Dear Clients,
Please be advised that our security team at Myriad has become aware of a new Trojan Ransomware Virus known as “Cryptolocker” “ransom.trojan” or “Troj/Ransom-ACP” This virus was once thought only to infect and target computers in the U.S. we now know that this is not the case and the virus is spreading rapidly in both Canada, the U.S. and Europe. The virus is predominantly spread through phony emails – FedEx and UPS tracking notifications, voicemail, invoice payments, as well as emails with attachments from legitimate companies.
Once a user opens the malicious file, malware scans the harddrive, attached storage (USB, external harddrives) as well as network drives for well known document types ie; Word documents, PDF’s, spreadsheets, photos and encrypts them. The virus then launches a pop-up window with a countdown clock asking for a ransom to be paid (different variants ask for different forms of payment – bitcoin, credit card, paypal) before the time expires and the decryption key is deleted. Myriad is highly recommending NOT releasing any credit card information, as it is highly unlikely paying any ransom will result in an unlock key being provided to victims. As of today – no commercially available antivirus software will unlock or repair encrypted files once the virus attacks. This means files that are encrypted will effectively be destroyed, and unrecoverable.
Our most important advice is for clients to ensure they remain extremely vigilant when utilizing email and internet. If you do not recognize, or are not expecting attachments from your email contacts – DO NOT OPEN THEM.
Sample Malware Screen:
Additional Resources:
About Myriad:
Myriad provides a full host of network security and virus/malware prevention services. We also provide security consulting, disaster recovery and business continuity planning for businesses of all sizes. If you have any questions regarding this security warning – please feel free to call our Helpdesk at (604) 792-0670 or email us directly at [email protected]