New encoder frees up your files if you play PUBG

The new encoder associated with the game PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG) seems just a joke, because It does not require money to free up your files.

Many types of computer viruses or “malware” can make life unbearable if you do not adequately protect your computer, especially when using the Internet. The consequences can be very different: from spies to trojans or requests to make Bing your default search engine whenever you update Skype (well, the latter is not a virus, and you should be careful). And cryptographers are even more popular than ever, because they enable their authors to make money. But recently, a cryptographer who makes his victims play PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG) says a lot about the creativity of modern criminals.
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As a rule, do not be careless about cryptographers. The main difference between encryptors and other types of malware is that encryptors do not destroy data - they encrypt them or, in other words, “steal” victim files. Those who are behind these attacks simply need to provide a password in order to return the system back to normal before they are encrypted. As you can remember, about a year ago, the WCry or WannaCry cipher shocked the world and put thousands of computers at risk, although the PUBG game is not of such scale.



The existence of this virus has become known to the public through the efforts of MalwareHunterTeam . Its main function is that it encrypts all files and folders on the desktop, adding the .PUBG extension, with the goal of “getting” you to play PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds for an hour. We do not accidentally write the word “force” in quotation marks, because the encrypter makes you understand that you can enter the code in the appropriate field to return the system to a normal state. Thus, it seems that this malware is just a harmless joke.

In particular, the message, which is intended to convince you to save your captured data, says in bad English that the PUBG Ransomware encryption cipher your files. This is understandable, but you can not worry too much, because no one after this requires money from you, and your files can be decrypted if you just play PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds for an hour or enter the resulting code.

So, if you do not want to play PUGB, you can simply enter a set of numbers. By analyzing the code to check how the encryptor determines whether you are playing the game or not, MalwareHunterTeam experts determined that the cryptographer simply keeps track of whether the TS1Game file (the executable file that starts the game) was running or not.

In addition, you can "figure it out" with this cryptographer without having to follow the instructions and play the game for an hour - for this you can simply rename any file in TS1Game.exe and run it, because It takes only three seconds for the malware to determine that the action was committed.



After the encryptor's request has been fulfilled, either as a result of this simple trick or by fair play of PUBG, the encryptor automatically decrypts the captured files and allows you to continue to do your own business or perhaps play Fortnite, a competitor of PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds.



This is not the first time that this type of malware appears that is associated with a video game. In 2017 there was another similar case, but its difference was that no code was provided to bypass it, and therefore the victim needed to score quite a large number of points in a rather complicated shooter game.

However, the security of your systems is not something worth playing with, and even seemingly innocent jokes may eventually contain secret Trojans that can be activated in a few months. It is better to play games voluntarily and if desired, and not through threats that can infect your computer.