Bitcoin Forum

Police Warns Users of New Deadly Ransomware Scam & Urge Not to Pay the Bitcoin Ransom

A new deadly virus known as Dharma is seriously infecting computers (PCs) and servers by encrypting and locking files, which can only be successfully unlocked via a Bitcoin payment, responsible authorities warned on October 16, 2018.

Read the details in the article of Coinidol dot com, the world blockchain news outlet: https://coinidol.com/police-warns-users-of-new-deadly-ransomware-scam/

https://coinidol.com/upload/resize_cache/iblock/7cc/900_900_1/7cc1c510595d1a44352799ce00c95a8e.png

I think "deadly" might be a slight exaggeration.

Dharma virus is not new, it's been there for years, and in September of this year a new variant of this virus is released so this new is late one month at least. This type of ransomware is maybe more dangerous from others because it uses Remote Desktop Services of victim, so if they find such device they will try to brute force password. So it is not smart to run such services without additional protection and what is more important without regular backup.

As always users need to pay attention what they download, and this include e-mail attachments, torrents, direct download files, software. If the user adheres to all safety measures and use common sense then the risk of such infections is very small.

More detailed information : New Brrr Dharma Ransomware Variant Released (https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/new-brrr-dharma-ransomware-variant-released/)

people always think of malefic plans to steal money from other people, satoshi Nakamoto created bitcoin to help people, but the scammers are messing up the bitcoin image. then we will hear governments and banks say: "bitcoin is used for crimes"; "bitcoin is dangerous, be very careful".


this word scares people, I do not know what their purpose is to use that word


But this time the scammers are asking for bitcoin

You could be surprised at a company how the workers are using the computers. Lack of security protocols, lack of knowledge and people who don't take care enough are creating a lot of potential risks.

I know 2 small companies that got a ransomware: 1 has paid the money, the other one has been out of business and closed with several people suddenly unemployed.

- The first didn't have a choice. Clients, providers, accounting, data, everything was on the computer and nothing can be done without data. After 2-3 weeks (without to be able to work) the founder couldn't wait anymore to see IF something can be done. So he decided to pay the ransom to save the company.

- The second one didn't have enough money to pay. Without to be able to continue to work he didn't have the choice to close his manufacture. And all the workers became jobless.

So I would say depending on the situation it can be a wise thing to pay

If you didn't backed up your computers and its servers consider them good as gone as paying them is never an option. For one there is no guarantee that your systems will be unlocked once you paid the ransom. Secondly on the instances that your pc and servers are unlocked there is no guarantee that your computer and servers is free from any kind of malware, it might still be hiding collecting more information and waiting for their next attack. By paying them you are just encouraging them to do more attacks to other people.

Ransomware which is asking ransome in crypto are not new, back in 2015 TeslaCrypt and AlphaCrypt ransomware ask victims to pay in BTC. This new variant of Dharma ransomware is just one of the many which are present today, and considering that big money is involved in this way of hacking we can expect more news like this.

As I said before, ransomware is a serious threat only if people still think the Internet is a safe place, but it is just the opposite. If you make regular backups with updated OS and good AV/Firewall+some common sense, chance that you can be infected with ransomware is really minimal.

People will never learn, especially if you take into consideration that ransomware has been a thing for nearly 2 decades now. You would expect people to learn as years go by, but it's simply not happening.

Also, for every person who learns how to secure his systems, there are a dozen of others still becoming a victim of ransomware. There isn't a way to book any actual progress on that front.

Eventually those behind all these ransomware attacks will find other ways to infect your system, where even simply visiting a site without clicking links or downloading harmful software is enough to lock your systems.

this virus is as old as a piece of mammoths feces, a "good" old file encrypting virus
as for the deadly , its just one of the clickbait adjectives journalists use (terrifed,happier,deadly,embarassing,costly mistake etc.)
there is nothing deadly in Dharma at most you will get your partition encrypted
also as with almost every ransomware it is simply unreasonable to send any money to the extorter since the files are not going to be decrypted back, they will just  take your money
if you fell a victim to this virus, do not go to some random shady pornsites,pay for a pornhub subscription (kidding)
use free Kaspersky,SVG or Dr.Web utilities - in most cases you will have your data back for example: https://www.avg.com/en-us/ransomware-decryption-tools
 

Only fools would just tend to follow on whats being asked. If the partition is encrypted and you dont have any important files being stored
then its better not to pay at all yet you can simply wipe all of those and reformat into a new one. I agree on whats being said above which
using the "deadly" word is somehow exaggerated for this old virus.

Ransomware is only effective if the people doing this have sole access to your data. So to prevent that, you should make regular backups on media that cannot be overwritten. I backup my photos and docs on DVD-R's and I always keep multiple copies of it. My most precious files are always backed up, so even if they encrypt the files, I will never be locked out from using my files.

I will also not pay them a single Satoshi, if they manage to lock my files. <I do not fund thieves and scammers>  >:(