Remove .Popotic extension virus

What is ransomware

.Popotic extension virus file encrypting malware will encrypt your files and they’ll be unopenable. Ransomware is the title you should be more familiar with in regards to this type of malware. You might have contaminated your device in a couple of ways, probably either through spam email attachments, malicious advertisements or downloads from unreliable sources. These methods will be discussed further, and tips will be provided on how you could avoid similar infections in the future. Ransomware isn’t considered to be so damaging for nothing, if you want to dodge likely serious damage, make sure you know how to stop an infection. If this is not an infection you have heard of before, seeing encrypted files may be particularly shocking. Soon after you realize what is going on, you will find a ransom note, which will explain that if you want to get your files back, you need to pay money. Remember who you’re dealing with if you consider giving into the demands, because we doubt hackers will bother to send you a decryptor. We are pretty doubtful that cyber criminals will help you recover files, them simply ignoring you is more probable. By paying, you’d also be supporting an industry that does damage worth hundreds of millions yearly. We should also say that there are malware researchers who help victims of ransomware to restore files, so you may be in luck. Before you even consider the payment option, try the alternatives first. In case file backup is available, you can just recover them after you uninstall .Popotic extension virus.

Download Removal Toolto remove .Popotic extension virus

How is ransomware spread

If you wish this to be the single time you have ransomware, we recommend you cautiously study the following paragraphs. Ransomware tends to use rather basic methods for infection but more sophisticated ones are not impossible. Spam email and malicious downloads are popular among low-level ransomware authors/distributors as not much skill is required to implement them. Infecting a system via malicious email attachments is perhaps most common. Criminals attach an infected file to a kind of legitimate seeming email, and send it to future victims, whose email addresses were sold by other crooks. Despite the fact that those emails tend to be quite obvious to those who have dealt with them before, less experienced users might not necessarily understand what is going on. You have to look out for certain signs, such as grammar mistakes and email addresses that look completely fake. You may also run into the sender feigning to be from a known company because that would cause users to lower their guard. So, for example, if Amazon sends you an email, you still need to check whether the email address is correct just be sure. If your name is not used in the email, for example, in the greeting, that should raise suspicion. If you receive an email from a company/organization you had business with before, instead of greetings like Member or User, they’ll use your name. As an example, Amazon automatically includes the names customers have provided them with into emails they send, therefore if it is actually Amazon, you’ll find your name.

If you wish for the short version, you just need to be more careful when dealing with emails, which basically means you shouldn’t rush to open the email attachments and ensure the sender is who you think it is. Also, don’t press on advertisements while you’re visiting sites with questionable reputation. If you’re not careful, ransomware might end up slipping into your computer. It doesn’t matter what the ad may be endorsing, just don’t click on it. Your computer might also become contaminated if you download from sources that are not reliable, such as Torrents. Downloads through torrents and such, may be dangerous, therefore at least read the comments to ensure that you are downloading secure files. Another infection method is via flaws that could be found in software, because software is flawed, malware could take advantage of those flaws for infection. For this reason your software should always be updated. You simply have to install the updates, which are released by software vendors when the flaw becomes known.

How does ransomware act

Ransomware will begin looking for files to encrypt as soon as you launch it. Its main targets are documents and media files, as you’re likely to hold them valuable. In order to lock the identified files, the file-encrypting malware will use a powerful encryption algorithm to encrypt your files. You will see that the ones that have been locked will now contain a weird file extension. They’ll be unopenable, and soon enough, a ransom message should appear, which ought to contain information about buying a decryption program. Ransomware ask for different amounts, the decryption software may cost $100 or a even up to $1000. While you are the one to decide whether you will pay or not, do look into the reasons why malware researchers don’t recommend giving into the demands. Exploring other file recovery options would also be beneficial. Maybe a decryption utility has been developed by malware specialists. It’s also possible copies of your files are stored somewhere by you, you could just not realize it. Or maybe the ransomware did not delete the Shadow copies of your files, which indicated that by employing a specific program, you may be able to restore them. We also hope you will be more cautious in the future and have acquired some kind of backup. If you just realized that you did make backup before infection, you simply have to eliminate .Popotic extension virus, and may then proceed to recover files.

.Popotic extension virus termination

We do not advise trying to manually take care of the infection. While you couldbe successful, you might do permanent damage to your computer. Using a malware removal software to terminate the threat would be much better because the program would take care of everything for you. The utility should successfully erase .Popotic extension virus because it was created with the intention of terminating such infections. Your files will not be recovered by the program, however, as it does not have that ability. File restoring will need to be performed by you.

Download Removal Toolto remove .Popotic extension virus

Learn how to remove .Popotic extension virus from your computer

• Step 1. Remove .Popotic extension virus using Safe Mode with Networking.
• Step 2. Remove .Popotic extension virus using System Restore
• Step 3. Recover your data

Step 1. Remove .Popotic extension virus using Safe Mode with Networking.

• a) Step 1. Access Safe Mode with Networking.
• b) Step 2. Remove .Popotic extension virus.

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 .Popotic extension virus.

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 .Popotic extension virus 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.