Remove JAZI Ransomware Virus (+DECRYPT .jazi Files)

Jazi malware is a type of computer virus that infiltrates your system, encrypts your documents, and then asks to pay the money for file decryption. Besides these unpleasant activities, that malware also alters some important settings and can even suspend your security tool.

Jazi ransomware – what is it?

Jazi virus can correctly be described as a STOP/Djvu ransomware family. That type of malware is targeted at individuals. This feature supposes that Jazi does not carry any type of additional malware, which sometimes helps ransomware of various other families to take control of your computer. Because of the fact that most users do not have anything valuable on their PCs, there is no reason to inject additional viruses that increases the risk of failure of the whole ransomware injection.

The common signs of Jazi ransomware activity is the emersion of .jazi files in your folders, instead of the files you used to have. The photo.jpg turns into photo.jpg.jazi, report.xlsx – into report.xlsx.jazi and so on. You are not able to stop this process, as well as can’t open that documents – they are encrypted with pretty strong cipher.

You can also spectate different other signs of virus activity. Suddenly suspended Microsoft Defender and inability to check the well-known anti-malware forums or web pages, where the removal and decryption guides are published. You will see how it works in the paragraph below. The malware removal and decryption guide are also available – read below how to delete Jazi malware and get the .jazi files back.

How did Jazi ransomware encrypt my files?

After the injection, the Jazi virus creates a connection with its command and control server. This server is commanded by malware maintainers – fraudsters who manage the distribution of this virus. Another activity which is performed by these crooks is answering the emails of sufferers, who intend to decrypt their files.

The documents are encrypted with one of the strongest encryption algorithm – AES-256. The “256” digit in the name of this algorithms means the power of two – 2^256 for this case. 78-digit number of possible password variations – it is unreal to brute force it. As analysts say, it will take more time than the Earth can estimate to exist, even when you use the most powerful computer system. In each folder that keeps the encrypted documents, Jazi ransomware leaves 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 use some of your files. The Jazi ransomware ciphers only the first 150 KB of each file, but the rest of this file can be accessed. Primarily, it works best with audio/video files, which are surely bigger than 150 kilobytes. Not every media player is able to open these files – WinAmp is the best solution, since it is free and well-tested. First seconds of each song or video will be missing – this part is encrypted – but the rest of the file will be accessible like nothing happened.

Is Jazi ransomware dangerous for my PC?

As it was described several paragraphs before, ransomware is not only about encrypting the files. Jazi malware makes the changes in your OS in order to prevent looking for the ransomware removal and file decryption guides. Malware does not establish the software barrier – it just changes the system settings, primarily – networking and security configurations.

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

Other changes done by the ransomware are aimed at prevention of operative spotting of itself, and also preventing the installation of the majority of anti-malware programs. Jazi malware implements some alterations in Group Policies – the system setting application which allows to modify the abilities of each app. In such a way, malware disables the Microsoft Defender and different other antivirus apps, as well as blocks the launch of antivirus installation files.

How did I get infected?

Throughout the whole term while STOP/Djvu family existed, it was using questionable software as the main method of ransomware injection. Under the term of dubious applications I mean apps that are already not controlled by the creator and spread through the file sharing websites. These applications may be cracked, to make them usable 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 apps may be distributed in many ways – through the site that offers a downloading link, and also through the seeding networks – ThePirateBay, eMule and so on. All these sources are known as the most popular computer piracy resources. People use these sites to get various programs or games for free, even if these apps must be purchased. Nobody can stop the users who hack these programs from adding malware of some sort to the files of the hacked tool. Hacktools, however, are created for outlaw targets, so their creators can easily add 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 definitely the most used one for Jazi malware. It is better to stop using of it, and not only because of virus installation risks. Avoiding the license purchase is an outlaw action, and both hackers and folks who make use of cracked programs fall under the charge of piracy.

How do I remove Jazi ransomware?

The Jazi ransomware is extremely hard to delete manually. Really, because of the amount of alterations it makes in your Windows, it is almost unreal to spot them all and fix. The best solution is to make use of anti-malware programs. But which one to choose?

You can read the offers to make use of Microsoft Defender, which is already inside of your Windows. Nonetheless, as it was mentioned earlier, the majority of STOP/Djvu virus examples stop it even before the ciphering process. Making use of the third-party application is the only possible solution – and I can offer you the GridinSoft Anti-Malware as an option for that case. It has perfect detection abilities, so the malware will not be missed. It is also capable of system repairing, that is heavily needed after the Jazi virus attack.

To remove Jazi 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 Jazi ransomware is active, it will not miss any unencrypted file.

How to decrypt the .jazi files?

There are two ways to decrypt your files after a Jazi ransomware attack. First one and the most obvious is file decryption. It is performed with a special program, designed by Emsisoft, and named 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 disks. Since Jazi virus deletes them and substitutes with a ciphered copy, the residue of the documents are still kept on the disk. After the deletion, the information about them is removed from the file system, but not from a disk drive. Special tools, 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 something unintentionally.

Decrypting the .jazi 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 .jazi files with PhotoRec tool

PhotoRec is an open-source tool, which is designed to recover the deleted or lost files from the disk drive. It checks each disk sector for the remains of deleted files, and then tries to recover them. That app is able to recover the files of more than 400 different formats. 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