Remove Piiq Ransomware

About Piiq Ransomware virus

Piiq Ransomware is a highly serious threat, also known as ransomware or file-encrypting malicious software. You might not necessarily have heard of or ran into it before, and it could be particularly shocking to see what it does. Ransomware uses strong encryption algorithms to encrypt files, and once they are locked, your access to them will be prevented. Because file decryption is not possible in all cases, in addition to the time and effort it takes to get everything back in order, file encrypting malware is considered to be one of the most dangerous malware out there. You do have the option of paying the ransom to get a decryption tool, but we don’t recommend that. There are a lot of cases where paying the ransom does not lead to file restoration. Don’t expect crooks to not just take your money and feel bound to help you with recovering files. In addition, your money would go towards future ransomware and malware. Would you really want to support an industry that already does billions of dollars worth of damage to businesses. The more people pay, the more profitable it becomes, thus drawing more crooks who want to earn easy money. Investing the money you are demanded to pay into backup might be a wiser option because data loss wouldn’t be a problem. You can then proceed to data recovery after you remove Piiq Ransomware or related threats. Ransomware distribution methods may not be known to you, and we will explain the most frequent methods in the below paragraphs.
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How does ransomware spread

You could frequently come across ransomware attached to emails or on suspicious download websites. Because users tend to be rather careless when dealing with emails and downloading files, it’s often not necessary for those distributing file encoding malware to use more elaborate methods. Nevertheless, some ransomware could be distributed using more sophisticated ways, which need more effort. All crooks have to do is claim to be from a real company, write a generic but somewhat convincing email, attach the malware-ridden file to the email and send it to possible victims. You’ll frequently come across topics about money in those emails, because users are more likely to fall for those kinds of topics. And if someone who pretends to be Amazon was to email a person about dubious activity in their account or a purchase, the account owner may panic, turn careless as a result and end up opening the added file. You have to look out for certain signs when dealing with emails if you want to protect your system. Check the sender to make sure it is someone you’re familiar with. If you’re familiar with them, ensure it is actually them by carefully checking the email address. Look for obvious grammar mistakes, they’re frequently glaring. You should also take note of how you’re addressed, if it is a sender with whom you’ve had business before, they’ll always include your name in the greeting. Some ransomware could also use not updated software on your system to enter. Those vulnerabilities are generally found by malware specialists, and when software creators become aware of them, they release updates so that malicious software makers cannot take advantage of them to spread their malware. Nevertheless, as world wide ransomware attacks have shown, not everyone installs those updates. It is suggested that you update your programs, whenever an update is made available. Updates can be set to install automatically, if you do not want to trouble yourself with them every time.

How does Piiq Ransomware behave

When your device becomes contaminated, it will scan for certain files types and as soon as they are found, they will be encrypted. Even if what happened was not clear initially, it will become rather obvious something’s not right when files do not open as they should. You’ll notice that a file extension has been attached to all files that have been encoded, which assists users in identifying which data encoding malicious software specifically has infected their device. A powerful encryption algorithm may be used, which would make decrypting data rather difficult, if not impossible. In case you’re still unsure about what’s going on, everything will be explained in the ransom notification. According to the cyber crooks, you will be able to decrypt data via their decryptor, which will clearly not come for free. The note should clearly explain how much the decryptor costs but if it doesn’t, it’ll give you a way to contact the cyber crooks to set up a price. As we’ve already discussed, we do not recommend paying for a decryptor, for reasons we have already specified. Paying ought to be your last course of action. Maybe you have simply forgotten that you have backed up your files. For certain ransomware, free decryptors may be found. If the data encoding malicious software is crackable, a malware researcher could be able to release a decryption utility for free. Take that into consideration before paying the demanded money even crosses your mind. Using that sum for a credible backup may be a better idea. If you had saved your most valuable files, you just uninstall Piiq Ransomware virus and then proceed to file recovery. You should be able to secure your system from file encoding malware in the future and one of the methods to do that is to become familiar with probable means via which it could get into your system. Ensure you install up update whenever an update is available, you don’t randomly open files added to emails, and you only download things from trustworthy sources.

Methods to terminate Piiq Ransomware virus

If the is still present on your system, An anti-malware tool will be needed to terminate it. If you have little experience with computers, you could end up accidentally harming your computer when attempting to fix Piiq Ransomware manually. If you do not want to cause further harm, use an anti-malware software. This program is useful to have on the computer because it can not only get rid of this infection but also prevent one from getting in in the future. Find which malware removal tool is most suitable for you, install it and authorize it to execute a scan of your system to locate the infection. Keep in mind that, a malware removal software does not have the capabilities to restore your files. If the data encoding malicious program has been terminated completely, restore files from backup, and if you don’t have it, start using it.
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Learn how to remove Piiq Ransomware from your computer

• Step 1. Remove Piiq Ransomware using Safe Mode with Networking.
• Step 2. Remove Piiq Ransomware using System Restore
• Step 3. Recover your data

Step 1. Remove Piiq Ransomware using Safe Mode with Networking.

• a) Step 1. Access Safe Mode with Networking.
• b) Step 2. Remove Piiq Ransomware.

a) Step 1. Access Safe Mode with Networking.

For Windows 7/Vista/XP

1. Start → Shutdown → Restart → OK.
2. Press and keep pressing F8 until Advanced Boot Options appears.
3. Choose Safe Mode with Networking

For Windows 8/10 users

1. Press the power button that appears at the Windows login screen. Press and hold Shift. Click Restart.
2. Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup Settings → Restart.
3. Choose Enable Safe Mode with Networking.

b) Step 2. Remove Piiq Ransomware.

You will now need to open your browser and download some kind of anti-malware software. Choose a trustworthy one, install it and have it scan your computer for malicious threats. When the ransomware is found, remove it. If, for some reason, you can't access Safe Mode with Networking, go with another option.

Step 2. Remove Piiq Ransomware using System Restore

• a) Step 1. Access Safe Mode with Command Prompt.
• b) Step 2. Restore files and settings.

a) Step 1. Access Safe Mode with Command Prompt.

For Windows 7/Vista/XP

1. Start → Shutdown → Restart → OK.
2. Press and keep pressing F8 until Advanced Boot Options appears.
3. Select Safe Mode with Command Prompt.

For Windows 8/10 users

1. Press the power button that appears at the Windows login screen. Press and hold Shift. Click Restart.
2. Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup Settings → Restart.
3. Choose Enable Safe Mode with Command Prompt.

b) Step 2. Restore files and settings.

1. You will need to type in cd restore in the window that appears. Press Enter.
2. Type in rstrui.exe and again, press Enter.
3. A window will pop-up and you should press Next. Choose a restore point and press Next again.
4. Press Yes.

While this should have taken care of the ransomware, you might want to download anti-malware just to be sure no other threats are lurking.  

Step 3. Recover your data

• a) Using Data Recovery Pro to recover encrypted files.
• b) Restore files through Windows Previous Versions
• c) Using Shadow Explorer to recover files

While backup is essential, there is still quite a few users who do not have it. If you are one of them, you can try the below provided methods and you just might be able to recover files.

a) Using Data Recovery Pro to recover encrypted files.

1. Download Data Recovery Pro, preferably from a trustworthy website.
2. Scan your device for recoverable files.
3. Recover them.

b) Restore files through Windows Previous Versions

If you had System Restore enabled, you can recover files through Windows Previous Versions.

1. Find a file you want to recover.
2. Right-click on it.
3. Select Properties and then Previous versions.
4. Pick the version of the file you want to recover and press Restore.

c) Using Shadow Explorer to recover files

If you are lucky, the ransomware did not delete your shadow copies. They are made by your system automatically for when system crashes.

1. Go to the official website (shadowexplorer.com) and acquire the Shadow Explorer application.
2. Set up and open it.
3. Press on the drop down menu and pick the disk you want.
4. If folders are recoverable, they will appear there. Press on the folder and then Export.

* SpyHunter scanner, published on this site, is intended to be used only as a detection tool. More info on SpyHunter. To use the removal functionality, you will need to purchase the full version of SpyHunter. If you wish to uninstall SpyHunter, click here.