Remove Internet Police virus

What is Internet Police virus

Internet Police virus is a ransomware that locks your computer and tries to trick you into paying money. It’s one of those malware infections that claims you have broken the law and need to pay a fine to avoid prosecution. While no longer very common, these infections can still be encountered.

This particular ransomware claims to have locked your computer because you are accused of watching banned pornography (child pornography, zoophilia, rape), pirating software and similar things. It names a few laws you have broken and threatens you with prison time. However, you can avoid prosecution and prison if you pay a fine of $100. It should go without saying that the whole thing is nonsense. If you were actually doing the mentioned things, you would certainly not get away with a fine. And it should be obvious that law enforcement do not locks computers remotely. So if you have encountered this particular ransomware, you simply need to delete Internet Police virus and you can go back to normal browsing.

The Internet Police virus is distributed in the usual ways, such as malicious or infected websites, exploit kits, etc. Generally, if you are more careful when using the Internet, you should be able to avoid a lot of malware.

Ransomware distribution methods

Screen locking ransomware usually spreads via infected or malicious websites, rootkits, and spam emails. The last one is relatively easy to avoid, as you just have to not open spam email attachments. Be particularly cautious of emails that pressure you to open attachments, which are supposedly important files. When you get an unsolicited email with an attachment, always scan the file with anti-malware software or services like VirusTotal before opening it.

If you want to avoid installing malware from malicious or infected websites, you need to have anti-malware software running on your device. You can’t really avoid visiting legitimate websites that have been hacked but if you have anti-malware running, it would prevent the malware from doing anything, including locking your screen. We also suggest installing updates, both Windows and program ones. Updates patch security vulnerabilities that could be used to install malware onto your computer.

What does Internet Police virus do?

The malware will lock your screen and show a note explaining that you have broken the law and need to pay a fine in order to avoid prosecution. These messages may worry users at first but at closer look it becomes quite obvious as to what’s going on.

The message explains that because you have watched illegal pornography/pirated software or other content, your computer has been locked. Supposedly, if you want to avoid years in prison, you should pay $100 in vouchers. Even to someone who knows very little of law it should be obvious that that is not how the law works. You don’t get away with watching/distributing child pornography by paying $100 in vouchers.

In no way do these messages look even remotely convincing but crooks are probably aiming to scare users, and fear makes people do unreasonable things.

It should be noted that law enforcement do not lock computers remotely, so keep in mind that whenever you encounter such messages, you are dealing with ransomware.

Internet Police virus removal

To unlock your computer, you will need to remove Internet Police virus. This is not something you should do manually because you could end up missing something or doing further damage. To uninstall Internet Police virus, use anti-malware software. However, to download/open the security tool, you will need to boot your computer in Safe Mode. Instructions to help with Internet Police virus removal can be found below this report.

Learn how to remove Internet Police virus from your computer

• Step 1. Delete ransomware via anti-malware
• Step 2. Delete Internet Police virus using System Restore
• Step 3. Recover your data

Step 1. Delete ransomware via anti-malware

• a) Windows 7/Windows Vista/Windows XP
• b) Windows 8/Windows 10

a) Windows 7/Windows Vista/Windows XP

1. Start menu -> Shut down -> Restart.
2. Press and keep pressing F8 until Advanced Boot Options loads.
3. Select Safe Mode with Networking and press Enter.
4. When your computer boots, download anti-malware software via your browser.
5. Launch the program, scan your computer and delete the infection.

b) Windows 8/Windows 10

1. Press the Windows key on your keyboard and click on the power icon.
2. Select Restart while holding the Shift key.
3. Choose Troubleshoot and then Advanced options.
4. In Advanced options, choose Startup Settings and select Enable Safe mode with Networking (or just Safe Mode).
5. Press Restart.

Step 2. Delete Internet Police virus using System Restore

• a) Windows 7/Windows Vista/Windows XP
• b) Windows 8/Windows 10

a) Windows 7/Windows Vista/Windows XP

1. Start menu -> Shut down -> Restart.
2. Press and keep pressing F8 until Advanced Boot Options load.
3. Select Safe Mode with Command Prompt, and press Enter.
4. In Command Prompt, type in cd restore and press Enter.
5. Then type in rstrui.exe and press Enter again.
6. A new window will appear where you will have to choose a restore point. Choose one dating back prior to infection and press Next, and then Finish.

b) Windows 8/Windows 10

1. Press the Windows key on your keyboard and click on the power icon.
2. Select Restart while holding the Shift key.
3. Select Troubleshoot and then Advanced options.
4. In Advanced options, choose Startup Settings and select Enable Safe mode with Command Prompt.
5. In the Command Prompt window that appears, type in cd restore and press Enter.
6. Then type in rstrui.exe and press Enter again.
7. In the window that appears, you will have to select a restore point dating back prior to infection. Select one and press Next, then Finish.

Step 3. Recover your data

• a) Method 1. Data Recovery Pro
• b) Method 2. Windows Previous Versions
• c) Method 3. Shadow Explorer

When your files are encrypted by ransomware, you may be able to recover them. Below, you will find methods that could help you with file decryption. However, bear in mind that file decryption is not guaranteed. These methods are not always reliable, thus the best way to recover files would be via backup. And if you don't already have it, we suggest you invest in it.

a) Method 1. Data Recovery Pro

1. Download the Data Recovery Pro program.
2. Install and run the program.
3. Press Start Scan to see if data can be recovered.
4. If it finds recoverable files, you can restore them.

b) Method 2. Windows Previous Versions

If you had System Restore enabled prior to infection, your files should be recoverable through Windows Previous Versions.

1. Find a file you want to recover and right-click on it.
2. Properties -> Previous Versions.
3. Choose a version from the list and press Restore.

c) Method 3. Shadow Explorer

Some ransomware does not delete automatically created copies of your files, which are known as Shadow Copies. If they were not deleted, you should be able to recover them via Shadow Explorer.

1. Download Shadow Explorer from a reliable source.
2. Install and run the program.
3. Choose a disk that contains encrypted files and if it contains folders with recoverable files, press Export.