Los Angeles: Computers across the world were locked up Friday and users' files held for ransom when dozens of countries were hit in a cyber-extortion attack that targeted hospitals, companies and government agencies. Here's a look at how malware and ransomware work and what people can do if they fall victim to attacks:WHAT IS MALWARE AND RANSOMWARE?
Malware is a general term that refers to software that's harmful to your computer, said John Villasenor, a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles. Ransomware is a type of malware that essentially takes over a computer and prevents users from accessing data on the computer until a ransom is paid, he said.HOW DOES YOUR COMPUTER BECOME INFECTED WITH RANSOMWARE?
The age-old advice is to never click on a link in an email," said Jerome Segura, a senior malware intelligence researcher at Malwarebytes, a San Jose-based company that has released anti-ransomware software.
"The idea is to try to trick the victim into running a malicious piece of code."
When the ransomware takes over a computer, the attackers are pretty explicit in their demands, Segura said.
In most cases, they change the wallpaper of the computer and give specific instructions telling the user how to pay to recover their files. Most attackers demand between $300 and $500 to remove the malicious ransomware; the price can double if the amount isn't paid within 24 hours.
The first step is being cautious, experts say. But Villasenor said there is "no perfect solution" to the problem.
"If your software is not patched, you can exploit that user. Anyone who applied the patch that Microsoft released likely wasn't affected by this," Reiher said.
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