Voldemort Ransomware

The Voldemort Ransomware is a ransomware Trojan that uses themes and branding from the Harry Potter series. The Voldemort Ransomware variants that have been observed recently make references to the famous Harry Potter series in their file names and the ransom note. The Voldemort Ransomware will display a large picture of the series' villain, the Voldemort, as part of its ransom note. The Voldemort Ransomware's files may contain names like Nagini (the villain's pet snake) or Horcrux, a magical object in the series where the Voldemort stored part of his soul. Despite the vivid themes related to the Voldemort Ransomware, there is little to distinguish the actual Voldemort Ransomware attack from other ransomware Trojans.

The Harry Potter Character that Infects Your Computer

As mentioned above, the attack carried out by the Voldemort Ransomware is typical of these infections. Like many other ransomware Trojans, the Voldemort Ransomware infection process follows the steps below:

1. The Voldemort Ransomware may be delivered to the victim's computer included in a spam email message in the form of an email attachment. These email attachments may be disguised as a legitimate file of some sort, for example as an invoice or a billing statement.
2. If the victims download the attachment and open it, the Voldemort Ransomware will be installed on their computers. The Voldemort Ransomware will drop its corrupted files on the victim's computer and establish a connection with its Command and Control server.
3. Once installed, the Voldemort Ransomware carries out its attack. To do this, the Voldemort Ransomware will search for certain file types on the victim's computer and use an advanced encryption algorithm to encrypt the victim's files. The files that have been encrypted by the Voldemort Ransomware will no longer be usable until the victim can decrypt them. However, the Voldemort Ransomware will hold the decryption key until the victim pays a ransom. Some of the file types that may be encrypted by the Voldemort Ransomware include:

.txt, .doc, .docx, .xls, .xlsx, .ppt, .pptx, .odt, .jpg, .png, .csv, .sql, .mdb, .sln, .php, .asp, .aspx, .html, .xml, .psd, .dll, .lnk, .pdf.

4. The Voldemort Ransomware demands the payment of a ransom from its victims. The Voldemort Ransomware does this by displaying a pop-up message on the affected computer. The Voldemort Ransomware also will change the victim's Desktop image, replacing it with the Voldemort Ransomware's ransom note and a full-screen picture of the Voldemort from the Harry Potter movies. The Voldemort Ransomware also will drop text or HTML files on the victim's computer, which will contain information on how to pay the Voldemort Ransomware's ransom and obtain the decryption key.

Dealing with and Preventing the Voldemort Ransomware

The best way to protect your computer from threats like the Voldemort Ransomware is to ensure that all of your files are protected properly. Having an appropriate backup for your files will mean that you are invulnerable to these attacks since you can simply restore your files from the backup rather than having to pay any ransom. If the Voldemort Ransomware has attacked your computer, it may be difficult to recover if you do not have a backup, since the encryption method used by these threats is quite strong. Because of this, prevention is the best tactic to avoid the Voldemort Ransomware and similar threats. The use of regular backup procedures, caution when handling email attachments, and reliable security software that is fully up-to-date is the best way to ensure that your PC is safe from the Voldemort Ransomware and similar infections. PC security analysts do not recommend paying the Voldemort Ransomware's ransom; there is no guarantee that the con artists responsible for the Voldemort Ransomware attack will honor their promise and provide you with the means to decrypt your files.