If you haven’t yet been a victim of ransomware, you’ve no doubt heard of it—and worried about how you can protect yourself from it.
Ransomware—a nasty form of malware that locks your computer or encrypts your files until you pay a fee, usually by a deadline—is now more vicious than ever—with 15,000 of the 48,000 samples detected by Trend Micro flagged as “crypto-ransomware” in 2014. This represents a 27 percent increase since Cryptolocker, the first of its type, was discovered the year before.
Ransomware can arrive on your desktop from compromised websites, spammed emails, or wrapped in other malware—and it’s getting more expensive to pay off the extortionists. Ransom prices may start around $24 USD, but demands of $600 or more—or its bitcoin equivalent—are becoming more common. That said, there’s no guarantee that, even if you pay the fee, the criminals will release your computer or files.
So how can you protect yourself from ransomware? Steps you can take include the following:
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Trend Micro Security 10 and Trend Micro Anti-Ransomware Tool
Trend Micro Security blocks dangerous websites, including harmful links found in websites, social networks, emails, and instant messages, while safeguarding against viruses, phishing, and other online threats.
It also provides robust protection against screen-locker and encryption ransomwares, using a multi-layered strategy to protect you.
If it’s a known ransomware or variant, Trend Micro Security’s real-time scan can detect and stop it from downloading or installing.
Protection against screen-locker ransomware
If it’s an unknown screen-locker ransomware, Trend Micro Security stops any suspicious install behavior if it can, then automatically deletes the offending ransomware.
If the screen-locker ransomware still manages to get around these defenses, and installs and locks your screen, you still have two remedies:
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Protection against crypto-ransomware
If it’s an unknown crypto-ransomware, Trend Micro Security backs up the target files immediately, right as the encryption starts, halts the encryption process, and alerts you with a popup: “Suspicious Program Blocked,” recovering the affected files unharmed to the same location they were before.
When you click “Delete program” in the popup, Trend Micro Security also immediately deletes the ransomware files, then prompts you to reboot if necessary for final cleanup.
In some cases, you will be advised to conduct a full manual scan using Trend Micro Security, to remove any malware remnants that may remain—and to completely restore your computer to the way it was before the ransomware infection occurred.
In short, your computer, your files, and your money are safe—and the criminals are left holding an empty bag.
Your best defenses against screen-locker and crypto-ransomware
Trend Micro Security 10 and Trend Micro Anti-Ransomware Tool are your best defenses against screen-locker and crypto-ransomware—so you can do great things online safely.
For more detailed information from Trend Micro on ransomware, click here: Ransomware
For instructions on downloading and using the Trend Micro™ Anti-Ransomware Tool, with and without Safe Mode with Networking, click here: Downloading and using Trend Micro™ Anti-Ransomware Tool (for Home Users).
Watch our Ransomware video by clicking here: Trend Micro Security 10 – Protection Against Ransomware
And for more information on Trend Micro Security 10, go to the following website: http://www.trendmicro.com/us/home/products/software/index.html
