To: Everybody Subject: Ways to Keep Your Computer at home and work Safe from CrytoLocker Ransomware Virus Good Afternoon, Just a quick tip on a virus that is making its way around the world right now. Please protect our computers as well as yours at home. Follow the steps below to help protect vital documents. CryptoLocker, a new “ransomware” virus, began making the rounds several months ago. But a particularly virulent strain of the infection popped up in mid-September, affecting individuals and business owners alike. The malware takes hold in a variety of ways: after a user clicks on a link or attachment in a spam email; via exploit kits on hacked websites; or through Trojans that pretend to be required programs to view online videos. Once installed, CryptoLocker scans a computer’s local and network drives, encrypts over 50 different file types, and then demands anywhere from $100-$300 to de-encrypt them. Never open ANY attachment from ANY sender you don’t recognize. Malware attempts can be sneaky, arriving in the form of what look like Facebook, LinkedIn, shipping, or banking notifications with vaguely named attachments. NEVER open an attachment unless you know the person sending it to you and you’re expecting a file on the topic mentioned. Hover over ANY link from ANY unfamiliar email before clicking on it. Most email applications and online browser-based services allow you to preview a link by moving your cursor over it. If the domain name that appears has no connection to the sender of the email — or appears as an incoherent list of letters and numbers — it’s probably not safe to click. Any legitimate email from an organization will redirect you to a link with that company’s actual domain name in the URL address. If you do click on something unsafe and receive a CryptoLocker message, disconnect from your network connection immediately. While this won’t save your computer and files from infection, it could spare any network your machine is connected to from suffering the same fate. Have a great day,
Posted on: Wed, 09 Oct 2013 13:13:25 +0000
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