Remove JZQE Ransomware Virus (+DECRYPT .jzqe Files)

Jzqe virus is a sort of computer virus that injects your PC, encrypts your documents, and then asks to pay the money for file decryption. Besides these unpleasant activities, that virus also modifies some important settings and can even suspend your antivirus program.

Jzqe malware – what is it?

Jzqe malware can correctly be classified as a STOP/Djvu ransomware family. That type of computer virus is targeted at single users. This specification supposes that Jzqe does not bring any type of additional viruses, which often helps ransomware of various other families to control your system. Since most people do not have anything valuable on their PCs, there is no need to carry additional malware that increases the risk of failure of the whole ransomware injection.

The common signs of Jzqe virus activity is the emersion of .jzqe files in your folders, instead of the document you used to have. The photo.jpg turns into photo.jpg.jzqe, report.xlsx – into report.xlsx.jzqe and so on. You cannot to stop this action, and can’t open that documents – they are encrypted with pretty strong cipher.

You can also see various other signs of malware activity. Spontaneously suspended Microsoft Defender and inability to check the famous anti-malware forums or sites, where the ransomware removal and file decryption guides are posted. You will see how it is conducted in the paragraph below. The removal and decryption guide are also available – check below how to wipe out Jzqe ransomware and get the .jzqe files back.

How did Jzqe ransomware encrypt my files?

After the injection, the Jzqe ransomware establishes a connection with its command and control server. This server is controlled by virus maintainers – crooks who manage the spreading of this ransomware. Another activity which is conducted by these crooks is answering the emails of sufferers, who wish to decrypt their files.

The documents are ciphered with one of the strongest encryption algorithm – AES-256. The digit in the name of this algorithms means the power of two – 2^256 for this case. 78-digit number of possible decryption keys variations – it is not real to brute force it. As analysts say, it will take more time than the Earth can approximately exist, even when you use the most powerful computers. In each folder that keeps the encrypted documents, Jzqe ransomware creates the _readme.txt file with the following contents:

ATTENTION!

Don't worry, you can return all your files!

All your files like photos, databases, documents and other important are encrypted with strongest encryption and unique key.
The only method of recovering files is to purchase decrypt tool and unique key for you.
This software will decrypt all your encrypted files.

What guarantees you have?

You can send one of your encrypted file from your PC and we decrypt it for free.
But we can decrypt only 1 file for free. File must not contain valuable information.

You can get and look video overview decrypt tool:

https://we.tl/t-WJa63R98Ku

Price of private key and decrypt software is $980.
Discount 50% available if you contact us first 72 hours, that's price for you is $490.

Please note that you'll never restore your data without payment.

Check your e-mail "Spam" or "Junk" folder if you don't get answer more than 6 hours.

To get this software you need write on our e-mail:

support@fishmail.top

Reserve e-mail address to contact us:

datarestorehelp@airmail.cc

Your personal ID:
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Nonetheless, you can still open some of your files. The Jzqe virus encrypts only the initial 150 KB of each file, but the other part of this document can be opened. Primarily, it works best with audio/video files, which are definitely bigger than 150 kilobytes. Not each media player is able to open these files – WinAmp is the best option, since it is free and well-tested. First seconds of every song or video will be silent – this part is encrypted – but the rest of the document will be accessible like nothing happened.

Is Jzqe ransomware dangerous for my PC?

As it was described several paragraphs before, ransomware is not only about encrypting the files. Jzqe ransomware makes the changes in your operating system in order to prevent searching the ransomware removal and file decryption guides. Malware does not create the software obstacle – it just changes the system settings, primarily – networking and security configurations.

Among the networking configurations, the most damaged item is the HOSTS file. This text file keeps the DNS-address configurations, which are used by the web browsers while sending a request to the server. If you add a specific DNS-address for the certain website, your web browser will connect that site through that DNS next time. Ransomware edits that file, adding the non-existent DNS, so any of the web browsers will show you the “Unable to resolve the DNS-address” error.

Other alterations done by the virus are targeted on prevention of operative spotting of itself, and also preventing the installation of the majority of anti-malware programs. Jzqe virus makes several changes in Group Policies – the system setting application which gives you the right to alter the rights of each app. In such a way, the virus blocks the Microsoft Defender and different other anti-malware programs, and also blocks the launch of anti-malware installation files.

How did I get infected?

Throughout the whole term while STOP/Djvu family is active, it was using dubious software as the main way of ransomware injection. Under the term of dubious software I mean applications that are already not updated by the developer and spread through the file sharing websites. These apps may be cracked, to make them possible to use without purchasing any license. One more example of such a program type is various hacking tools – cheat engines, keygens, Windows activation tools and so on.

Such applications may be spread in different ways – through the web page that offers a downloading link, or through the peer-to-peer networks – ThePirateBay, eMule and so on. All these sources are known as the biggest computer piracy sites. Folks use these sources to get various apps or games for free, even if they must be purchased. Nobody can prevent the users who crack these apps from adding viruses of some type to the files of the hacked app. Hacktools, however, are created for outlaw targets, so their creators can easily embed the malware under the guise of some program part.

These hacked programs, regardless of their source, are one of the most often carriers for various malware, and 100% the most used one for Jzqe ransomware. It is better to stop making use of it, and not only because of malware installation risks. Avoiding the license purchase is an outlaw action, and both hackers and users who use cracked apps fall under the charge of piracy.

How do I remove Jzqe ransomware?

The Jzqe virus is extremely hard to wipe out manually. Really, because of the number of modifications it makes in your computer, it is almost impossible to detect them all and repair. The best solution is to use anti-malware programs. But which one to choose?

You may read the offers to use Microsoft Defender, which is already inside of your computer. But as it was mentioned earlier, the majority of STOP/Djvu ransomware examples stop it even before the ciphering process. Using the third-party tool is the only solution – and I can advice you the GridinSoft Anti-Malware as an option for that case. It has impressive detection abilities, so the ransomware will not be missed. It is also capable of system repairing, that is heavily demanded after the Jzqe virus attack.

To remove Jzqe malware infections, scan your computer with legitimate antivirus software.

After the ransomware removal, you can go to file decryption. Malware removal is required to prevent the repeating ciphering of your files: while Jzqe ransomware is active, it will not pass any unencrypted file.

How to decrypt the .jzqe files?

There are two ways to decrypt your files after a Jzqe virus attack. First one and the most popular is file decryption. It is performed with a special app, designed by Emsisoft, and called Emsisoft Decryptor for STOP/Djvu. This program is absolutely free. Analysts update its decryption keys databases as often as possible, so you will surely get your files back, sooner or later.

Another way to get your documents and photos back is to try to recover them from your physical disks. Since ransomware deletes them and substitutes with an encrypted copy, the residue of the documents are still stored on the disk drive. After the deletion, the information about them is wiped from the file system, but not from a disk drive. Special programs, like PhotoRec, are able to recover these files. It is free, too, and may also be used for file recovery in case when you have deleted some files unintentionally.

Decrypting the .jzqe files with Emsisoft Decrypter for STOP/Djvu

Download and install Emsisoft Decrypter tool. Agree with its EULA and continue to the interface.

The interface of this program is extremely easy. All you have to do is to select the folder where the encrypted files are stored, and wait. If the program has the decryption key which corresponds to your ransomware case – it will decrypt it.

During the use of Emsisoft Decrypter for STOP/Djvu, you may observe various error messages. Don’t worry, that does not mean that you did something wrong or a program does not work properly. Each of these errors refer to a specific case. Here is the explanation:

Error: Unable to decrypt file with ID: [your ID]

The program does not have a corresponding key for your case. You need to wait for some time until the key database will be updated.

No key for new variant online ID: [your ID]

Notice: this ID appears to be an online ID, decryption is impossible.

This error means that your files are encrypted with an online key. In such a case, the decryption key is unique and stored on the remote server, controlled by crooks. Unfortunately, the decryption is impossible.

Result: No key for new variant offline ID: [example ID]

This ID appears to be an offline ID. Decryption may be possible in the future.

Ransomware uses the offline key to encrypt your files. This key is not unique, so you likely have it in common with another victim. Since offline keys must be collected, too, it is important to keep calm and wait until the analysts team finds one which will fit your case.

Remote name could not be resolved

This error indicates that the program has problems with DNS on your computer. That’s a clear sign of malicious alterations in your HOSTS file. Reset it using the official Microsoft guide.

Recovering the .jzqe files with PhotoRec tool

PhotoRec is an open-source tool, which is created to recover the deleted or lost files from the disk. It checks each disk sector for the residues of deleted files, and then tries to recover them. That app is able to recover the files of more than 400 different extensions. Because of the described feature of ransomware encryption mechanism, it is possible to use this tool to get the original, unencrypted files back.

Download PhotoRec from the official website. It is absolutely free, however, its developer warns that he does not guarantee that this program will be 100% effective for file recovery purposes. Moreover, even paid apps can barely give you such a guarantee, because of the chain of random factors that can make the file recovery harder.

Unzip the downloaded archive to the folder you like. Don’t worry because of its name – TestDisk – this is the name of the utility developed by the same company. They decided to spread it together since PhotoRec and TestDisk are often used together. Among the unzipped files, search for qphotorec_win.exe file. Run this executable file.

Before you can start the recovery process, you need to specify several settings. In the drop-down list, choose the logic disk where the files were stored before the encryption.

Then, you need to specify the file formats you need to recover. It may be difficult to scroll all 400+ formats, luckily, they are sorted by alphabetical order.

Finally, name the folder you want to use as a container for recovered files. The program will likely dig out a lot of useless files, which were deleted intentionally, so desktop is a bad solution. The best option is to use the USB-drive.

After these easy manipulations, you may just press the “Search” button (it turns active if you specified all required parameters). The recovery process may take several hours, so keep patient. It is recommended not to use the computer during this term, since you may overwrite some files you are intending to recover.

Frequently Asked Questions