Master Penalty Document Virus

What is Master Penalty Document?

The Master Penalty Document message (purporting to be delivered from SOPA and PIPA), blocks computer users' desktops and is a scam. This is a ransomware infection which orders computer users to pay a 100 Euro fine for supposed law violations (for example, using a pirated version of an operating system or other software).

PC users should not trust this message, since it has no connection with legitimate authorities. It is a scam created by cyber criminals who make money from computer users who fall for such trickery and pay the bogus fine. Paying this fine is equivalent to sending your money to cyber criminals, and there is no guarantee that your computer will be unblocked as a result.

This ransomware infection is derived from a family of screen lockers called Chidol. Previous variants of this scam used the same message and header, but with the following text: Stop Piracy. Cyber criminals commonly exploit the names of various authorities from around the world to make their fake messages appear authentic.

All messages that block computer screens are fake - no international authorities use screen lockers to collect fines for any law infringements. If you see this type of message on your computer screen, you are dealing with a ransomware infection. Ignore this fake message and eliminate it from your PC immediately.

Cyber criminals use pre-paid card services (such as Ukash, paysafecard, moneypak, and cashU) to collect the fake fines. This method of money transaction is difficult to trace, thus making the work of genuine authorities problematic.

The Master Penalty Document message is a scam, do not trust it. This ransomware infection infiltrates users' computers by exploiting security vulnerabilities. To avoid these infections, keep your operating system and installed software (Java, Flash, etc.) up-to-date.

Other known methods used for distribution of this rasomware include Trojans, fake software updates, infected video codecs, and malicious websites. Protect your Internet surfing by using legitimate antivirus and antispyware programs. If your computer is already blocked by Master Penalty Document ransomware, use the removal guide provided to eliminate this scam from your PC.

A fake message displayed by the Master Penalty Document virus:

Master Penalty Document.
SOPA (Software Online Piracy Act) and PIPA (PROTECT Intellectual Property Act) has detected that you used piracy content on your computer such as:
Operating system (OS) which has NOT been installed IN LEGAL WAY: Child Porno materials (CP) on your PC, Software you used right now (installed with OS) ARE NOT LEGITIMATE. Your system HAS BEEN LOCKED and your data has been encrypted. To unlock your PC, decrypt your data and avoid arrest you MUST pay a penalty of 100 EURO. You can choose one of payment methods below: PaySafeCard, Ukash, CashU or MoneyPack. You should buy a voucher in many places near you: Walmart, OMV, 7 eleven, ESSO, Avia, epay, kiosks. Enter-code below to unlock your PC.

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Quick menu:

• What is Master Penalty Document?
• STEP 1. "Master Penalty Document" virus removal using safe mode with networking.
• STEP 2. Remove "Master Penalty Document" ransomware manually by deleting files and registry entries.

Master Penalty Document virus removal:

Step 1

Start your computer in Safe Mode. Click Start, click Shut Down, click Restart, click OK. During your computer starting process press the F8 key on your keyboard multiple times until you see the Windows Advanced Option menu, then select Safe Mode with Networking from the list.

 

Video showing how to start Windows 7 in "Safe Mode with Networking":

Video showing how to start Windows 8 in "Safe Mode with Networking":

Step 2

Log in to the account infected with the Master Penalty Document virus. Start your Internet browser and download a legitimate anti-spyware program. Update the anti-spyware software and start a full system scan. Remove all entries detected.

After completing these steps, your computer should be clean. Reboot your computer in Normal Mode.

Alternative Master Penalty Document virus removal guide:

If this ransomware blocks your screen when you start your computer in Safe Mode with Networking, try starting your PC in Safe Mode with Command Prompt.

1. During your computer starting process, press the F8 key on your keyboard multiple times until the Windows Advanced Options menu appears, and then select Safe Mode with Command Prompt from the list and press ENTER.

2. In the opened Command Prompt, type explorer and press Enter. This command will open the Explorer window - do not close it and continue to the next step.

3. In the Command Prompt, type regedit and press Enter. This will open the Registry Editor window.

4. In the Registry Editor window, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\

5. In the right side of the window, locate "Shell" and right click on it. Click on Modify. The default value in the Data column is Explorer.exe - if you see something else displayed in this window, remove it and type Explorer.exe (take a note of whatever else was displayed in the Data column - this is the path of the rogue execution file). Use this information to navigate to the rogue executable and remove it.

6. Restart your computer, download and install legitimate anti-spyware software and perform a full system scan to eliminate any remnants of the Master Penalty Document virus.

If you cannot start your computer in Safe Mode with Networking (or with Command Prompt), boot your computer using a rescue disk. Some variants of ransomware disable Safe Mode, making its removal more complicated. For this step, you need access to another computer.

After removing the Master Penalty Document virus from your PC, restart your computer and scan it with legitimate antispyware software to remove any possible remnants of this security infection.

Other tools known to remove the Master Penalty Document virus:

• Malwarebytes Anti-Malware

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