I turned my laptop on this morning, and a big page popped up that said all my files would be locked and there is nothing I could do to unlock them except pay this company or person or what ever some money. I immediately shut it off and threw it in the Jeep and my wife and I headed for town. Dropped it off at a computer repair shop and then we headed for Wal-Mart to get some needed supplies. After we were through at Wal-Mart we stopped back at the computer place and they had it repaired, up and running, the malware cleaned off, and a new virus protection program installed all for a little over a hundred bucks. I would much rather pay the computer repair shop the money than to send it to those hackers (who try to ransom your computer) from where ever they may be. The repair shop said most are either from China or Russia. Now, I wonder how long it will stay repaired.
They told me that it came as an attachment to an email and I guess that I didn't even have to open the email to get infected, but not sure. I now I have to decide what to reload on this computer. I know I will need an email program and Google is already on here, so I may reload I.E., which I used to use all the time. I don't think that I will reload any of my engineering programs, and not sure if I can without a key number to open it.
I sure hope none of you ever have this problem. The computer repair guy said it is about the worst one you could get, that it infected every file on a computer. The only thing that can be done is to wipe the hard-drive clean and start over. Dang, not sure what all I lost since I haven't backed this thing up for a couple of years. My bad!! OK, I hope you have a better day then I have had, you hear?
I think you did the right thing by taking it to the service guy.
ReplyDeleteMy e-mail got hacked a few months ago. I clicked onto something I suspected might be bad but could not stop myself. Then I got to kick myself.
He had to wipe it clean of everything. Therefore, I did loose a lot of stuff, but am hoping it was nothing too important. I am slowly getting programs loaded and of course the first one was to get on line. . .
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ReplyDeleteIt used to be that you had to open a file, or an email. Now it just sneaks on in. I tried for days to figure out what the heck had gone haywire with my computer, then took it to a computer repair store I've learned to trust. THEN I had to take it back a few months later. It had gotten to the point I was afraid to go ANYWHERE on the internet!
ReplyDeleteThis last time, they loaded free AVAST, and that free program does more than my prior, expensive, KASPERSKY. Last week, the same thing happened and the virus actually locked up my AVAST. But like a hero, it eventually worked its way through the mess and restored the computer to an earlier date.
whew. As my post says today, the internet can be used for good or evil, and it's not always our fault.
They loaded a couple of protection programs, one of them Is Malwarebytes Anti-Malware\mbam.exe. So far so good.
DeleteMost Windoz setups come from the computer maker with a system admin as the default user. What you need to do is create a limited user account, without the admin access. Then change the admin password to a strong password. This will stop 97% of the problems.
ReplyDeleteFor any bad stuff you pick the system will know that your limited user account can't install stuff and will tell you to login as administrator. This gives a chance to control what gets done to your system. Bad stuff can't be installed on your system blindly.
I still use XP with no problems using this system.
What got you was the bad guy put a bad piece of software that encrypted your files. This would have been stopped with a limited user account.
Or just buy a Mac, a lot safer. Or go to Linux.
Wade in NW Florida
That sounds like a good idea.
DeleteI'll have to disagree with Wade - my computer at work got this ransom virus a month or so back. I am not an administrator, and can't install programs. The IT guys around here were literally running each time of the 200+ computers in the building reported a problem. Finally boiled down to MINE! I had had several temps in that week, and who knows from where the virus came, but when it gets into a corporate environment, it's not a good thing. Several major files were corrupted, but the company backs everything up at least daily, so all was not lost.
ReplyDeleteBut boy, did I feel bad! Felt like there was a Big A on my forehead, even though I was assured it was nothing I did, and all was well ...
When I was using my computers for work, I backed them up several times a day, usually at lunch time and before I turned it off at night. Haven't been doing that anymore, since I don't work anymore.
DeleteI really hate it when something like that happens to my computer. I have been very faithful in backing up my computer. Just can't take any chances anymore. I too would rather take my computer to a local repair shop any day over paying some unknown jerk money to fix the problem
ReplyDeleteThat is extortion and I don't pay extortion.
DeleteSorry to hear that, hope it does happen to me.
ReplyDeleteI know my computer needs to be fixed but I just hate to fork out the hundred plus bucks :(