OFFER*Sato is a variant of Stop/DJVU. Source of claim SH can remove it.
Sato
Sato is a very specific malware infection capable of blocking you access to your most needed and most valuable personal files. Sato belongs to the ransomware cryptovirus category and uses a complex file encryption algorithm to render different files inaccessible.
Sato may target your documents, images, archives, audios, videos and other personal data with one purpose – to blackmail you for its access. The nasty malware can secretly apply its encryption without your knowledge and then can start asking you to pay a ransom in order to decrypt the sealed files. You may have already heard about the existence of such ransomware threats because they have consistently been in the security news headlines for quite some time now.
The Sato virus
Dealing with a representative of the ransomware category can be very challenging, especially if the infection is a new and advanced one like the Sato virus. The reason is it is normally quite difficult to remove the Sato virus and to restore everything back to normal without the help of specialized software and full data backups.
In case that you have been infected and this is the reason why you came to this page, however, we won’t leave you to deal with this challenging piece of malware on your own. Our “How to remove” team has prepared a set of instructions below, as well as a recommended Sato removal tool, which can prove effective in the successful elimination of the sneaky infection. There is also a special section with file recovery suggestions which may help some of you save some of your files and avoid the ransom payment that the hackers behind Sato, Fofd, Foty or Foza require.
Sadly, we cannot promise a miraculous recovery with the methods shown below to everyone because the way the ransomware attacks are always a challenge and the newer and more advanced the specific threat is, the less likely the full recovery becomes. Still, if you decide to give them a try, you may have a better chance at saving something once you effectively remove the dangerous malware from your computer.
The Sato file encryption
The typical scenario that the hackers behind the Sato file encryption use is they threaten their victims that if they don’t pay the required ransom, they will never be able to open or use their files again. If a payment is issued, however, the crooks promise to send a special key to undo the Sato file encryption.
Many users fall for this “deal”, believing that they will retrieve their valuable files once they fulfill the ransom demands. Whether you want to do that or not is all your decision. But we feel obligated to warn you that, while in some cases the crooks indeed send such a decryption key to their victims, this is not always the case. Sometimes, the hackers simply disappear with the money without sending anything. In other instances, they are greedy for more money and continue to blackmail the victims for another payment. They may increase the ransom amount or send a key that doesn’t work in order to ask for more money for a new key. All in all, you can never be sure what they will actually do even if you strictly fulfill all of their demands. Therefore, we believe that it is not a good idea to fall for their schemes and opting for alternative solutions instead is preferable.
SUMMARY:
*Sato is a variant of Stop/DJVU. Source of claim SH can remove it.
Remove Sato Ransomware
You will be able to remove the Sato ransomware from your computer in the most effective way if you use this removal guide and carry out each step in precisely the same manner as it is described. Disabling your computer’s Internet connection is the first thing you should do in order to get started with the removal process. Any potentially dangerous software that could be running on the system will be unable to connect with the servers once you disconnect the Internet. The next thing that is also recommended is that all USB and external storage devices that are connected to the computer need to be disconnected from it too.
Next, we recommend you to restart the machine that has been infected in Safe Mode. In the event that you want help with that, please look at the guidelines that are provided in the linked article. After you have successfully restarted the computer in Safe Mode, please return to this page so that the remaining stages of the Sato removal process may be carried out. If you create a bookmark for this website in your browser, you will be able to quickly access it as soon as your computer starts up again.
WARNING! READ CAREFULLY BEFORE PROCEEDING!
*Sato is a variant of Stop/DJVU. Source of claim SH can remove it.
The next thing that has to be done is to open the Task Manager. To launch the Task Manager, go to the Windows search bar, type “task manager”, and then press the Enter key on your keyboard.
After that, choose the Processes tab and arrange the running processes according to the amount of memory and processing power that they are using. It is of the utmost importance to run a scan on the files that are associated with any processes that you have a reason to think are associated with the ransomware.
To open these files so that you may inspect them, just right-click on the suspicious process, and then from the menu that appears, choose Open File Location. The directory in which the files are stored will be shown when you do this.
To begin the scanning process, just drag the files from the folder to the scanner below by using the dragging and dropping method:
If the scanner locates files on your device that might be damaging to your system, you should right-click the process and choose “End Process” before carrying out any further actions. After the potentially dangerous process has been terminated, any files that have been identified as dangerous should be removed from the directory in which they are stored.
In the next step, press the Windows key and the letter R on the keyboard simultaneously to open a new Run window. Once that window is open, copy and paste the following command in the new window, then press Enter.
notepad %windir%/system32/Drivers/etc/hosts
A new window will appear on the screen, with a file with the name Hosts. Search across the contents of the Hosts file looking for the term “Localhost“. Next, please let us know in the comments if you see any strange IP addresses listed under “Localhost”, and we will reply with guidance on what to do if any of the IP addresses that you have detected turn out to be malicious.
In addition to the Hosts file, you may want to also look in the settings of the system configuration to search for files that are associated with Sato. To open the System Configuration window, you need to type msconfig in the search box on Windows and then press the Enter key on your keyboard. Check the “Startup” tab for any suspicious items to see if the system is set up to automatically start them when it boots up.
Uncheck the box next to any startup item that you strongly believe may be associated with the ransomware in order to deactivate that program. If you are unsure about the legitimacy of a specific startup item, you should do some study on the internet before deciding to deactivate it in order to prevent potential system issues.
*Sato is a variant of Stop/DJVU. Source of claim SH can remove it.
A ransomware infection such as Sato may cover its tracks and stay in the system for long by silently inserting new malicious files into the registry of the computer it infects. That’s why, if you want to get rid of Sato in a manner that will guarantee that the ransomware will not reappear, it is strongly recommended that you do a search of the registry for files that might be related to the infection. To do this, first open the search bar on your Windows, type “Regedit”, and then click the Enter key on your keyboard.
By using the CTRL and F shortcut keys, you may be able to quickly search the Registry Editor for potentially hazardous files in a more efficient manner and save some precious time. To begin the process of searching, go to the Find box, type the name of the malicious software, and then click on the Find Next button. This will start the search.
Attention! In order to correctly delete ransomware-related files from the registry, some level of technical competence and previous experience is absolutely necessary. During the course of this operation, it is very important to verify and recheck each file to ensure that no other registry entries will be deleted. If you don’t have experience with registry files or you are unsure about your ability to correctly remove the infection on your own, it is highly recommended that you make use of a virus removal program such as the one that is accessible on our website.
The listed locations below are some of the possible places on a computer that could contain more ransomware-related files.
- %AppData%
- %LocalAppData%
- %ProgramData%
- %WinDir%
- %Temp%
In order to access them, you must first copy each one, then paste it one at a time into the search bar on Windows, and then hit the Enter key. After that, search for files and folders that have names that are random or that have an odd look (strange characters, symbols and numbers in their name). You should avoid making any changes to the files or folders on your computer, including eliminating them, unless you are very positive that doing so would assist you in getting rid of the infection. When you go to Temp, you should consider removing all the temporary files that are saved there, since it is quite possible that some of the temporary files that have been created might be associated with the infection.
How to Decrypt Sato files
Expert or not, dealing with the aftermath of a ransomware attack is a challenge. If you do not have expertise with computers, however, it is best to rely on reputable software or an experienced ransomware expert rather than taking the risk of causing even more damage to your computer system on your own.
In case you want to try some manual file-recovery methods that are available, you are free to use any of the alternative file-decryption methods, but only after you have completed a comprehensive system check to ensure that your computer is clear of dangerous applications.
New Djvu Ransomware
STOP Djvu is a new variant of ransomware that has recently infected a noticeable number of machines in a variety of countries all over the world. If a file’s extension ends at .Sato, it is quite likely that the file was encrypted using this particular variant of ransomware.
After you have carefully checked that your computer is free of viruses, a decryption application such as the one that is provided in the link below may be able to help you in retrieving some of the data that you have lost access to:
https://www.emsisoft.com/ransomware-decryption-tools/stop-djvu
Before trying to decrypt any of your data, you should first get acquainted with the decryptor’s license agreement, as well as any other instructions that may be included with it. Please keep in mind that the use of this decryptor does not ensure that all of your data will be recovered. This is particularly the case if the data had been encrypted offline with a key that is unknown or by using an online encryption method.
If the steps for manually removing Sato that are provided on this page are not adequate to remove Sato fully, you should consider turning to a powerful anti-virus software in order to remove the ransomware completely. In the event that you have concerns about a particular file, you can individually scan it with our free online virus scanner. If you have any problems with any of the instructions in this guide, please let us know in the comments section below. You may also want to comment if you find the information on this page to be useful.
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