Ransomware: A new cyberattack paralyzes the world

Companies from all over the world were victims again of a cyberattack This Tuesday, June 27, a malware of type Ransomware and has affected the teams of various companies, this malicious program does not allow access to your information and asks for a ransom in exchange for it bitcoinsThe countries most affected by the virus have been Ukraine, Russia, the United Kingdom, and India, according to the Swiss government agency.

The first signs of the attack were seen in Ukraine, where system failures were reported Central Bank, in it kyiv metro, in the state-owned company of the Ukrenergo energy and in the main capital airport, it is estimated that 60% of the companies and institutions of this country were attacked; the Ukrainian company Novaya Pochta, assures that it is a Petya or PetrWrap virus.

On the other hand, Kaspersky the Russian laboratory of computer security suggests that this is a new type of Ransomware, that "despite having several sequences similar to Petya, has completely different functionalities" assert the company's experts, and they also assured their users that your system protects and successfully stop the attack by monitoring changes and preventing any potentially destructive actions. Free download Kaspersky Anti-Ransomware either Kaspersky Free Ransomware Decryptors.

Now we explain to you: What is Ransomware?

A Ransomware is a type of computer virus, which does not allow access to certain parts or files of the infected system, that is, it performs a computer hijacking, and to return them he asks for a return monetary bailout; malware spreads like a virus Trojan whether it is hidden in a downloaded file, or exploiting one software vulnerability, this way you can encrypt the files with a key that only the creator of the malicious program knows and will deliver it only when receive payment.

If you are wondering if this virus can affect you, the answer is, Yes.

Because although hackers They are focused on harming them large and medium-sized companies, they don't see who they are really attacking, all they want is get money, so you must take precautions To prevent your computer from being hijacked, Kaspersky Lab does some things recommendations:

• All companies should update their Windows operating system: users of Windows XP and Windows 7 can protect themselves by installing the security patch MS17-010. Download here.
• Make sure you have the supported information. Proper and timely backup of your information can be used to restore the original files after experiencing a loss of information.

Other recommendations to take into account are:

• Create a more secure password For your computer, combine upper and lower case letters, numbers, and symbols to make it harder for hackers to find.
• Disable the WMI service If you are in a company, since this service can be used by Petya to spread the virus on an internal network. ¿How to disable the WMI service?.
• Avoid opening files downloaded from the Internet or received by email from people you do not have registered on your contact list.
• Stay up to date with this news Well, in the next few days, ways to get rid of this virus without having to pay the ransom for your computer will be published.

Image: Flickr