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Hackers and scammers have been using ransomware attacks to extort money from unsuspecting PC users for years, and now they’re targeting smartphone and tablet users as well.
Unfortunately, it’s very easy to install a malicious app on your phone or tablet by mistakenly thinking the app is legit.
Right now there’s a very dangerous ransomware app targeting Android users, and apparently plenty of people are installing it. [Read more…]
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: [Read more…]
Most folks are now aware of the nasty CryptoLocker ransomeware virus and have learned how to avoid it, but now its equally nasty successor has arrived on the scene.
Like CryptoLocker before it, CryptoWall takes over your PC and encrypts all the files on the hard drive, then demands that the user pay a hefty ransom in order to have the files un-encrypted. Only this time the ransom is even higher.
The CryptoWall ransom starts out at a whopping $500, then doubles every three days until the user finally gives in and pays the ransom.
To prove that they can indeed un-encrypt your files, the hackers behind CryptoWall will offer to un-encrypt just one of your files for free.
The best way to deal with the CryptoWall threat is to avoid getting it in the first place and be prepared just in case you fall victim to it anyway. Here’s how: [Read more…]
A while back I wrote about the nasty CryptoLocker ransomeware that was encrypts the hard drives on PCs. Hackers then demand a ransom in exchange for decrypting the locked files. Not a good thing!
Now, a similar piece of ransomeware is attacking Android devices. It’s called SimpleLocker, and it does basically the same thing as CrytoLocker.
So far there have been no reports of SimpleLocker attacking devices in the United States, but it’s only a matter of time before it hits our shores as well. [Read more…]
CryptoLocker is an especially insidious form of “Ransomeware” – malware that basically locks up all the user data on your computer’s drives until you fork over some cash to a far-away crook.
What makes CryptoLocker so bad is the way it encrypts the user data on your hard drive using a super-strong encryption method. This makes it literally impossible to access your own data without forking over a bundle of cash in exchange for the unlock key.
The key to protecting yourself from CryptoLocker lies in prevention because even though there are several “cures” being hawked on the Internet, their effectiveness varies when they work at all.
Here are are a few things you can do to prevent your PC from getting infected with the CryptoLocker virus, and recover from it if you still end up getting hit: [Read more…]