Special Guest post: Cyber Tip #13 - Hisham Qaddoumi

CyTip 13:
In 2017 there was 184 million ransomware attacks globally. The costs were very severe. Ransomware for personal users mostly target mobile devices. They lock access to you device, encode you data and ask for money (ransom) to decode your data and regain your access to them. Yet, some of those spywares are just fake and don’t encode your data but lock your home access to your phone and ask for money and can be removed without harm. If your mobile device got attacked with ransomware here’s a few simple things to do:

1- First: make sure you do regular backup to your data on the cloud, your computer or external disks.

2- Do NOT install suspicious or untrusted apps.

3- Be sure to have a well-knows antivirus installed on your device.

4- Once you got hit by a ransomware try to check if it’s fake and removeable by restarting your device in safe mode then check and remove the recent suspicious apps you installed. Here’s how to start a device in safe mode:

Android
https://support.google.com/android/answer/7665064?hl=en

Apple
https://support.apple.com/en-ca/HT201262

Windows
https://support.microsoft.com/…/windows-10-start-your-pc-in…

5- If your device still can’t start, then it’s encrypted and need to be reset. Shut it down and talk to your reseller / vendor for that matter.

6- Call the cyber-crime dept in your local police offices and report the incident. Do that before wiping the device or sending it to the reseller / vendor.

7- No matter what you do, do NOT comply to the payment request. It might be another fraud.
Have a happy and safe surfing.

#Cybersecurity #CybersecurityAwarenessMonth