Today’s ransomware displays a message claiming that because the user browsed to illegal pornographic websites, the computer had been locked and a fine must be paid to regain control.
The ‘fines’ range between $50 and $100 in Europe, and are usually around $200 in the U.S.
The porn angle is ingenious as the screen and keyboard are locked up. All you can use is the number keypad to enter a PIN [to pay the criminals].
You’re completely shut out of the computer. And few people will want to take their computer to someone for repair, because the screen says that you violated the law, and that you’ve been looking at pornography. And there’s a pornographic image on the screen.
This is the scare tactic which will have been seen by PC engineers the world over and who would not assume anything about the customer bringing it in for repair!
WHAT IS RANSOMWARE?
Ransomware is a kind of malicious software that seizes control of a computer and demands a ransom to relinquish its hold over the machine.
Recently variants have begun to emerge that use the names and logos of law-enforcement agencies to add legitimacy to the warning messages.
Using Geo-location services to determine which control the computer is running in, it locks the computer before showing a message purporting to be from local police.
The message claims the user has broken the law by browsing some illegal content online, then states that a ‘fine’ must be paid in order to unlock the machine.
The operations are highly profitable, with as many as 2.9 percent of compromised users paying out, which is pointless as all you have done is give them your credit card number and your still in the same fix!!!
