How Ransomware Works and What You Should Do

How Ransomware Works and What You Should Do

Understanding how ransomware works is the first step to protecting your interests. Here's what happens and how you can be proactive.

Ransomware is on the rise. 

You may have heard of this term, but aren't sure exactly what it means. 

As a computer user, you should take careful precautions to protect yourself against malware, or know what to do in case of a ransomware attack.

Keep reading to find out how ransomware works and how you can prevent it!

What is Ransomware?

Before diving into how ransomware works, let's take a look at what ransomware actually is.

A type of malware, ransomware is delivered to your computer system through various means.

Ransomware can make its way to you through the following:

• Infected email attachments
• Drive-by-downloads
• Socially engineered malware
• Malvertising
• Hacked websites

There are different types of ransomware. However, each and every type will prevent you from using your computer normally. 

How Ransomware Works

Ransomware works by first infecting a computer. Then, using modern cryptography methods, it encrypts files.

Once encrypted, the files cannot be decrypted without the "key." The key is what hackers will provide once you have paid them ransom. 

Unfortuantely, hackers can target any computer users. Whether it's a home computer you're working on, endpoints in an enterprise network, or even servers used by a government agency or healthcare provider, ransomware can affect you.

This means ransomware can get onto your computer from nearly any source that any other malware (including viruses) can come from. 

Ransomware can prevent you from accessing programs such as Windows, encrypt files so that you cannot use them, and/or stop certain web applications from running, such as your web browser.

What to do After a Ransomware Attack

1. Is your computer part of a network? If so, remove the infected system from the network.
2. If you feel it's necessary, create a copy of your disk or the impacted files for analysis later on (this may be needed for decryption of files).
3. Do you have a healthy system restore point? If so, see if you can go back and try if that works for you.
4. If you have recent backups of your data, that's great news! Format and clean and reinstall Windows. Then, restore your backed up data--this will give you a fresh start. 
5. Boot into Safe Mode. Then, run your antivirus software deep-scan--hopefully, that will be able to disinfect your computer, although it's not always the answer.
6. Identify the ransomware that infected your computer. To do this, you can use a free online service, such as ID Ransomware.
7. If you successfully identify the ransomware, check to see if a ransomware decrypt tool is available for your type of ransomware. Then, make use of what you can find.
8. If the ransomware totally blocked access to your computer, give Kaspersky WindowsUnlocker a try, as it can clean up a ransomware infected Registry and give you access back. 
9. Finally, remember to report your ransomware case to your local cyber crime cell, police, or the FBI. 

How to Prevent a Ransomware Attack

The best solution to ransomware is to be safe on the internet. This includes with emails and online chat. 

Check out the list below for how to make sure you stay safe on the internet:

• Don't click on a link on a webpage, in an email, or in a chat message unless you are positive that the page or sender is trustworthy.
• If you're ever unsure if you can trust the page or sender--don't click the link!
• You can catch on to fake emails or webpages if you spot bad spelling or if they look unusual. Keep an eye out for strange spellings of company names or unusual spaces, symbols or punctuation.

 

What do you know about how ransomware works and how to protect yourself from it? Tell us about your experiences with ransomware in the comments!