Nasty new malware locks your files forever, unless you pay ransom

[TXForester]

Ransomware. I got hit by it. Said the FBI is locking my computer. Scared me for a second or two. Then I read about unlocking the PC if I put $300 on a green dot card and pay up.

Hold on now. If the FBI was locking the computer, they wouldn't tell me about it, because I might get rid of it. If the FBI suspected something, they'd just show up at my door. And if it is serious enough for the FBI, I'm not getting out of it for $300 and no jail time. 🙂

I closed my browser and ran CClean that cleans index.dat files and some other stuff. Goodbye cyber-grifter.

 

[MikeAUS]

I yet have to encounter the first one with a real virus!

1% of all Mac computers were infected with the Flashback malware, it's a false statement to say Mac does not get virus/malware - even Apple reluctantly agree now ...

 

[colyn]

There are currently no Mac viruses in the wild.

Nor are there any Linux virus in the wild.
In order to get a Linux virus if they were out there would be to give root access.

 

[Sparrow]

... now if only I could block that bloody mac-keeper pop-up my world would be perfect

 

[citizen99]

... I don't go as far to defend against these as one colleague, who only uses browsers and mail inside virtual machines. If one gets infected, he simply deletes the whole machine and copies a new one into place! ...

I use a <Live_whatever_Linux>.iso image system running in a virtual machine for internet banking; once closed down it's gone, completely un-molested, including its 'user-space' providing of course that you haven't set it up to save that.
(BTW e.g. "Tails" live system includes the "Florence" tablet-like virtual keyboard, so that you don't need to put your keystrokes through the host machine, only mouse clicks. Or you can download it to install in the virtual, guest, Linux system of your choice).
If you wanted to be able to save downloaded files from the guest to the host machine, you could set up a Shared Folder, only mounted when required to minimise the duration of exposure of the host 😉.

 

[panerai]

I use Mailwasher, so all emails start there for viewing. I can check each email to see what it is before allowing it into my inbox. Spam etc. is marked and deleted

Only time I was infected was when a customer sent out a mass change of email notice. Something was corrupt in the email although no attachments were included.

DON

 

[Sejanus.Aelianus]

use a <Live_whatever_Linux>.iso image system running in a virtual machine for internet banking; once closed down it's gone, completely un-molested, including its 'user-space' providing of course that you haven't set it up to save that.

That's not a bad idea, I'll pass it on to my wife. We do all our accounts on Windows VMs running on OS-X, simply because we have a package on Windows that does exactly what we want but don't want a Windows box for anything. My wife uses the same set up for playing on-line games, so it won't be difficult to start doing our banking that way.

 

[literiter]

Malware doesn't affect film.....