What is Kok8?

The renaming will be done by the following pattern: [ ].random_string.KOK8. In the process of encryption, a file named, for example, “report.docx” will be altered to “report.docx.[ ].ia813sboy1683vs81g1314.KOK8”.

In each folder containing the encoded files, a #KOK8_README#.rtf notebook document will be found. It is a ransom money note. Therein you can find information about the ways of paying the ransom and some other information. The ransom note most probably contains instructions on how to buy the decryption tool from the tamperers. You can obtain this decoding tool after contacting through email. That is it.

Name	Kok8 Virus
Extension	.[ ].random_string.KOK8
Ransomware note	#KOK8_README#.rtf
Contact
Detection1	Adware.NeoBar.Generic, Trojan:Win32/Tnega.PKD!MTB, Win32/TrojanDownloader.Agent.DGM
Symptoms	Your files (photos, videos, documents) have a .[ ].random_string.KOK8 extension and you can’t open them.
Fix Tool	GridinSoft Anti-MalwareSee If Your System Has Been Affected by Kok8 virus

In the image below, you can see what a folder with files encrypted by the Kok8 looks like. Each filename has the “.[ ].random_string.KOK8” extension appended to it.

An example of encrypted .[ ].random_string.KOK8 files.

How did my machine catch Kok8 ransomware?

Nowadays, there are three most exploited ways for malefactors to have ransomware settled in your system. These are email spam, Trojan injection and peer networks.

If you open your mailbox and see emails that look like familiar notifications from utility services companies, postal agencies like FedEx, web-access providers, and whatnot, but whose mailer is unknown to you, beware of opening those letters. They are very likely to have a harmful file attached to them. So it is even more dangerous to open any attachments that come with letters like these.

Another thing the hackers might try is a Trojan virus scheme². A Trojan is a program that gets into your computer disguised as something else. For example, you download an installer of some program you need or an update for some program. But what is unpacked reveals itself a harmful agent that encodes your data. As the installation wizard can have any title and any icon, you’d better be sure that you can trust the source of the things you’re downloading. The optimal thing is to use the software companies’ official websites.

As for the peer file transfer protocols like torrents 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 websites. Also, it is a good idea to scan the directory containing the downloaded objects with the antivirus as soon as the downloading is finished.

How to remove the Kok8 virus?

Sometimes tamperers would decode several of your files so you know that they really have the decryption program. Since Kok8 virus is a relatively recent ransomware, anti-malware developers have not yet found a method to undo its work. Nevertheless, the decoding tools are frequently upgraded, so the solution may soon be available.

Sure thing, if the malefactors do the job of encrypting someone’s critical data, the hopeless 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 send a wrong decryption key to the injured party. There were reports about hackers just vanishing after getting the money without even bothering to reply.

The best 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 disk. Obviously, that might be not enough. Your most important thing could be that file you were working on when it all went down. Nevertheless, it is something. It is also advisable to scan your drives with the antivirus program after the OS is rolled back.

Kok8 is not the only ransomware of its kind, since there are other specimens of ransomware out there that act in the same manner. For instance, Nnqp, Mljx, Hudf, and some others. The two major differences between them and the Kok8 are the ransom amount and the method of encryption. The rest is the same: files become encrypted, their extensions changed, ransom notes are created in every folder containing encrypted files.

Some fortunate people were able to decrypt the blocked files with the help of the free software provided by anti-ransomware specialists. Sometimes the racketeers mistakenly send the decryption code to the victims in the ransom readme. 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 criminals’ tool to lay their hands on the money of their victims.

How сan I avoid ransomware injection?

You can protect your PC from its injection within three easy steps:

• Never open any emails from unknown senders with unknown addresses, or with content that has nothing to do with something you are waiting for (can you win in a lottery without even taking part in it?). If the email subject is more or less something you are waiting for, check all elements of the dubious email with caution. A fake email will surely have a mistake.
• Avoid using cracked or untrusted programs. Trojans are often spreaded as an element of cracked products, possibly as a “patch” to prevent the license check. Understandably, potentially dangerous programs are difficult to tell from trustworthy ones, as trojans sometimes have the functionality you need. You can try to find information about this program on the anti-malware forums, but the best solution is not to use such software.
• And to be sure about the safety of the files you downloaded, check them with GridinSoft Anti-Malware. This software will be a perfect defense for your PC.

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 PC.

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 Kok8 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 completed, 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 “.[ ].random_string.KOK8” files accessible?

Unfortunately, no. You need to decipher the “.[ ].random_string.KOK8” files first. Then you will be able to open them.

🤔 I really need to decrypt those “.[ ].random_string.KOK8” files ASAP. How can I do that?

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. The rest of the methods require patience.

🤔 If GridinSoft deletes the Kok8 malware, will it also delete my files that were encrypted?

No way! The encrypted files are not harmful, so they won’t be deleted.

GridinSoft Anti-Malware will remove active viruses from your system. The ransomware that has infiltrated your PC is probably still active and it scans your system periodically to encrypt any new files you might create on your PC after the infection. As it has been said above, the Kok8 ransomware 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 system after some time.

🤔 What should I do if the Kok8 virus has blocked my PC and I can’t get the activation code.

In such an unfortunate situation, you need to have a memory stick with a pre-installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to do the cleaning. The point is that the ransomware starts automatically as the system boots and encodes any new files created or imported into your system. To stop this function – use Safe Mode, which allows only the vital programs to run upon system start. Consider reading our manual on running Windows in Safe Mode.

🤔 What can I do right now?

Many of the blocked files might still be at your disposal

• If you sent or received your important files by email, you could still download them from your online mail server.
• You may have shared photographs or videos with your friends or relatives. Simply ask them to give those pictures back to you.
• If you have initially got any of your files from the Web, you can try downloading them again.
• Your messengers, social networks pages, and cloud disks might have all those files as well.
• Maybe you still have the needed files on your old PC, a laptop, cellphone, memory stick, etc.

USEFUL TIP: You can use file recovery utilities⁵ to get your lost data back since ransomware encodes the copies of your files, deleting the original ones. In the tutorial below, you can see how to recover your files with PhotoRec, but remember: you can do it only after you kill the virus with an anti-malware 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 are the top 10 file recovery tools of 2021.