How to Protect Your Computer Against Rising Ransomware Scams

Every season we take special notice to developing and surmounting malware threats, which take precedence over the run-of-the-mill and common placed malware infections. Ransomware has been the mounting threat that has arisen to cause the most destruction in this season as we set our eyes on a new year.

Ransomware, what happens to be one of the most disturbing malware trends today, has shown its ugly face in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. Ransomware is somewhat of an innovative creation, which utilizes known law enforcement entities around the world to mimic and pass off as a notification of detecting unlawful activities performed on the Internet. Usually, Ransomware is presented in an elusive message or pop-up notification closely resembling a local police or lawful organization where it asks that a fee be paid to unlock the affected computer.

Typically, ransomware threats lock users out of their system by preventing access to some applications and may limit access to the Internet. To supposedly restore access, the ransomware threat demands a fine, sometimes offered to be paid through legitimate online payment processing methods. Paying the fine is no guarantee that the ransomware will unlock an infected system.

According to a recent Symantec report, 68,000 compromised computers were identified within just one month defrauding victims in upwards of $400,000. A larger ransomware gang, responsible for the widely spread Reveton ransomware, was found attempting to infect 500,000 computers over just an 18 day period. It has been estimated that over $5 million a year is being extorted from new-found victims of ransomware.

We have run across many examples of ransomware utilizing aggressive techniques to swindle PC users out of money. Some have plagiarized many well-known entities, such as the FBI (ie: FBI MoneyPak Ransomware), the Ukash payment system (ie: Ukash Virus ransomware), and even known Windows alert messages (ie: Windows Genuine Advantage Ransomware).

Malware creators are becoming bolder as they test the virtual limits of gullible-at-heart computer users. The envelope is literally being pushed by cybercriminals as they have taken extreme measures to not only use ransomware to extort money, but they are sending physical ransom letters to gain access to PCs. The possibilities for cybercriminals to creatively extort money from the unsuspecting is endless.

How can you protect yourself from emerging Ransomware?

It is never an easy task when it comes to identifying what is a legitimate pop-up message on a computer. With that said, ransomware commonly thrive on this very notion, which is why such attacks have high rates of success in ciphering money from unsuspecting computer users.

There are a few ways that you can protect yourself from emerging ransomware. We have listed our top three tips for protection against ransomware below.

1. Never, ever, pay the ransomware fine - Probably the easiest choice you can make when confronted with a new ransomware and its notification message, is to never pay the ransom fine. Paying the fine will hardly ever unlock an infected system or magically make the ransomware message disappear.
2. Remove the ransomware with antispyware or other security tools - Taking proactive measures to protect yourself against new malware and ransomware is always a good thing, but it does not always ensure you are protected 100% from the latest and greatest infection to secretly slip into your computer. Downloading, installing, and running the most recent ransomware solution (ie: an antivirus or antispyware application) to safely detect and remove any given ransomware threat will ensure the malware is completely removed without causing unnecessary damage to the infected system. Additionally, using security software from trusted companies will act as a barrier of protection the next time that a new threat comes knocking at your computer door.
3. Ensure all of your software is up-to-date - Probably the most over-looked solution and proactive measure to protect oneself against ransomware or other malware is to make sure all of your software is up-to-date. You will want to make sure all Windows security patches currently available for your version of Windows is up to date and properly applied. Many times additional protection measures are built into software updates, especially the Windows operating system. Traditionally, malware threats and even new ransomware is designed to attack systems with vulnerabilities. Running outdated software is an easy way to make a system vulnerable to a remote or drive-by-download attack, which will essentially allow a threat to be installed.