What is Polis Ransomware
Polis is a recent ransomware infection. Alike other malware within this category, it renders files inaccessible and demands victims to pay a monetary ransom. During encryption, the virus assigns its own .polis extension to highlight the blocked data. For instance, an innocent file previously named 1.pdf will change its name to 1.pdf.polis and reset the original icon as well. Following this, Polis Ransomware creates a text note (Restore.txt) to instruct what victims should do.
YOUR FILES ARE ENCRYPTED!!
Hi! We have blocked your files and also uploaded useful data from your computers(SQL database, your mail messages, doc, docx, pdf, xls and other office files extensions) to our servers.
You have 2 days to contact us to discuss the terms of payment for our services to restore your files.
If you do not contact us or refuse to pay, we will place your stolen files in the public domain.
Do not change the file namesand extensions.
Do not try to decrypt the files yourself, they are encrypted using a good encryption algorithm.
Main Mail:
zdarovachel@gmx.at
Backup mail(if we don't reply 24 hours):
decryptydata2@gmx.net
At the first contact, you can write to both emails for reliability.
It is said victims have 2 days to establish contact with cybercriminals (via e-mail) and pay money to them for decryption. Otherwise, if the deadline will not be met, extortionists promise to publish the uploaded copies of locked data on special public domains. By posing such threats, cybercriminals try to make victims act immediately and follow what the guidelines say. Unfortunately, paying the ransom is not always a risk-free solution – many threat actors fool their victims and do not send any decryption tools even after the ransom is paid. This is why it is always important to evaluate your options and think twice before opting for a decision. At the moment, there are alas no free and publicly-available third-party decryptors that can deal with files encrypted by Polis developers. You can try some reputable and world-famous decryption software we attached to our guide, however, there is no 100% guarantee they will decrypt/recover your data. The best option to avoid paying the ransom and regain access to the encrypted data is to use backup copies of the data. If you have such available on external storage like a USB flash card, you can easily use it for restoring the files. The only risk that remains if you opt out of dealing with cybercriminals is that your data may be eventually leaked to the hands of other bad figures. If you decide to recover or decrypt the files yourself, make sure you delete the infection first using our tutorial below.
How Polis Ransomware infected your computer
Polis Ransomware is no different from other similar infections targeting users around the web. As a rule, file-encryptors and other types of malicious software get spread through trojans, deceptive third-party downloads, fake software updates/installers, backdoors, keyloggers, botnets, system exploits, and e-mail spam. It may be quite common to receive an e-mail message that attempts to bait inexperienced users into opening malicious attachments. Such letters tend to highlight some kind of ostensibly important information and explain why it is important to perform various steps. MS Office documents, PDFs, Executables, Archives, or JavaScript files are usually the formats that users see being attached to such e-mails. Note that these files have nothing to do with malware on the initial basis, however, cybercriminals can change their configuration to inject a virus and set it up for automatic installation. If you receive a message from sources that seem legitimate and at the same time ask you to open something attached, think twice before following the provided guidelines. Should something question your mind in a message you received, close it immediately and delete it from your e-mail inbox. Many of such messages also end up in “spam” folders, already giving an extra sign of warning for users that they can be dangerous. Beware of them and do not interact with content that seems malicious or dubious. In addition to removing the virus, you can also read our guide to get instructions on protecting yourself against such threats in the future.
- Download Polis Ransomware Removal Tool
- Get decryption tool for .polis files
- Recover encrypted files with Stellar Data Recovery Professional
- Restore encrypted files with Windows Previous Versions
- Restore files with Shadow Explorer
- How to protect from threats like Polis Ransomware
Download Removal Tool
To remove Polis Ransomware completely, we recommend you to use SpyHunter 5. It detects and removes all files, folders, and registry keys of Polis Ransomware. The trial version of Spyhunter 5 offers virus scan and 1-time removal for FREE.
Alternative Removal Tool
To remove Polis Ransomware completely, we recommend you to use Norton Antivirus from Symantec. It detects and removes all files, folders, and registry keys of Polis Ransomware and prevents future infections by similar viruses.
Polis Ransomware files:
Restore.txt
{randomname}.exe
Polis Ransomware registry keys:
no information
How to decrypt and restore .polis files
Use automated decryptors
Download Kaspersky RakhniDecryptor
Use following tool from Kaspersky called Rakhni Decryptor, that can decrypt .polis files. Download it here:
There is no purpose to pay the ransom because there is no guarantee you will receive the key, but you will put your bank credentials at risk.
Dr.Web Rescue Pack
Famous antivirus vendor Dr. Web provides free decryption service for the owners of its products: Dr.Web Security Space or Dr.Web Enterprise Security Suite. Other users can ask for help in the decryption of .polis files by uploading samples to Dr. Web Ransomware Decryption Service. Analyzing files will be performed free of charge and if files are decryptable, all you need to do is purchase a 2-year license of Dr.Web Security Space worth $120 or less. Otherwise, you don’t have to pay.
If you are infected with Polis Ransomware and removed from your computer you can try to decrypt your files. Antivirus vendors and individuals create free decryptors for some crypto-lockers. To attempt to decrypt them manually you can do the following:
Use Stellar Data Recovery Professional to restore .polis files
- Download Stellar Data Recovery Professional.
- Click Recover Data button.
- Select type of files you want to restore and click Next button.
- Choose location where you would like to restore files from and click Scan button.
- Preview found files, choose ones you will restore and click Recover.
Using Windows Previous Versions option:
- Right-click on infected file and choose Properties.
- Select Previous Versions tab.
- Choose particular version of the file and click Copy.
- To restore the selected file and replace the existing one, click on the Restore button.
- In case there is no items in the list choose alternative method.
Using Shadow Explorer:
- Download Shadow Explorer program.
- Run it and you will see screen listing of all the drives and the dates that shadow copy was created.
- Select the drive and date that you want to restore from.
- Right-click on a folder name and select Export.
- In case there are no other dates in the list, choose alternative method.
If you are using Dropbox:
- Login to the DropBox website and go to the folder that contains encrypted files.
- Right-click on the encrypted file and select Previous Versions.
- Select the version of the file you wish to restore and click on the Restore button.
How to protect computer from viruses, like Polis Ransomware , in future
1. Get special anti-ransomware software
Use ZoneAlarm Anti-Ransomware
Famous antivirus brand ZoneAlarm by Check Point released a comprehensive tool, that will help you with active anti-ransomware protection, as an additional shield to your current protection. The tool provides Zero-Day protection against ransomware and allows you to recover files. ZoneAlarm Anti-Ransomware is compatible with all other antiviruses, firewalls, and security software except ZoneAlarm Extreme (already shipped with ZoneAlarm Anti-Ransomware) or Check Point Endpoint products. The killer features of this application are: automatic file recovery, overwrite protection that instantly and automatically recovers any encrypted files, file protection that detects and blocks even unknown encryptors.
2. Back up your files
As an additional way to save your files, we recommend online backup. Local storage, such as hard drives, SSDs, flash drives, or remote network storage can be instantly infected by the virus once plugged in or connected to. Polis Ransomware uses some techniques to exploit this. One of the best services and programs for easy automatic online backup is iDrive. It has the most profitable terms and a simple interface. You can read more about iDrive cloud backup and storage here.
3. Do not open spam e-mails and protect your mailbox
Malicious attachments to spam or phishing e-mails are the most popular method of ransomware distribution. Using spam filters and creating anti-spam rules is good practice. One of the world leaders in anti-spam protection is MailWasher Pro. It works with various desktop applications and provides a very high level of anti-spam protection.
