Victims of some versions of the Cryakl ransomware can decrypt their files for free

Pierluigi Paganini February 12, 2018

Free decryption keys for the Cryakl ransomware were added to the free Rakhni Decryptor that could be downloaded on the NoMoreRansom website.

The Belgian Federal Police has located the command and control server used by a criminal organization behind the Cryakl ransomware. The server was located in an unspecified neighboring country, law enforcement seized it and shared the decryption keys found on the machine with the No More Ransom project.

“The Belgian Federal Police is releasing free decryption keys for the Cryakl ransomware today, after working in close cooperation with Kaspersky Lab. The keys were obtained during an ongoing investigation; by sharing the keys with No More Ransom the Belgian Federal Police becomes a new associated partner of the project – the second law enforcement agency after the Dutch National Police.” reads the statement published by the Europol.

“Led by the federal prosecutor’s office, the Belgian authorities seized this and other servers while forensic analysis worked to retrieve the decryption keys. Kaspersky Lab provided technical expertise to the Belgian federal prosecutor and has now added these keys to the No More Ransom portal on behalf of the Belgian federal police. This will allow victims to regain access to their encrypted files without having to pay to the criminals.”

The “exponential” rise in Ransomware threat represents a serious problem for users online and it is a profitable business for cyber criminals. The operation NO More Ransom is the response of the Europol of the growing threat.

Cryakl ransomware

Victims of Cryakl ransomware can recover encrypted files using the Rakhni Decryptor available for free from Kaspersky Lab or NoMoreRansom at the following URL.

The tool works with most versions of the Cryakl ransomware, but researchers at MalwareHunterTeam confirmed that it doesn’t work with CL 1.4.0 and newer (so 1.4.0 is included in what can’t be decrypted).

It has been estimated that the tool has helped more than 35,000 victims of ransomware to decrypt their files for free, an overall loss for crooks of over €10m.

“There are now 52 free decryption tools on www.nomoreransom.org, which can be used to decrypt 84 ransomware families. CryptXXX, CrySIS and Dharma are the most detected infections.” continues the statement.

The Belgian authorities are still investigating the case.

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Pierluigi Paganini

(Security Affairs – Cryakl ransomware, cybercrime)

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