Image source: Elements Envato |
As you grow up, were you ever able to watch action movies wherein the bad guys take someone and ask for ransom money from his family or friends in return? Sounds familiar? Ever thought of these situations happening to computers?
Ransomware, from the name itself, is just like kidnapping and asking for money, known as the ransom, in return. Yes, computer systems also experience “kidnappings.” Computer pirates hack into a computer’s network or system and start disabling or blocking users access to it not unless a sum of money is paid.
This malicious software is known across all countries in the world. It’s an online security threat and cyber attack which happens everywhere. The first few waves of ransomware only used noticeable and particular file extensions (ex. .crypt). But now, hackers are starting to use different kinds of extensions. In fact, some of these are even directly attached to file names.
However, users can prevent this. The good news is, aside from being able to avoid it, users can also detect when their systems are starting to act weird or perform malicious things, which will then lead to ransomware. IT experts have found ways on how to detect this threat. That’s why below are a few tips on how to detect ransomware. Although, if you’ve been a victim of this malicious software and you don’t know what to do to retrieve your files, there are a lot of IT companies which offer services regarding this matter, like IT services in Kansas City.
Familiarize Yourself with Different File Extensions
Although cases of ransomware activity continue to rise, it’s still best to make yourself knowledgeable about any [possible] suspicious activity. With that, you also have to familiarize yourself with the different file extensions available across networks.There are a few online threads which discuss the different lists or variants of ransomware links and extensions. Most of the time, these lists get updated about ransomware sightings or situations, to make other users aware that suspicious activity from hackers is still rampant these days. Here is a post on Reddit which offers a link to different helpful resources regarding ransomware.