Malwarebytes and "Really Dark Friday"
Over the years I have used Malwarebytes a lot to ferret out viruses and spyware on Windows machines. Has anyone wondered why the very same program can be used on every iteration of Windows from XP to ...
Forum Discussion
1492 wrote:
Personally, the seriousness of CryptoLocker has resulted in reevaluating my own system security, and I've made a few changes. Yet, the best defense is making regular system backups which are easily automated. Either using Windows built-in backup, or other freely available backup apps using external drives or cloud storage.
Second, by taking advantage of Windows built in shadow copy, and better use of System Restore. Though in reality, not likely to be as an effective restore solution as full system backups.
Backups are okay but if they are automated that implies a storage device that is connected and writable and therefore is vulnerable to CryptoLocker. The two businesses that were hit and called me for help said that they were sure that it was an email attachment and that it took up to 5 days for the malware to actually begin to encrypt their files. "Shadow copies" make an image of the entire computer; including any malware that is laying low.
The only completely secure way to work on the Internet is to use a live CD (or live SDcard or live USB flash drive) with NSA's Linux on it that is write protected. Files can be saved on media that is connected for the transfer and then immediately disconnected. Email is done via remote servers using a browser (gmail, etc.)
The live CD method is not very convenient for businesses; but it's entirely feasible for individuals who simply do Facebook, Skype, email and web browsing.
Craig
