It looks like 2016 should be declared a year of ransomware, as new families and new versions are popping up every now and then like mushrooms after the rain.<\/p>\n
Ransomware is evolving \u2014 fast. The new versions of ransomware use strong asymmetrical encryption with long keys so that files cannot be decrypted without the key. The bad guys have started using TOR and payments in bitcoins for the sake of staying totally anonymous. And now there is Petya ransomware which in a certain sense encrypts the whole hard drive all at once instead of encrypting files one by one.<\/p>\n
Petya is a piece of ransomware\u00a0discovered by G Data SecurityLabs<\/a>. It targets mostly business users, as it is distributed in spam emails that pretend to contain job applications. The standard infection scenario looks like this:<\/p>\n An HR employee receives an email from some person seeking a position in the company. The email contains a Dropbox link to a file which pretends to be their curriculum vitae but in reality it\u2019s an EXE file.<\/p>\n Petya #ransomware<\/a> encrypts master file table via @threatpost<\/a> https:\/\/t.co\/kCpbUcT1kV<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/9e6YjTkEVV<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Kaspersky (@kaspersky) March 28, 2016<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n