Ransomware is back again.
Here’s the scary part
In a minute, this is what you can get it if you are not careful.
In theory.
What happens is once you accidentally run Ransomware software, it locks you at of your information and will not let you access your information unless you pay the Ransomware people. I say in theory as often in our experience, all of your information has been deleted and is unrecoverable by the ransomware. It is a scam that they are selling that your files can be recovered so that you will pay the ransom. There is no longer honour amongst thieves.
So what’s the answer?
There is only one solution and that is to back up all your information to a secure, offsite location. If you have a backup, we can often within hours send you at a computer with our point of sale software on it and if your backup is available to have you up and running. This we have done many times.
What else can I do?
Anything your computer has access too, the ransomware also has. These backups should be tested regularly to ensure that they are useful.
You may consider putting on your computer either one of these two free ransomware detectors:
1. Bit Defender anti-Ransomware
2. Malwarebytes anti-ransomware
They may help.
An updated antivirus program may help too.
If you get an attack
If you do not have a backup or you want to try and fix it first, then the site we recommend is here.
If so, I would recommend using their Crypto Sheriff to define the type of ransomware affecting your device. This program may tell you how you stand.
After you are finished, I would suggest reporting it, it will probably do nothing, but it may help.
We as a matter of course, we never recommend paying both because most of the time it does not help and also because by paying people are encouraging these thieves to keep doing it and we do report all the attacks that we are involved in. Again it may help.
The moral of this story?
Please have backups.
