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🔥DEADLIEST : THE RANSOMWARE 🔥
In today's world, there has been huge rise in cyber attacks through online ways by various means of advanced tools and technology. Basically, Cyber Attack is defined as an attempt to gain unauthorized access to a computer, computing system or computer network with the intent to cause damage. the person who do this cyber attack is termed as Cybercriminals. In recent years, many cyberattacks are introduced/discovered such as Malware Attack, Password Attack, Phishing Attack, SQL Injection Attack, Ransomware Attack and many more.
Today, let us know about what is Ransomware in detail with some case studies, its types, how it works, and lastly how can we prevent it from our computer. So let's begin our journey about Ransomware.
What is Ransomware?
Ransomware is said to be a cyber Attack of malicious software that threatens to publish access to data or a computer system by encrypting it until the victim pays a ransom fee to a attacker. In past 10 years, this attack has increased in foreign countries to gain financials, sensitive information etc. Due to COVID pandemic, every person started their work from home. This situation made hackers or cybercriminals a great opportunity to cheat people. Some of the Types of Ransomware attack are Bad Rabbit, Crypto locker, Golden Eye, etc.
source - https://www.kaspersky.com/resource-center/threats/ransomware
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| TYPES OF RANSOMWARE |
Crypto Locker Ransomware
This type of malware is one of the oldest forms of cyber attacks which has been there in recent decades.
This attack was first found in the year 2013 by hackers as termed as Original Crypto Locker botnet.
EXAMPLE- In late May 2014, Operation Tovar took down the Gameover ZeuS botnet which has been used to distribute the ransomware.
WannaCry Ransomware
WannaCry is the most widely known ransomware variant all over the world. In past 5 to 6 years, this variant has infected nearly 130,000 organizations in over 160 countries. WannaCry is aslo called WCry or WanaCryptor,
EXAMPLE- In may 2017, cryptocurrency bitcoin was asked $300 to $600 to be paid for ransome.
Bad Rabbit
This type of ransomware attack has infected many organizations specially in Russia and Eastern Europe. It mainly works to Fake Adobe Flash Update on compromised websites.
Example- On 24 October 2017, the hacker demanded bitcoin payment through encrypted files.
Scareware
It is fake software that claims to have detected a virus or other to issue on your computer and directs you to pay to resolve the problem. In some cases, this type of attack locks the computer or simply flood
the screen with pop-up alerts without actually damaging files.
Working of Mansomware Attack
Ransomware usually enters in users network through various ways, the most famous way is to download via spam email attachment. After downloading it launches the ransomware program that attacks the system. Other ways to get this attack is through the social engineering, downloads of malicious software from the web, fake ads, etc.
Basically, the software gets introduce to the users network by an executable fake that may have been in a zip folder, embedded within MS Office document's macros, or other viable attachment. The download file then encrypts the data, and adds an extension to files and makes them inaccessible. More sophisticated versions of the software are propagating themselves and can work without any user. It is also known as "Drive-by" attacks. This form of ransomware infects the system through vulnerabilities in various browser plugins.
Statistics of Ransomware
PREVENTION OF RANSOMWARE
1. Never Click on unsafe links. Avoid clicking on links in spam messages or on unknown websites. If you click on malicious links, an automatic download could be started which could lead to your computer being infected.
2. Avoid disclosing personal information. If you receive a call, message or email from an untrusted source requesting personal information, do not reply. Cybercriminals who are planning a ransomware attack might try to collect personal information in advance, which is then used to tailor phishing messages specially to you. If in any doubt as to whether the message is legitimate, contact the sender directly.
3. Do not open suspicious email attachment. Ransomware can also be founded through users device via email attachment. Avoid opening any dubious looking attachments. To make sure the email is trustworthy, pay close attention to the sender and check that the address is correct. Never open attachments that prompt you to run macros to view them. If the attachment is infected, opening it will run malicious macro which will control the system.
4. Keep your programs and operating system up to date. Regularly updating programs and operating system helps to protect system from malware. When performing updates, make sure that system should benefit with latest security patches. This makes it harder for hackers to exploit vulnerabilities in program.
5. Use only known download sources. To minimize the risk of downloading ransomware, never download the software or unknown files which will risk your system. Rely on verified and trustworthy sites for download. Websites of this kind can be recognized by the trust seals. Make sure that the browser address bar of the page user is visiting uses "https" instead of "http". A shield or lock symbol in the address bar can also indicate that the page is secure.
6. Use of VPN services on public Wifi networks. Conscientious use of public Wifi networks is a sensible protective measure against this attack. When using a public Wifi network, your computer is more vulnerable to attacks. Ro stay protected, avoid using public Wifi for sensitive transactions or use a secure VPN servvices.
7. Use of Anti Ransomware SOFTWARE. If the user has installed the right software, the user have already taken a big step in the right direction. Regularly update internet security solution to take advantages of the best and latest protection it has to offer. Each update contains the latest security patches and improves protection against ransomware.
These were the steps for prevention of ransomware attack.
source- https://www.kadvacorp.com/technology/how-to-prevent-ransomware-attack/
Conclusion
As with other forms of malware, careful action and the use of excellent security software are a step in the right direction when it comes to combatting ransomware. Of the particular importance with regard to this type of attack is the creation of back ups.
This was all about the Attack Ransomware.
THANK YOU!
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