The security from Imperva reports that over a three-month period in 2015, a single cybercrime gang managed to earn at least $330,000 in bitcoins thanks to an estimated 670 victims paying attackers’ ransom demand to decrypt their ransomware-infected systems.
On this point, I recently received a phone call from a small business owner who was a victim of ransomware. All his computer files were encrypted and the ransom demanded was $ 500. Unfortunately, he had not backed up his files. If he had a recent backup, he could simply restore from that and not have to pay any ransom. Prepared to pay the ransom, he asked me if the hackers will provide him with the encryption key if he paid up. There is no way to be sure, as I tell my audiences, but the hackers have a reputation to protect. What’s next, customer satisfaction surveys from hackers? “How was your hacking experience with us? Refer a victim and get $ 50 off your next ransom payment.”
Remember to keep your files backed up on an external device. To prevent the malware that encrypts your files in the first place, avoid clicking on links or attachments in emails from unknown senders.