A new virus called PolloCrypt is making the rounds, and it’s a bad one.
PolloCrypt silently encrypts all the data on your hard drive, then demands that you pay a “ransom” of several hundred dollars to a group of hackers before they will decrypt your files so you can regain access to them.
“Ransomware” of this type certainly isn’t new, but this one is the latest strain of it to hit the streets so you need to be especially wary of it.
It has been reported that the hackers often fail to decrypt a victim’s files even after the ransom has been paid, so it’s wise to avoid getting the virus in the first place if at all possible.
Here are a few things you can do to protect yourself against the nasty PolloCrypt Ransomware Virus:
1 – Make and keep on hand regular backups of your computer’s hard drive. The easiest way to do this is to simply create a System Image of the drive. This post explains how to do that in Windows 7 and this one explains how to do it in Windows 8.1.
2 – Make sure you have a good anti-virus program installed and keep it updated with the latest virus definition files. There are several good ones on the market, but I personally use and recommend the free version of Avast.
3 – Be diligent about using “Safe Computing” practices every time you use your computer. This post offers several tips for doing that.
Bottom line: The PolloCrypt Ransomeware Virus is a bad one for sure. Be careful out there!