Remove GCNI Ransomware

The GCNI Ransomware is a file-locker, which belongs to the Spora Ransomware family. This project was very active in 2019, and it was considered to be one of the top file-encryption Trojans back then. The criminals behind it had set up online chatrooms that their victims could use to negotiate about the ransom payment. Just like other ransomware operators, the ones behind the Spora Ransomware also asked for all ransom payments to be competed through a Bitcoin transaction.

The GCNI Ransomware is not an exception, and it appears to follow the same path as the original version of the threat. Once it locks a file successfully, it will append a unique extension to its name '[ID=<VICTIM ID>Mail=FilesRecoverEN@Gmail.com].GCNI.' All victims will also find two ransom notes on their desktop – ReadMe_Now!.hta and Read_Me!_.txt.'

Trying to strike a deal with GCNI Ransomware's creators is a bad idea, because it would be easy for them to take your money without offering you anything in return. Since Bitcoin payments are the only option in this case, victims will be unable to restore their money in case of a scam.

The correct thing to do if you are a victim of the GCNI Ransomware is to use an up-to-date malware removal tool immediately. This will ensure the file-locker's full removal, preventing it from causing more mayhem. Unfortunately, this will not fix your files – you will still need to look into alternative data recovery options. The GCNI Ransomware is not compatible with free decryptors – restoring from a backup is the only way to make a full recovery.