GandCrab3 Ransomware

The GandCrab3 Ransomware is an encryption ransomware Trojan that belongs to a family of ransomware Trojans that has already seen two releases. The GandCrab3 Ransomware's family of ransomware first appeared in January 2018, and the GandCrab3 Ransomware is the third version in this ransomware strain. The GandCrab3 Ransomware first emerged in the final week of April 2018 and is nearly identical to the previous versions of this threat, probably developed quickly as a way to bypass detection mechanisms by the anti-virus programs being used by PC security researchers currently.

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The Crab that Has Attacked PC Users’ Files Three Times Already

The GandCrab3 Ransomware is delivered to the victims using spam email messages with corrupted file attachments containing bad macro scripts that download and install the GandCrab3 Ransomware onto the victim's computer. This is a common method to deliver these threats. Once the victims have installed the GandCrab3 Ransomware onto their computers, the GandCrab3 Ransomware will use a powerful encryption algorithm to make the victim's files inaccessible, taking them hostage. The GandCrab3 Ransomware uses the AES 256 encryption to make the victim's files unrecoverable to anyone without the decryption key. The GandCrab3 Ransomware Trojan will encrypt data on all local drives and search for the user-generated files matching certain file extensions. The following examples encompass the file types that are targeted by ransomware Trojans like the GandCrab3 Ransomware:

.3dm, .3g2, .3gp, .7zip, .aaf, .accdb, .aep, .aepx, .aet, .ai, .aif, .as, .as3, .asf, .asp, .asx, .avi, .bmp, .c, .class, .cpp, .cs, .csv, .dat, .db, .dbf, .doc, .docb, .docm, .docx, .dot, .dotm, .dotx, .dwg, .dxf, .efx, .eps, .fla, .flv, .gif, .h, .idml, .iff, .indb, .indd, .indl, .indt, .inx, .jar, .java, .jpeg, .jpg, .js, .m3u, .m3u8, .m4u, .max, .mdb, .mid, .mkv, .mov, .mp3, .mp4, .mpa, .mpeg, .mpg, .msg, .pdb, .pdf, .php, .plb, .pmd, .png, .pot, .potm, .potx, .ppam, .ppj, .pps, .ppsm, .ppsx, .ppt, .pptm, .pptx, .prel, .prproj, .ps, .psd, .py, .ra, .rar, .raw, .rb, .rtf, .sdf, .sdf, .ses, .sldm, .sldx, .sql, .svg, .swf, .tif, .txt, .vcf, .vob, .wav, .wma, .wmv, .wpd, .wps, .xla, .xlam, .xll, .xlm, .xls, .xlsb, .xlsm, .xlsx, .xlt, .xltm, .xltx, .xlw, .xml, .xqx, .xqx, .zip.

As long as the GandCrab3 Ransomware attack is completed, the victims' files can be identified easily because the GandCrab3 Ransomware will add the file extension '.CRAB' to all compromised files.

How the GandCrab3 Ransomware Demands Its Ransom

The GandCrab3 Ransomware delivers its ransom note after encrypting the victim's files, which will be in the form of a text file named 'CRAB-DECRYPT.txt' that contains the following text:

'---= GANDCRAB V3 =---
Attention!
All your files documents, photos, databases and other important files are encrypted and have the extension: .CRAB
The only method of recovering files is to purchase a private key. It is on our server and only we can recover your files.
The server with your key is in a closed network TOR. You can get there by the following ways:
0. Download Tor browser - h[tt]ps://www.torproject[.]org/
1. Install Tor browser
2. Open Tor Browser
3. Open link in TOR browser:
4. Follow the instructions on this page
On our page you will see instructions on payment and get the opportunity to decrypt 1 file for free.'

The GandCrab3 Ransomware ransom note contains information on how to contact the team responsible for the GandCrab3 Ransomware attack by using Jabber and email, as well as through websites on the Dark Web.

Dealing with the GandCrab3 Ransomware

PC security researchers urge computer users to refrain from paying the GandCrab3 Ransomware ransom. The best way to deal with data the compromised by the GandCrab3 Ransomware attack is to use file backups. File backups, coupled with a strong security program that is fully up-to-date can help prevent the GandCrab3 Ransomware from being installed and restore the files encrypted by a ransomware attack in case it does manage to get through.