Damage Ransomware

The Damage Ransomware is a ransomware Trojan that is used to force victims to pay a large ransomware. Like other encryption ransomware Trojans, the Damage Ransomware works by encrypting its victims' files and then demanding the payment of a ransom. Ransomware Trojans like the Damage Ransomware have become common in the last years increasingly, making it basic for computer users to take steps to protect their machines from these attacks.

The Damage Ransomware Damages Your Files and Makes Them Unreadable

Encryption ransomware Trojans like the Damage Ransomware have become quite common since 2015. The Damage Ransomware was first observed on February 22, 2017. The Damage Ransomware receives its name because it adds the file extension '.damage' to the end of each file that it encrypts. The Damage Ransomware was created as a standalone threat and is not part of another family of ransomware Trojans. The initial version of the Damage Ransomware was designed to target English-speakers and is distributed using corrupted files that use macro exploits to execute a compromised code on the victims' computers. The Damage Ransomware may be distributed using corrupted PDF and DOC files, which abuse this vulnerability in macros. Computer users are advised to refrain from enabling macros on their applications since it allows these corrupted documents from executing corrupted code and installing the Damage Ransomware on the victim's computer. Computer users, in general, should learn how to spot these tactics, since con artists may use legitimate corporate logos or spoofed email addresses to trick them into opening the corrupted file attachment containing the Damage Ransomware or other encryption ransomware Trojan.

How the Damage Ransomware may Infect a Computer

PC security researchers strongly advise computer users to learn how to spot and recognize threats like the Damage Ransomware. It is likely that the Damage Ransomware will cause damage to the victim's files, making them unrecoverable without the decryption key. Unfortunately, the Damage Ransomware uses a strong AES and RSA encryption to make the victim's files completely inaccessible. Because of this, once the files have been infected with the Damage Ransomware, they will no longer work properly. The Damage Ransomware will target common file types associated with spreadsheets, databases, images, and numerous other types of documents and file types. The Damage Ransomware also can target file types seen in Web servers commonly, making it especially threatening because of the potential of the targets it could infect.

The files that have been encrypted by the Damage Ransomware will have the extension '.damage' included to the end of their file names, making it very simple to know which files have been compromised during the Damage Ransomware attack. The Damage Ransomware delivers its ransom note in the form of a text document dropped on the victim's Desktop, named 'damage@india.com[PC_NAME].txt,' after the attack has been carried out. The ransom note alerts the victim of the attack and contains information on how to pay the Damage Ransomware ransom. It is not advisable to pay the Damage Ransomware ransom. It is very unlikely that the people responsible for the Damage Ransomware attack will keep their promise and deliver a decryption key after payment. They are just as likely to trick the victim, ignoring the payment, or asking for even more money.

Dealing with a Damage Ransomware Infection

If the Damage Ransomware has infected your computer, it will be nearly impossible to recover the files without the decryption key. Because of this, the best protection against encryption ransomware Trojans like the Damage Ransomware is to have file backups on the cloud or an external memory device. Having backups of all files is the best protection because the people carrying out these attacks lose any leverage they may have to demand a ransom if the victim can recover the files from the backup copy quickly.