Ransomware, What is it?

I’ve been hearing a lot about ransomware in the news, what is it?

Ransomware is another form of computer virus with the purpose of extorting money from system owners. Unlike other viruses, it does not usually impair your computer system, but rather, it searches for your working documents (Word, PowerPoint, Excel files, etc.) and encrypts them.  Once encrypted, you can’t open or use them anymore without an encryption key.  And to get that encryption key, you have to pay the entity holding them ransom.  


How do I prevent being infected by ransomware?

The methods are the same for any computer virus.

  1. Email – be suspicious of all links and attachments that you receive? Look at the sender’s address, read the body copy, does anything look odd?  If it does, contact the original sender to confirm whether they sent the email or not.
  2. Keep your computer up to date.  Mac and Windows, when you see the “Updates Available” notification, please go ahead and install them.
  3. Regular computer backups.  If your computer files become encrypted, a backup of those files could save you a lot of irritation.

  4. If you suspect you’ve been infected, contact your IT administrator and turn your computer off immediately.  The fastest way to shut off your computer is to press and hold the power button until it shuts off.


How does Hoffman York protect us from ransomware and viruses?

  1. We use a multilayered protection system.
  2. Each computer has locally installed antivirus. Macs and PCs.  This protects against infected email attachments or downloaded files from the internet.
  3. Our network firewall is continuously scanning our internet connections to prevent you from accessing malicious websites or downloading infected files.
  4. We use a 3rd party service which scans all of our incoming emails for spam, viruses and phishing emails.
  5. Our servers are backed up nightly and are encrypted themselves.
  6. TheServer is configured to prevent the saving and creation files that are suspected of being malicious.
  7. Educating our users what these threats are, like this article.  

What do I do if I am infected with ransomware?

  1. Turn off your computer immediately and contact your IT administrator.

  2. DO NOT PAY the ransom. There is no guarantee you will get your files back even after paying the ransom.  The process of paying the ransom could make you susceptible to other attacks such as future ransomware or identity theft. And providing thieves with cash only funds more ransomware activity.  


Anything else I should know or do to save myself any hassles?

  1. Think about you are doing. Opening email and using the internet has become second nature to most of us. Be conscious at what you are clicking on.
  2. Use TheServer or OneDrive to save your files.   The files on your own computer are the most vulnerable (for more reasons than just viruses). Be sure to save your working files on TheServer in their respective folders. OneDrive or BackBlaze services can also be useful for keeping a backup of computer files as well.

If anyone has any more questions about the recent ransomware news or wants to review how they can better protect their computer files, I’m happy to explain more.