Dealing With Ransomware

If you’ve owned a computer long enough and spent enough time on the internet, odds are, you’ve had a problem with spyware, malware, or a virus at some point in time. Depending on the severity of the problem, it could have been a minor nuisance that was fairly easy to fix or it might have caused you to lose all the files saved on your hard drive. But recently, a particularly vicious type of malware known as ransomware has been becoming a real problem for many computer owners.

While ordinary malware and viruses can be very damaging to computers, ransomware is particularly troubling since it can completely lock you out of your computer, encrypts your files, and demand that you pay a certain amount of money in order to get your files back. These are hardly empty threats. In many cases, the criminals who run ransomware rackets use encryption programs that are virtually impossible to decrypt, so victims end up feeling like they have absolutely no other choice but to pay the ransom or say goodbye to all their important files. Ransomware isn’t exactly a new thing, but it’s become a problem fairly recently because things like Bitcoin and electronic gift cards have made it easier for hackers to demand payment in a way that’s not traceable

Protecting Yourself from Ransomware

Ransomware is a problem that truly can happen to anyone. It’s happened to regular people and it’s happened to large organizations like hospitals. No matter how careful you think you are about avoiding things like viruses and spyware, the people who run these ransomware attacks have gotten extremely good at tricking people into downloading their programs. Some ransomware programs have been disguised as links in emails that appear to be from people you know or from legitimate businesses or organizations. In some cases, people have gotten ransomware from ads placed on unsecured sites.

Generally speaking, one of the best ways to avoid becoming the victim of ransomware is to be very careful about the links you click on. If you get an email from a company you regularly do business with, such as your bank or a shipping company like FedEx or UPS, saying there’s a problem with your order or account, look carefully at the email address it was sent from and try to preview the link before clicking on it. Better yet, call the company to find out if there really is a problem before you click. If it’s a link in an email that appears to be from a friend, ask yourself it seems like an email your friend would typically send. If you get a strange looking link or attachment from someone you don’t know, don’t click on it or download it.

Making sure your computer has a good security program and firewall are also very important ways to protect your computer. Stick to programs from trusted, reputable companies like Norton, Symantec, or McAfee. If you get a sudden pop-up message on your computer saying malware or viruses have been found on your computer and you need to buy a certain program to get rid of them, it’s a scam that will probably cause more problems than it solves. No reputable computer security program will try to get your business this way. If your browser has a pop-up blocker or an ad blocker, use them.

Perhaps most importantly, backup the files on your computer regularly and make sure you have copies of your system files saved to a DVD or USB drive. That way, if the worst case scenario happens and you have to completely reformat your system, you’ll be able to get back on track fairly easily without having to pay a ransom. Cloud storage makes it very easy to back up copies of your most important files without even having to think about it.

What to Do if You Get Ransomware

When your computer gets infected with ransomware, it may be tempting to just go ahead and pay the ransom, but the FBI and many compute security experts agree it’s best not to pay. Paying ransoms will only lead to ransomware becoming a larger problem in the future. In many cases, people who have paid the ransom never had their files decrypted, so they spent that money and didn’t get anything in return. There’s also the fact that the people you’re dealing with are, indeed, criminals and there’s the possibility that your money would be used to fund terrorists or other criminal activities.

If you’re the victim of ransomware, report it to the FBI regardless if you decide to pay the ransom or not. Unfortunately, there currently isn’t a whole lot the FBI can do. As Genisys Credit Union points out, most of the criminals who use ransomware are located overseas, making it difficult for government agencies to take action against them. However, the more information the FBI has about this type of activity, they may be better able to provide stronger solutions in the future.

Although many types of ransomware can be extremely difficult to decrypt, some progress is being made. In response to the growing problem with ransomware, a group of computer security companies and cybercrime police officers based in the Netherlands have created nomoreransom.org, which provides free tools to bypass some types of ransomware. The number of ransomware programs they can get through may currently be small, but if your computer happens to be infected with one of the ones they can help with, it’s nice to know you have options.