How to recover your valuable data after malware attack as Exploit:Win32/CplLnk.B and its variations using a cool tool!

Hello! As usual, it is my pleasure to bring you valuable information that will be of great use and help to you. In life, it is a fact that every creation of man can be described as a mixed baggage, though not intentional. Take for instance, the computer, which has over the years metamorphosed into a complex device capable of enormous calculations and deployed virtually in all spheres of human activity, from hospitals to industries, from the military to various transport sectors. The computer has become indispensable as it makes life easier.

However, in making life easier the computer also comes with its headaches. Hard drive crash, monitor failure, power pack going dead, you name it. However, the main reason behind this post is the threat of malware. Personal security has become today's headache with the rise in cyber crime. Internet security has preoccupied the minds of antivirus or antimalware (that helps protect your computer against malicious software, such as viruses, spyware, and other unwanted software) removal program developers in trying to curb the threat. At least you are able to read this via a pc, thanks to their effort. That said, our info today would bother on how you can safely recover your files if your drive is rendered useless by Exploit:Win32/CplLnk.A and its variations using a cool tool that you must have. First, a look at what viruses and malware are.

Viruses or Malware; what are they?

Many believe viruses to be programs designed to delete or move hard drive data. In this sense viruses in all their manifestation are viewed as the creations of “…prankster(s) or vandal(s) [aimed at] … effect[ing] a nonutilitarian result or to destroy data and program code.”[i]

However, technically speaking, that is not the case according to the people at Microsoft. For them “Viruses are computer programs or scripts that attempt to spread from one file to another on a single computer or from one computer to another, using a variety of methods, without the knowledge and consent of the computer user.”[ii]  For Microsoft, “what makes a virus a virus is that it spreads itself. The damage it does is often incidental when making a diagnosis.”[iii] In other words, viruses can be said to cause harm unintentionally because the authors did not anticipate the full effect or unintentional side effects of such programmes.

An example of a harmful virus is the Trojan. It attempts to infiltrate a computer without the user’s knowledge or consent. Trojans usually spread through instant-messaging software, e-mail attachments, or Web downloads. Some activities of Trojans include “browsing the hard drive to steal data, logging key strokes to acquire personal passwords or account numbers, erasing files, shutting down the computer at random, sending spam from the user's e-mail account, or deleting the entire hard drive.”[iv]

Collection of private information from your system  can be done by another malicious software called spyware; it installs itself or run on your computer without getting your consent or providing you with adequate notice or control and can monitor your online behaviour or collect information about you (including information that can identify you or other sensitive information), change settings on your computer, or cause your computer to run slowly[v].

Malicious software, or "malware," however is a term used to refer to any software designed to deliberately harm a computer, computer network or even a server and such software include viruses, worms, Trojan horses, spyware, and other unwanted software. Is this distinction clear enough between the terms “Virus” and “Malware”? Owww… do not get confused nowJ. It is just to explain why you some time here people using the words interchangeably.

Good news!

Like every other product by man, something prompted or motivated me to work on this post… an experience of a malware in a way I’ve never encountered it before and a cool tool I used to recover my valuable USB data. You will get to know about that cool must-have tool; but first, the problem. Ever read or heard of Exploit:Win32/CplLnk.B or Exploit:Win32/CplLnk.A or its variants? That is what took over my USB after I used it on a public computer.

Exploit:Win32/CplLnk.B is a malicious application for shortcut files, which is designed to exploit and compromise computers vulnerability. If you managed to get your system infected at the instance of clicking a supposed valid shortcut to your folders or files, rather than go to the file or folder the malware will trigger a back-door activity as designed by the malicious programme programmer, one that that aimed at stealing vital information from you. In other words, the links or icons a user sees after the malware gets into a computer are those displayed by the malware. The icons on closer look ends with .lnk. thus rather than seeing your music, document or picture icons, what you see even after running a malware removal tool are music.lnk, document.lnk and picture.lnk etc.

Usually when I get that in my drive, all I needed to do was to type the path to the file or folder I intend retrieving manually since the icons or links were taken over by the malware: example, k://music/I will break your jaw, then formatting the drive afterwards. However, to my surprise, no tricks worked on that fateful day. Even after using my favourite Antivirus tool of the moment I still could not access my precious files ;(.

I thought of how I was going to lose my valuable data. Not until I found a tool, I long ago downloaded with my “Liberkey”[vi] suite (a must-have for your portable device) which I tried out once in another scenario, searching for a file on my hard drive. That cool tool is the “FilePro” freeware disk tool. “FilePro” is a disk and file manipulation utility. It generates disk tree maps for local or network volumes. You can search and locate files in tree maps by automatic zoom-in and positioning, compare snapshot against current disk state or past snapshots. That sounds cool isn’t it?

Honestly, I have research online on how to remove Exploit:Win32/CplLnk.A but haven't grasped it. That was why I fell in love with FilePro. Immediately I ran my FilePro freeware and inserted my drive I was happy with what I saw… all my files and folders were before my very eyes after days of surfing the internet for solution not knowing I always had it on my computer.

Figure 1 Folder Map in FilePro

When you run FilePro, you have the option of viewing your drives details in tree map, tree size, folder statistics and file statistics views. You can also copy or move and delete files or folders too. To view your drives information, all you need to do is to follow the steps indicated circled region “A” in the picture above: 1) click on the “Browse folder” button and 2) clicking on the “scan” button. To copy or move files from the infected drive after you must have disinfected your system or drive you click on the folder map as shown in the region marked “B” and then “right-clicking” than selecting your option from the drop-down menu that will be displayed. You can then format the drive after all data are moved, safely, to an alternative location.

For now, this is my recommendation until I am able to bring you info on how to remove exploits from your computer. However, permit me to state here that the best practice is being careful not to let malwares onto your computer in the first place by using good protection tools. To get Liberkey with the FilePro tool, simply go to the site using this link

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[i] "Computer Virus." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica Student and Home Edition.  Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica, 2010.

[ii] See the help file when you install Microsoft security essential

[iii] ibid

[iv] "Trojan." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica Student and Home Edition.  Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica, 2010.

[v] Op cit

[vi] For a review of and download of Liberkey, please go to http://www.LiberKey.com