Definition Of Ransomware

Ransomware is a type of malware that encrypts a victim’s files. The attacker then demands a ransom from the victim to restore access to the data upon payment. 

Users are shown instructions for how to pay a fee to get the decryption key. The costs can range from a few hundred dollars to thousands, payable to cybercriminals in Bitcoin.or in Dollars.

It can also be seen as, is a type of malware that prevents users from accessing their system or personal files and demands ransom payment in order to regain access. The earliest variants of ransomware were developed in the late 1980s, and payment was to be sent via snail mail. Today, ransomware authors order that payment be sent via cryptocurrency or credit card.

Types of ransomware

There are three main types of ransomware, ranging in severity from mildly off-putting to Cuban Missile Crisis dangerous. They are as follows:

Scareware

Scareware, as it turns out, is not that scary. It includes rogue security software and tech support scams. You might receive a pop-up message claiming that malware was discovered and the only way to get rid of it is to pay up. If you do nothing, you’ll likely continue to be bombarded with pop-ups, but your files are essentially safe.

A legitimate cybersecurity software program would not solicit customers in this way. If you don’t already have this company’s software on your computer, then they would not be monitoring you for ransomware infection. If you do have security software, you wouldn’t need to pay to have the infection removed—you’ve already paid for the software to do that very job.

Screen lockers

Upgrade to terror alert orange for these guys. When lock-screen ransomware gets on your computer, it means you’re frozen out of your PC entirely. Upon starting up your computer, a full-size window will appear, often accompanied by an official-looking FBI or US Department of Justice seal saying illegal activity has been detected on your computer and you must pay a fine. However, the FBI would not freeze you out of your computer or demand payment for illegal activity. If they suspected you of piracy, child pornography, or other cybercrimes, they would go through the appropriate legal channels.

Encrypting ransomware

This is the truly nasty stuff. These are the guys who snatch up your files and encrypt them, demanding payment in order to decrypt and redeliver. The reason why this type of ransomware is so dangerous is because once cybercriminals get ahold of your files, no security software or system restore can return them to you. Unless you pay the ransom—for the most part, they’re gone. And even if you do pay up, there’s no guarantee the cybercriminals will give you those files back.

How ransomware works

There are a number of vectors ransomware can take to access a computer. One of the most common delivery systems is phishing spam — attachments that come to the victim in an email, masquerading as a file they should trust. Once they’re downloaded and opened, they can take over the victim’s computer, especially if they have built-in social engineering tools that trick users into allowing administrative access. Some other, more aggressive forms of ransomware, like Notpetva, exploit security holes to infect computers without needing to trick users.

There are several things the malware might do once it has taken over the victim’s computer, but by far the most common action is to encrypt some or all of the user’s files. If you want the technical details, the Infosec Institute has a clear analysis of how this malware encrypt files. But the most important thing to know is that at the end of the process, the files cannot be decrypted without a mathematical key known only by the attacker. The user is presented with a message explaining that their files are now are now inaccessible and will only be decrypted if the victim sends an untraceable Bitcoin payment to the attacker.

In some forms of malware, the attacker might claim to be a law enforcement agent ,shutting down the victim’s computer due to the presence of pornography or pirated software on it, and demanding the payment of a “fine,” perhaps to make victims less likely to report the attack to authorities. But most attacks don’t bother with this pretense. There is also a variation,called leakware or doxware , in which the attacker threatens to publicize sensitive data on the victim’s hard drive unless a ransom is paid. But because finding and extracting such information is a very tricky proposition for attackers, encryption ransomware is by far the most common type.

Who is a target for ransomware?

There are several different ways attackers choose their victims. Sometimes it’s a matter of opportunity: for instance, attackers might target universities because they tend to have smaller security teams and a disparate user base that does a lot of file sharing, making it easier to penetrate their defenses.

On the other hand, some organizations are tempting targets because they seem more likely to pay a ransom quickly. For instance, government agencies or medical facilities often need immediate access to their files. Law firms and other organizations with sensitive data may be willing to pay to keep news of a compromise quiet — and these organizations may be uniquely sensitive to leakware attacks.

What to do if I’m infected

The number one rule if you find yourself infected with ransomware is to never pay the ransom. (This is now advice endorsed by fbi.) All that does is encourage cybercriminals to launch additional attacks against either you or someone else. However, you may be able to retrieve some encrypted files by using free decryptors.

To be clear: Not all ransomware families have had decryptors created for them, in many cases because the ransomware is utilizing advanced and sophisticated encryption algorithms. And even if there is a decryptor, it’s not always clear if it’s for right version of the malware. You don’t want to further encrypt your files by using the wrong decryption script. Therefore, you’ll need to pay close attention to the ransom message itself, or perhaps ask the advice of a security/IT specialist before trying anything.

Other ways to deal with a ransomware infection include downloading a security product known for remediation and running a scan to remove the threat. You may not get your files back, but you can rest assured the infection will be cleaned up. For screenlocking ransomware, a full system restore might be in order. If that doesn’t work, you can try running a scan from a bootable CD or USB drive.

If you want to try and thwart an encrypting ransomware infection in action, you’ll need to stay particularly vigilant. If you notice your system slowing down for seemingly no reason, shut it down and disconnect it from the Internet. If, once you boot up again the malware is still active, it will not be able to send or receive instructions from the command and control server. That means without a key or way to extract payment, the malware may stay idle.  At that point, download and install a security product and run a full scan.

How To Protect My Computer From Ransomware

Security experts agree that the best way to protect from ransomware is to prevent it from happening.

While there are methods to deal with a ransomware infection, they are imperfect solutions at best, and often require much more technical skill than the average computer user. So here’s what we recommend people do in order to avoid fallout from ransomware attacks.

The first step in ransomware prevention is to invest in awesome cybersecurity—a program with real-time protection that’s designed to thwart advanced malware attacks such as ransomware. You should also look out for features that will both shield vulnerable programs from threats (an anti-exploit technology) as well as block ransomware from holding files hostage (an anti-ransomware component). Customers who were using strong antiviruses like super antispyware, for example, were protected from all of the major ransomware attacks of 2017.

Next, as much as it may pain you, you need to create secure backups of your data on a regular basis. Our recommendation is to use cloud storage that includes high-level encryption and multiple-factor authentication. However, you can purchase USBs or an external hard drive where you can save new or updated files—just be sure to physically disconnect the devices from your computer after backing up, otherwise they can become infected with ransomware, too.

Then, be sure your systems and software are updated. The WannaCry ransomware outbreak took advantage of a vulnerability in Microsoft software. While the company had released a patch for the security loophole back in March 2017, many folks didn’t install the update—which left them open to attack. We get that it’s hard to stay on top of an ever-growing list of updates from an ever-growing list of software and applications used in your daily life. That’s why we recommend changing your settings to enable automatic updating.

Finally, stay informed. One of the most common ways that computers are infected with ransomware is through social engineering. Educate yourself (and your employee if you’re a business owner) on how to detect malspam, suspicious websites, and other scams. And above all else, exercise common sense. If it seems suspect, it probably is.

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