The virus locks files using AES+RSA cryptography, which is nearly impossible to break. Such combination of cryptography is typically used to secure military-grade secrets. However, the ransomware uses either online or offline keys to lock data based on the success to establish connection with a remote server. The offline key is easier to break, therefore victims affected by the offline key encryption can restore their files sooner or later. Good news! Victims of offline ransomware encryption can decrypt WERD files for free using Emsisoft Decrypter for STOP/DJVU. Find instructions here. Unfortunately, the online keys are generated on the criminals’ end, therefore, such victims looking for help on decrypting .werd files cannot recover their files in any other way than using data backups. If your files were encrypted with offline key (your personal ID ends with t1), you can recover at least part of your data for free using STOP Decrypter. Find instructions here.

The attackers demand paying a hefty ransom to recover data

The ransomware developers provide their conditions in the ransom notes stored in each data folder with encrypted data. The _readme.txt file explains that all files have been encrypted, but they can be returned if the victim pays a hefty sum of money to the cyber criminals. In other words, the hackers want you to pay a ransom, which you shouldn’t do in any circumstances as they cannot be trusted and you may never get your data back even after paying. The note informs that the victim can contact WERD file virus developers via gorentos@bitmessage.ch or amundas@firemail.cc. To force the victim believe that it is worth paying the ransom, the attackers suggest decrypting one file for free. They even provide a 50% discount for victims who reach out within 72 hours from the ransomware infection. These can pay $490 instead of $980 (the full price) for the DJVU Decryptor. Full contents of the ransom note are given below. ATTENTION!Don’t worry, you can return all your files!All your files like photos, databases, documents and other important are encrypted with strongest encryption and unique key.The only method of recovering files is to purchase decrypt tool and unique key for you.This software will decrypt all your encrypted files.What guarantees you have?You can send one of your encrypted file from your PC and we decrypt it for free. But we can decrypt only 1 file for free. File must not contain valuable information.You can get and look video overview decrypt tool:[removed link]Price of private key and decrypt software is $980.Discount 50% available if you contact us first 72 hours, that’s price for you is $490.Please note that you’ll never restore your data without payment.Check your e-mail “Spam” or “Junk” folder if you don’t get answer more than 6 hours.To get this software you need write on our e-mail:gorentos@bitmessage.chReserve e-mail address to contact us:amundas@firemail.ccYour personal ID:SDF5hTlGeFDSFC5nsgsaoejm4RWx1y37zcacA5hsfl60BnY8fnbsdJH62723bqD7sdfJmYmGFWxkjhDG2710AbS35Qaidkhghvt1 If you have been infected with this malicious file-encoding virus, we strongly recommend you to remove WERD file virus as soon as you can using a trustworthy antivirus. Please check software reviews on our site if you do not have any at the moment. In addition, follow the guidelines provided below the article to start your antivirus safely while the virus is lurking on your computer system.

Chances to recover data are low

To decrypt .werd files, you’ll need to collect original and encrypted data examples and teach the decryptor to unlock the rest of your files. However, if your files were locked by an online key, there are no chances to recover data at the moment. Cryptography is a very complicated process which is made to be complex on a time basis, meaning that attempts to decrypt a file without having a private key could take years. It is why such encryption is so strong and the chances to recover files are low. If you are wondering why other STOP DJVU versions (such as RECO, NOOS, BOOT, BORA) are decryptable but .leto or .toec extension files are not, it is so because the DJVU ransomware has been updated in August 2019 and the encryption methods used were improved. Once the attackers send out the private key to their own servers, there is no way to obtain or extract it (unless an offline key is used).

Threat Summary

Avoid ransomware attacks in the future

Werd ransomware is known to be distributed via untrustworthy and possibly illegal websites that provide software cracks, keygens, and other unofficial software activators (for instance, KMSPico virus). You have a bigger chance to catch such ransomware infection in you tend to trust various sites that share torrent or other peer-to-peer type downloads. Please remember that it is better to be safe than sorry, and obtaining legal software licenses is typically much cheaper than paying to the ransomware developers. Furthermore, please be aware of other tricks employed by malware distributors. They often target users of older Windows systems that still use old technologies such as Flash Player. Therefore, it is extremely important to keep up to date with current technologies that are much more secure and always update the operating system along with programs that you have. This way, the attackers have lower chances of exploiting vilnerabitlities in your software and OS. Finally, try to create data backups regularly. It is vital to store them on external storage devices. Although you can also use cloud backups, remember that some ransomware versions are made to reach these clouds and encrypt files stored there during the attack, too.

Remove WERD ransomware virus immediately

and recover data from backups

Do not relay WERD ransomware removal – its is extremely important to delete it along with Azorult Trojan that it installs on the system. Please follow the instructions given below and eliminate the threat according to provided professional guidance. Once you remove Werd ransomware virus, start restoring your files from a data backup. You can also try to gather as many original file copies as possible from emails, data transfer services used recently, messages, phone, and so on. Please also change all of your passwords that you use online due to Azorult’s banking Trojan activity. Finally, we do not recommend deleting the encrypted files for good – the encryption tool MIGHT appear in the far future. Victims of ransomware attacks are kindly asked to inform their friends and family about ransomware protection methods. There is no 100% working way to secure yourself against ransomware in a blink of an eye. People should follow the latest malware distribution trends and be aware of them in order to avoid falling a victim. OUR GEEKS RECOMMEND Our team recommends a two-step rescue plan to remove ransomware and other remaining malware from your computer, plus repair caused virus damage to the system: GeeksAdvice.com editors select recommended products based on their effectiveness. We may earn a commission from affiliate links, at no additional cost to you. Learn more. Get INTEGO ANTIVIRUS for Windows to remove ransomware, Trojans, adware and other spyware and malware variants and protect your PC and network drives 24/7. This VB100-certified security software uses state-of-art technology to provide protection against ransomware, Zero-Day attacks and advanced threats, Intego Web Shield blocks dangerous websites, phishing attacks, malicious downloads and installation of potentially unwanted programs. Use INTEGO Antivirus to remove detected threats from your computer. Read full review here. RESTORO provides a free scan that helps to identify hardware, security and stability issues and presents a comprehensive report which can help you to locate and fix detected issues manually. It is a great PC repair software to use after you remove malware with professional antivirus. The full version of software will fix detected issues and repair virus damage caused to your Windows OS files automatically. RESTORO uses AVIRA scanning engine to detect existing spyware and malware. If any are found, the software will eliminate them. Read full review here.

Method 1. Enter Safe Mode with Networking

Before you try to remove WERD ransomware virus, you must start your computer in Safe Mode with Networking. Below, we provide the easiest ways to boot PC in the said mode, but you can find additional ones in this in-depth tutorial on our website – How to Start Windows in Safe Mode. Also, if you prefer a video version of the tutorial, check our guide How to Start Windows in Safe Mode on Youtube. Instructions for Windows XP/Vista/7 users Instructions for Windows 8/8.1/10/11 users Now, you can search for and remove WERD ransomware files. It is very hard to identify files and registry keys that belong to the ransomware virus, Besides, malware creators tend to rename and change them repeatedly. Therefore, the easiest way to uninstall such type of a computer virus is to use a reliable security program such as INTEGO Antivirus. For virus damage repair, consider using RESTORO.

Method 2. Use System Restore

In order to use System Restore, you must have a system restore point, created either manually or automatically. Instructions for Windows XP/Vista/7 users Instructions for Windows 8/8.1/10/11 users After restoring the system, we recommend scanning the system with antivirus or anti-malware software. In most cases, there won’t be any malware remains, but it never hurts to double-check. In addition, we highly recommend checking ransomware prevention guidelines provided by our experts in order to protect your PC against similar viruses in the future.

Alternative software recommendations

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Removing spyware and malware is one step towards cybersecurity. To protect yourself against ever-evolving threats, we strongly recommend purchasing a Premium version of Malwarebytes Anti-Malware, which provides security based on artificial intelligence and machine learning. Includes ransomware protection. See pricing options and protect yourself now.

System Mechanic Ultimate Defense If you’re looking for an all-in-one system maintenance suite that has 7 core components providing powerful real-time protection, on-demand malware removal, system optimization, data recovery, password manager, online privacy protection and secure driver wiping technology. Therefore, due to its wide-range of capabilities, System Mechanic Ultimate Defense deserves Geek’s Advice approval. Get it now for 50% off. You may also be interested in its full review.

Disclaimer. This site includes affiliate links. We may earn a small commission by recommending certain products, at no additional cost for you. We only choose quality software and services to recommend.

Decrypt WERD files

Fix and open large WERD files easily:

It is reported that STOP/DJVU ransomware versions encrypt only the beginning 150 KB of each file to ensure that the virus manages to affect all files on the system. In some cases, the malicious program might skip some files at all. That said, we recommend testing this method on several big (>1GB) files first.

STOP/DJVU decryption tool usage guide

STOP/DJVU ransomware versions are grouped into old and new variants. WERD ransomware is considered the new STOP/DJVU variant, just like BPTO, ISWR, ISZA, BPSM, ZOUU, MBTF, ZNSM (find full list here). This means full data decryption is now possible only if you have been affected by offline encryption key. To decrypt your files, you will have to download Emsisoft Decryptor for STOP DJVU, a tool created and maintained by a genius security researcher Michael Gillespie. Note! Please do not spam the security researcher with questions whether he can recover your files encrypted with online key - it is not possible. In order to test the tool and see if it can decrypt WERD files, follow the given tutorial.

Meanings of decryptor’s messages

The WERD decryption tool might display several different messages after failed attempt to restore your files. You might receive one of the following messages: Error: Unable to decrypt file with ID: [example ID] This message typically means that there is no corresponding decryption key in the decryptor’s database. No key for New Variant online ID: [example ID]Notice: this ID appears to be an online ID, decryption is impossible This message informs that your files were encrypted with online key, meaning no one else has the same encryption/decryption key pair, therefore data recovery without paying the criminals is impossible. Result: No key for new variant offline ID: [example ID]This ID appears to be an offline ID. Decryption may be possible in the future. If you were informed that an offline key was used, but files could not be restored, it means that the offline decryption key isn’t available yet. However, receiving this message is extremely good news, meaning that it might be possible to restore your WERD extension files in the future. It can take a few months until the decryption key gets found and uploaded to the decryptor. We recommend you to follow updates regarding the decryptable DJVU versions here. We strongly recommend backing up your encrypted data and waiting.

Victims of WERD ransomware should report the Internet crime incident to the official government fraud and scam website according to their country:

In the United States, go to the On Guard Online website.In Australia, go to the SCAMwatch website.In Germany, go to the Bundesamt für Sicherheit in der Informationstechnik website.In Ireland, go to the An Garda Síochána website.In New Zealand, go to the Consumer Affairs Scams website.In the United Kingdom, go to the Action Fraud website.In Canada, go to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.In India, go to Indian National Cybercrime Reporting Portal.In France, go to the Agence nationale de la sécurité des systèmes d’information.

If you can’t find an authority corresponding to your location on this list, we recommend using any search engine to look up “[your country name] report cyber crime”. This should lead you to the right authority website. We also recommend staying away from third-party crime report services that are often paid. It costs nothing to report Internet crime to official authorities. Another recommendation is to contact your country’s or region’s federal police or communications authority.