' Ransomware.

'.aesir File Extension' Ransomware

Threat Metric

Another Tap from the Not-So-Divine on Your Files

Keeping Your Money out of the Eyes of False Gods

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