GODOX Virus (.godox Files) — How to remove virus?

What is known about the Godoxvirus?

The pattern of renaming is the following: .godox. After the encryption, a file named, for example, “report.docx” will be renamed to “report.docx.[34297BC12AQ].[].godox”.

In every directory with the encrypted files, a Decryption-Guide.txt text document will be found. It is a ransom money note. Therein you can find information about the ways of contacting the racketeers and some other remarks. The ransom note usually contains instructions on how to purchase the decryption tool from the racketeers. You can get this decoding tool after contacting via email. That is it.

Name	Godox Virus
Extension	.[victim’s_ID].[email_address].godox
Ransomware note	Decryption-Guide.txt
Contact
Detection1	Ransom:Win32/StopCrypt.PAO!MTB, Trojan-Spy.Win32.Stealer.pef, Ransom:Win32/StopCrypt.PAQ!MTB
Symptoms	Your files (photos, videos, documents) get a .[victim’s_ID].[email_address].godox extension and you can’t open them.
Fix Tool	GridinSoft Anti-MalwareSee If Your System Has Been Affected by Godox virus

In the screenshot below, you can see what a directory with files encrypted by the Godox looks like. Each filename has the “godox” extension appended to it.

That is how encrypted “.godox” files look.

How did Godox ransomware end up on my PC?

Nowadays, there are three most exploited methods for malefactors to have ransomware acting in your system. These are email spam, Trojan introduction, and peer file transfer.

If you access your mailbox and see letters that look like familiar notifications from utility services providers, postal agencies like FedEx, web-access providers, and whatnot, but whose “from” field is unknown to you, beware of opening those emails. They are very likely to have a ransomware item attached to them. Therefore, it is even riskier to download any attachments that come with emails like these.

Another thing the hackers might try is a Trojan file model². A Trojan is an object that gets into your computer pretending to be something legal. For instance, you download an installer for some program you need or an update for some software. However, what is unpacked reveals itself a harmful program that encodes your data. Since the installation file can have any name and any icon, you have to make sure that you can trust the source of the files you’re downloading. The optimal way is to trust the software companies’ official websites.

As for the peer file transfer protocols like torrent trackers or eMule, the threat is that they are even more trust-based than the rest of the Web. You can never guess what you download until you get it. So you’d better be using trustworthy resources. Also, it is reasonable to scan the directory containing the downloaded items with the antivirus as soon as the downloading is finished.

How do I get rid of the Godox virus?

Often criminals would unblock few of your files so you know that they really have the decryption tool. Since Godox virus is a relatively recent ransomware, safety measures developers have not yet found a method to undo its work. However, the decoding instruments are frequently upgraded, so the solution may soon be available.

Of course, if the criminals succeed in encoding victim’s critical files, the desperate person will most likely fulfill their demands. Nevertheless, paying to racketeers gives no guarantee that you’re getting your blocked information back. It is still risky. After receiving the ransom, the racketeers may deliver a wrong decryption code to the victim. There were reports about criminals just disappearing after getting the money without even bothering to reply.

The optimal solution against ransomware is to have a system restore point or the copies of your essential files in the cloud drive or at least on an external drive. Surely, that might be insufficient. The most important thing could be that one you were working on when it all started. Nevertheless, it is something. It is also wise to scan your PC for viruses with the antivirus program after the OS is rolled back.

Godox is not the only ransomware of its kind, since there are other specimens of ransomware out there that act in the same manner. Examples of those are Maak, Bbbw, Maiv, and some others. The two main differences between them and the Godox are the ransom amount and the method of encryption. The rest is almost identical: documents become blocked, their extensions altered, ransom notes appear in every folder containing encoded files.

Some lucky people were able to decrypt the arrested files with the help of the free software provided by anti-ransomware specialists. Sometimes the racketeers accidentally send the decryption key to the victims in the ransom note. Such an extraordinary fail allows the user to restore the files. But naturally, one should never expect such a chance. Make no mistake, ransomware is a tamperers’ tool to pull the money out of their victims.

How do I avoid ransomware attack?

You can armour your system from its attack in three easy steps:

• Ignore any letters from unknown mailboxes with strange addresses, or with content that has likely no connection to something you are expecting (how can you win in a lottery without participating in it?). In case the email subject is more or less something you are expecting, check all elements of the dubious letter carefully. A fake email will always have a mistake.
• Avoid using cracked or untrusted programs. Trojan viruses are often distributed as an element of cracked software, possibly under the guise of “patch” preventing the license check. Understandably, dubious programs are difficult to distinguish from reliable software, as trojans may also have the functionality you need. Try to find information about this software product on the anti-malware message boards, but the optimal solution is not to use such software.
• And to be sure about the safety of the files you downloaded, use GridinSoft Anti-Malware. This program will be a perfect armor for your personal computer.

There is no better way to recognize, remove and prevent ransomware than to use an anti-malware software from GridinSoft">⁴.

Download Removal Tool.

You can download GridinSoft Anti-Malware by clicking the button below:

Download GridinSoft Anti-Malware

Run the setup file.

When setup file has finished downloading, double-click on the setup-antimalware-fix.exe file to install GridinSoft Anti-Malware on your computer.

An User Account Control asking you about to allow GridinSoft Anti-Malware to make changes to your device. So, you should click “Yes” to continue with the installation.

Press “Install” button.

Once installed, Anti-Malware will automatically run.

Wait for the Anti-Malware scan to complete.

GridinSoft Anti-Malware will automatically start scanning your PC for Godox infections and other malicious programs. This process can take a 20-30 minutes, so I suggest you periodically check on the status of the scan process.

Click on “Clean Now”.

When the scan has finished, you will see the list of infections that GridinSoft Anti-Malware has detected. To remove them click on the “Clean Now” button in right corner.

FAQ

🤔 Are the “.godox” files accessible?

There’s no way to do it, unless the files “.godox” files are decrypted.

🤔 The encrypted files are very important to me. How can I decrypt them quickly?

Hopefully, you have made a copy of those important files. In case you haven’t, there is still a chance that you do have a Restore Point from some time ago to roll back the whole system to the moment when it had no virus yet, but already had your files. All other solutions require time.

🤔 You have advised using GridinSoft Anti-Malware to get rid of the Godox virus. Does it mean that all my files, currently encrypted, will be removed too?

Absolutely not! Your encrypted files are no threat to your PC.

GridinSoft Anti-Malware only deals with actual threats. The virus that has infected your system is probably still active and launching checks periodically to encrypt any new files you might create on your PC after the infection. As it has been said above, the Godox virus comes with the company. It installs backdoors and keyloggers that can take your account passwords by trespass and provide malefactors with easy access to your PC after some time.

🤔 What should I do if the Godox ransomware has blocked my computer and I can’t get the activation code.

In such a case, you need to have a memory stick with a pre-installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to do the cleaning. You see, the ransomware starts automatically as the system boots and encrypts any new files created or brought into your PC. To suppress this process – use Safe Mode, which allows only the essential applications to run automatically. Consider reading our manual on booting Windows in Safe Mode.

🤔 What could help the situation right now?

Some of the blocked data can be located elsewhere.

• If you sent or received your critical files via email, you could still download them from your online mailbox.
• You might have shared images or videos with your friends or family members. Simply ask them to give those pictures back to you.
• If you have initially got any of your files from the Internet, you can try downloading them again.
• Your messengers, social networks pages, and cloud storage might have all those files too.
• It might be that you still have the needed files on your old computer, a portable device, mobile, memory stick, etc.

HINT: You can use data recovery utilities⁵ to retrieve your lost information since ransomware encrypts the copies of your files, deleting the authentic ones. In the video below, you can learn how to use PhotoRec for such a recovery, but be advised: you can do it only after you kill the virus with an antivirus program.

Also, you can contact the following governmental fraud and scam sites to report this attack:

• In the United States: On Guard Online;
• In Canada: Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre;
• In the United Kingdom: Action Fraud;
• In Australia: SCAMwatch;
• In New Zealand: Consumer Affairs Scams;
• In France: Agence nationale de la sécurité des systèmes d’information;
• In Germany: Bundesamt für Sicherheit in der Informationstechnik;
• In Ireland: An Garda Síochána;

To report the attack, you can contact local executive boards. For instance, if you live in USA, you can have a talk with FBI Local field office, IC3 or Secret Service.

References

1. Encyclopedia of threats.
2. You can read more on Trojans, their use and types in the Trojan-dedicated section of GridinSoft official website.
3. GridinSoft Anti-Malware Review from HowToFix site:
4. More information about GridinSoft products:
5. Here’s the list of the best 10 file recovery tools of 2021.