Sleepless Nights After Infection By Ransomware

An Irish businesswoman was strange to watch when she was a seemingly innocent YouTube link on Facebook and clicked her computer suddenly was infected with ransomware. All files, both business and private, were encrypted. To access they had to pay two bitcoins, which corresponds to 450 euros. She saw eventually forced to purchase the bitcoins and to pay the ransom.

The whole process took two days and gave her sleepless nights, she leaves in front of the Belfast Telegraph know. "It was just a link on Facebook, and it seemed to me it on a YouTube video. I thought it was safe and had no doubts." The woman was especially afraid of losing her private pictures. In addition, the computer also contained all kinds of business data of its business.

Paying the bitcoins was no easy task, so let them know. "The person I bought them wanted to validate me. They had to show a photo ID and ID card. They had to know that I was a real person." After she had paid her files were decrypted after half an hour. It took more than a day before it was operational again. The woman describe the whole event as a very stressful situation. From examination of Threat Track among 250 US IT professionals of medium-sized companies shows that 30% are willing to pay in the event of ransomware.