Prevent WannaCry Ransomware : In News or in Social Media you may be reading about WannaCry Ransomware. The worst ransomware attack the world has ever seen has just been thwarted, or so it might seem, with a $10 web domain. WannaCry drove thousands to tears around the globe, and held out a stark warning about the vulnerabilities of our digital, inter-connected, existence.
Also Check: WannaCry ransomware Affected Indian ATM as Well – Do Not Use ATM for Today
The WannaCrypt ransomware has managed to cause over 75,000 attacks in 100 countries with major alerts being issued everywhere. The ransomware, also known as ‘WannaCry’ demands $300 in Bitcoin to unlock encrypted files and threatens users to permanently delete them for failure of payments. so below are some Prevent WannaCry Ransomware.
Steps to Prevent WannaCry Ransomware
1. Disconnect from the internet
If there is a suspicious process in progress on the computer, it is suggested to disconnect the machine from the internet by turning off Wi-Fi connections or unplugging the LAN cable. This step is said to prevent malware from spreading.
2. Update Windows security
Install the latest version of your operating system (OS) or applications.
3. Back-up your data
It is important to have a file recovery system. The No More Ransom website suggests creating two back-up copies: cloud data and offline storage, such as a hard drive or USB.
The best way is to backup them to an external hard disk. External Hard Disks are becoming useful day by day. I won’t go into more details here, but make sure your disk space is double the space of your internal memory of your computer.
4. Install anti-virus and anti-ransomware software
To protect your device from ransomware, it is suggested to install anti-virus and anti-ransomware software. Make sure to frequently update the software.
5. Do not click on suspicious links or attachments
Do not click on links or open attachments from unknown senders as it may contain malware. Furthermore, be careful about email notifications from online stores, a bank, or so forth, as hackers frequently send fake emails to lure recipients to click the links or open the attachments.
6. Enable the “show file extensions” option
The “show file extensions” option helps you to identify fake files, such as ‘exe,’ ‘vbs’ and ‘scr’. (asw)
7. Check up your Internet Downloads
The first connecting link is your Internet Downloads. Whenever you decide to download a file from the internet via your web browser, you are risking your PC to getting infected. So, always do a pre-check up to ensure you are downloading files from trusted sources.
If you are a torrent lover, then always download torrents from verified websites. Try to read reviews before downloading a torrent file.
8. Don’t visit a link just because you are asked to:
Just because you received a link on your email or got an SMS with a link, it does not mean you should visit the same. Those old days of ‘You won a lottery’ type of spam are gone forever. Nowadays spams are more surprising, and if you can’t differ between a real and a spam mail, you are ruined.
Got any email saying Win a Galaxy S7 Edge for Rs200 only blah blah blah blah? Don’t visit those links. They will usually trick you to download their ransomware and ask you to open the file on your computer. When you do that, you are infected.
9. Triple Check your Email Attachments:
This is another weak connecting link between your computer and the internet which is often ignored by a lot of people. Ever received an email which you think does not belong to you? Then I suggest you do not open any attachments that come with it.
Common Spam Mails include:
- An Order Receipt from a Marketplace
- Delivery Confirmation of some product
- A Tracking Number from an Order
- Domain Expiring in a week
- A Mail asking you to be present in High Court on a specified date
All these emails will seem very surprising to you and will contain attachments along with it.
10. Backup Windows OS
Ransomware infects at the system level. Hence you lose access to your system. To restore it back, you need a complete backup of your Windows OS. First things first, when you buy a new laptop or computer, they will either give you a windows recovery disk or ask you to create the recovery disk on new windows with software manually. Do that and keep that recovery disk with you always.
What exactly are Effects of WannaCry Ransomware
WannaCry, a crypto-ransomware that is also called WannaCrypt, affected at least 45,000 computers spread over 74 countries, including India, on Friday. The WanaCrypt0r 2.0 bug encrypts data on a computer within seconds and displays a message asking the user to pay a ransom of $ 300 in Bitcoins to restore access to the device and the data inside.
Alarmingly, the attack also hit the National Health Service of the United Kingdom, stalling surgeries and other critical patient care activity across the British Isles, and making confidential patient information and documents inaccessible.
what is ransomware? How is it different from other malicious software?
There are many types of malware that affect a computer, ranging from those that steal your information to those that just delete everything on the device. Ransomware, as the name suggests, prevents users from accessing their devices and data until a certain ransom is paid to its creator. Ransomware usually locks computers, encrypts the data on it and prevents software and apps from running.
So use these steps to Prevent WannaCry Ransomware. If a system is already infected by the WannaCry ransomware, then one should immediately isolate it from the network, run cleanup tools, preserve the data even if it is encrypted, and report the incident to CERT-In and the local law enforcement agency.