Remove VEHU Ransomware Virus (+DECRYPT .vehu Files)

Vehu ransomware is a type of computer virus that injects your system, encrypts your documents, and then asks to pay the ransom for file decryption. Besides these bad activities, that virus also changes some important settings and can even disable your antivirus program.

Vehu malware – what is it?

Vehu malware can correctly be classified as a STOP/Djvu ransomware family. That type of computer virus is targeted at individuals. This specification supposes that Vehu does not bring any sort of additional malware, which often helps malware of other families to take control of your system. Since the majority users do not have anything valuable , there is no reason to infiltrate other viruses that increases the risk of failure of the whole ransomware injection.

The common signs of this ransomware activity is the emersion of .vehu files in your folders, instead of the document you used to have. The photo.jpg turns into photo.jpg.vehu, report.xlsx – into report.xlsx.vehu and so on. You are not able to stop this action, and can’t open these documents – they are ciphered with pretty strong algorithm.

You can also see various other signs of malware activity. Abruptly disabled Microsoft Defender and inability to open the popular anti-malware forums or sites, where the ransomware removal and decryption guides are published. You will see how it works in the paragraph below. The removal and decryption guide are also available – check below how to wipe out Vehu ransomware and get the .vehu files back.

How did Vehu ransomware encrypt my files?

After the malware injection, the Vehu virus establishes a connection with its command and control server. This server is controlled by virus maintainers – fraudsters who manage the spreading of this ransomware. Another activity which is conducted by those crooks is answering the emails of victims, who want to get their files back.

The documents are encrypted with one of the strongest encryption algorithm – AES-256. The digit in the name of this algo means the power of two – 2^256 for this case. 78-digit number of possible decryption keys variations – it is impossible to brute force it. As cipher analysts say, it will need more time than our planet can estimate to exist, even when you make use of the most powerful computer system. In each folder that keeps the encrypted documents, Vehu 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

However, you can still open some of your documents. The Vehu ransomware ciphers only the initial 150 KB of each file, but the other piece 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 choice, since it is free and well-tested. First seconds of each file will be missing – this part is encrypted – but the rest of the video or music will be accessible like nothing happened.

Is Vehu ransomware dangerous for my PC?

As it was mentioned several paragraphs above, ransomware is not only about encrypting the files. Vehu ransomware makes the changes in your system in order to prevent searching the malware removal and file decryption guides. Vehu virus does not create the software barrier – it just modifies the settings, primarily – networking and security configurations.

Among the networking configurations, the most changed item is the HOSTS file. This text file keeps the DNS-address instructions, which are used by the web browsers while sending a request to the server. If you add a specific DNS-address for the certain site, your browser will connect that website through that DNS next time. Ransomware alters 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 modifications done by the ransomware are aimed at prevention of operative spotting of itself, and also disabling the installation of the majority of security tools. Vehu ransomware makes some modifications in Group Policies – the system setting application which allows to change the abilities of each program. In such a way, ransomware blocks the Microsoft Defender and different other security programs, and also prevents the launch of antivirus installation files.

How did I get infected?

Throughout the whole term while STOP/Djvu family is active, it was using questionable software as the main way of ransomware injection. Under the term of dubious software I mean applications that are already not controlled by the maintainer and distributed through the third-party websites. These programs may be hacked, 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.

These programs may be spread in many methods – through the website that offers a downloading link, or through the seeding networks – ThePirateBay, eMule and so on. All these sources are known as the most popular computer piracy resources. People use these pages to get different programs or games for free, even if they must be purchased. No one can stop the users who hack these apps from adding malware of some sort to the files of the hacked tool. Hacktools, meanwhile, are created for outlaw targets, so their developers can easily embed the virus under the guise of some program part.

These hacked apps, regardless of their source, are one of the most often carriers for various viruses, and surely the most used one for Vehu ransomware. The best solution is to avoid making use of it, and not only because of malware installation risks. Avoiding the license purchase is an illegal action, and both hackers and persons who make use of cracked programs fall under the charge of piracy.

How do I remove Vehu malware?

The Vehu malware is pretty hard to remove manually. In fact, because of the amount of changes it makes into your PC, it is almost unreal to detect them all and fix. The best solution is to make use of anti-malware software. But which one to choose?

You may spectate the offers to use Microsoft Defender, that is already in your Windows. Nonetheless, as it was mentioned earlier, most of STOP/Djvu virus examples stop it even before the encryption procedure. Using the third-party program is the only option – and I can advice you the GridinSoft Anti-Malware as a solution for that case. It has perfect detection abilities, so the ransomware will not be missed. It is also capable of system recovery, which is heavily demanded after the Vehu virus attack.

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

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

How to decrypt the .vehu files?

There are two ways to decrypt your files after a Vehu 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 option to get your documents and photos back is to try to recover them from your disks. Since Vehu virus deletes them and substitutes with a ciphered copy, the residue of the documents are still stored on the disk drive. After the removal, the information about them is wiped from the file system, but not from a disk. 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 some files unintentionally.

Decrypting the .vehu 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 .vehu files with PhotoRec tool

PhotoRec is an open-source tool, which is designed to recover the deleted or lost files from the disk. It checks each disk sector for the remains of deleted files, and then attempts 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