Dharma Ransomware

Dharma Ransomware Description

The Dharma Ransomware is an encryption ransomware Trojan that is being used to extort computer users. There have been numerous computers around the world that have been infected by the Dharma Ransomware. The Dharma Ransomware seems to target only the directories inside the Users directory on Windows, with encrypted files receiving the suffix [bitcoin143@india.com].dharma added to the end of each file name. Variants of the Dharma Ransomware will sometimes not have a ransom note. The Dharma Ransomware does not stop the affected computer from working properly, but every time a file is added to the targeted directories, it will be encrypted unless the Dharma Ransomware infection is removed.

The Dharma Ransomware may Change It's Name

Some computer users have reported that the file being used to deliver the Dharma Ransomware also may be named 'skanda.exe,' although this depends on the variant being used in the attack. Once the Dharma Ransomware has encrypted a file, it will no longer be readable by the victim's applications until it is decrypted. Unfortunately, to decrypt the files that have been affected by the Dharma Ransomware, it is necessary to have the decryption key, which the people responsible for the Dharma Ransomware will hold until the victim pays a ransom. A different variant of the Dharma Ransomware is contained in a folder named 'opFirlma,' which contained the application 'plinck.exe.' It is highly likely that these are randomly generated. Some variants of the Dharma Ransomware will include a ransom note contained in a text file named 'README.txt,' which will deliver the following message:

'ATTENTION!
At the moment, your system is not protected.
We can fix it and restore files.
To restore the system write to this address:
bitcoin143@india.com'

How the Dharma Ransomware Infection Works

PC security analysts suspect that the Dharma Ransomware is one of the many variants of the infamous Crysis Ransomware family, which was responsible for numerous attacks since Summer of 2016. The Dharma Ransomware and its variants seem to be distributed using corrupted email attachments that will often exploit vulnerabilities in macros on the victim's computer. It is possible that the Dharma Ransomware is still under development since some samples of the Dharma Ransomware appear to be incomplete, often not containing ransom notes or other basic functions of these attacks. The Dharma Ransomware infection is fairly typical of these encryption ransomware attacks. The Dharma Ransomware uses the AES-256 encryption to take over the victim's data, preventing computer users from accessing their files. The Dharma Ransomware attacks will target the following directories:

  • %UserProfile%\Desktop
  • %UserProfile%\Downloads
  • %UserProfile%\Documents
  • %UserProfile%\Pictures
  • %UserProfile%\Music
  • %UserProfile%\Videos

Dealing with the Dharma Ransomware

PC security analysts strongly advise computer users against paying the Dharma Ransomware ransom. It is very unlikely that the people responsible for the Dharma Ransomware will provide the means to decrypt the infected files, especially in the case of the Dharma Ransomware, where it is clearly still under development. In fact, it is equally likely that the people responsible for the Dharma Ransomware attack will simply ask the victim to pay more money or simply ignore the victim's requests.

As with most encryption ransomware Trojans, the best solution to the attack is to take steps to establish a good backup system. This way, computer users can recover from a Dharma Ransomware attack by restoring their files from the backup copy, with no need to pay the ransom. In fact, if having file backups becomes a regular, widespread practice, attacks like the Dharma Ransomware will likely cease to exist, since the people responsible for these threats will no longer have any way to force computer users into paying the ransom to regain access to their own files. Malware analysts also advise computer users to take care when handling emails, since the Dharma Ransomware may spread through corrupted email attachments.

Do You Suspect Your PC May Be Infected with Dharma Ransomware & Other Threats? Scan Your PC with SpyHunter

SpyHunter is a powerful malware remediation and protection tool designed to help provide PC users with in-depth system security analysis, detection and removal of a wide range of threats like Dharma Ransomware as well as a one-on-one tech support service. Download SpyHunter's FREE Malware Remover
Note: SpyHunter's scanner is only for malware detection. If SpyHunter detects malware on your PC, you will need to purchase SpyHunter's malware removal tool to remove the malware threats. Read more on SpyHunter. Free Remover allows you to run a one-off scan and receive, subject to a 48-hour waiting period, one remediation and removal. Free Remover subject to promotional details and Special Promotion Terms. To understand our policies, please also review our EULA, Privacy Policy and Threat Assessment Criteria. If you no longer wish to have SpyHunter installed on your computer, follow these steps to uninstall SpyHunter.

Security Doesn't Let You Download SpyHunter or Access the Internet?

Solutions: Your computer may have malware hiding in memory that prevents any program, including SpyHunter, from executing on your computer. Follow to download SpyHunter and gain access to the Internet:
  • Use an alternative browser. Malware may disable your browser. If you're using IE, for example, and having problems downloading SpyHunter, you should open Firefox, Chrome or Safari browser instead.
  • Use a removable media. Download SpyHunter on another clean computer, burn it to a USB flash drive, DVD/CD, or any preferred removable media, then install it on your infected computer and run SpyHunter's malware scanner.
  • Start Windows in Safe Mode. If you can not access your Window's desktop, reboot your computer in "Safe Mode with Networking" and install SpyHunter in Safe Mode.
  • IE Users: Disable proxy server for Internet Explorer to browse the web with Internet Explorer or update your anti-spyware program. Malware modifies your Windows settings to use a proxy server to prevent you from browsing the web with IE.
If you still can't install SpyHunter? View other possible causes of installation issues.

Technical Information

File System Details

Dharma Ransomware creates the following file(s):
# File Name Size MD5 Detection Count
1 %APPDATA%Info.hta 13,635 44d93d15807455a527283c6fedf65762 556
2 %SystemDrive%\Users\balcao7\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\setup.exe 140,288 2d138fc8252563e50b8d6c6cfb7d6989 392
3 %ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\Information.hta 13,637 d0f94ea59e72e62ea6e6f058a5bba1a7 301
4 %ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\MRLK.exe 90,112 20a218209aeeb09a1c26a68794685a71 88
5 %ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\Inf.hta 13,641 1bf867566ccfc201dcf9688a9a21d80b 46
6 %WINDIR%\System32\pld.exe 90,112 f583191dd74da9fde815e79f7a1c1fed 40
7 %APPDATA%11.exe 226,304 ec443b1bc3affdf0565719a7385ac6d7 37
8 %SystemDrive%\Users\batalhruser3\AppData\Roaming\Payload28.exe 353,039 36e72dea18a1b5a490190bb56c67c710 36
9 %SystemDrive%\Users\HRD\AppData\Roaming\setap211.exe 340,820 68df2ef104a88857b38c7d64b94f11c9 35
10 %WINDIR%\System32\setup1.exe 214,045 c4c74767ddd35728f381b6ae64de107b 34
11 %SystemDrive%\Users\state\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\1stk.exe 339,381 c376698b83bd3f54b43e4caeb316ae38 24
12 %WINDIR%\System32\inter2811_bandugan_1.exe 332,800 703c42e5456731444cf68cc27fdfbe96 24
13 %SystemDrive%\Users\george\AppData\Roaming\setap1.exe 311,808 f6069500044e436e6c641d4c99e916dd 24
14 %APPDATA%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\payload_175ZZZ (1).exe 140,288 9982f1221273a0cafb421ebc200ebd43 23
15 %SystemDrive%\Users\amit\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\explorer.exe 224,308 674bfb3719ce1b9d30dd906c20251090 20
More files

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By GoldSparrow in Ransomware
Translate To: Português
Threat Scorecard
?
The ESL Threat Scorecard is an assessment report that is given to every malware threat that has been collected and analyzed through our Malware Research Center. The ESL Threat Scorecard evaluates and ranks each threat by using several metrics such as trends, incidents and severity over time.

In addition to the effective scoring for each threat, we are able to interpret anonymous geographic data to list the top three countries infected with a particular threat. The data used for the ESL Threat Scorecard is updated daily and displayed based on trends for a 30-day period. The ESL Threat Scorecard is a useful tool for a wide array of computer users from end users seeking a solution to remove a particular threat or security experts pursuing analysis and research data on emerging threats.

Each of the fields listed on the ESL Threat Scorecard, containing a specific value, are as follows:

Ranking: The current ranking of a particular threat among all the other threats found on our malware research database.

Threat Level: The level of threat a particular PC threat could have on an infected computer. The threat level is based on a particular threat's behavior and other risk factors. We rate the threat level as low, medium or high. The different threat levels are discussed in the SpyHunter Risk Assessment Model.

Infected PCs: The number of confirmed and suspected cases of a particular threat detected on infected PCs retrieved from diagnostic and scan log reports generated by SpyHunter's Spyware Scanner.

% Change: The daily percent change in the frequency of infected PCs of a specific threat. The formula for percent changes results from current trends of a specific threat. An increase in the rankings of a specific threat yields a recalculation of the percentage of its recent gain. When a specific threat's ranking decreases, the percentage rate reflects its recent decline. For a specific threat remaining unchanged, the percent change remains in its current state. The % Change data is calculated and displayed in three different date ranges, in the last 24 hours, 7 days and 30 days. Next to the percentage change is the trend movement a specific malware threat does, either upward or downward, in the rankings. Each level of movement is color coded: a green up-arrow (∧) indicates a rise, a red down-arrow (∨) indicates a decline, and a brown equal symbol (=) indicates no change or plateaued.

Top 3 Countries Infected: Lists the top three countries a particular threat has targeted the most over the past month. This data allows PC users to track the geographic distribution of a particular threat throughout the world.
Ranking: 3231
Threat Level: 10
Infected PCs: 13,345
% Change 30 Days:
4%
7 Days:
0%
1 Day:
-50%
Top 3 Countries Infected: United Kingdom, Bangladesh, Italy