Ransomware... Just in case question

wgriswold wrote:
I have a backup system called WD Smartware that wirelessly backs up my computer. Is it vulnerable to RW?

If you can read/write to it, so can ransomware.

1492 wrote:

wgriswold wrote:
I have a backup system called WD Smartware that wirelessly backs up my computer. Is it vulnerable to RW?

If you can read/write to it, so can ransomware.

I just tried to save a Word document to the drive and it was not accessible. So I hope it can only be written to by the software that controls the backup.

USB thumb drives were never designed for permanent file storage. Primarily as temporary storage, for file transfers. Just look were manufacturers get their memory for USB thumb drives from original wafers? The prime going to SSD drives, and leftovers considered less reliable to thumb drives?

If you're gong to use it for that purpose, you better invest in high quality thumb drives.

Your best defence against Ransomware is not to click on dodgy porno or clearly pirated files. If that seems too draconian, your second best defense is to make backups that you never touch again. I have a collection of 2.5" PATA drives (and an adapter) and these drives are happily gathering dust with important backups on them. Because a partial or dated backup is better than no backup at all.

I too am bewildered by the "thumbdrives have a habit of going bad" comment. I highly recommend them, but do read the reviews on Amazon, as the ridiculously cheap ones (50 for $3) may in fact habitually go bad.

As said, downgrading from Admin priviledges and setting drives to read only will prevent ransomware that is on your computer from locking your files. Also, taking the time to disble auto scripting in your browser will prevent the driveby infections.

3oaks wrote:
I guess not all thumb drives are alike. I have two that I have been using since 2005 for file storage and back-ups. Of course maybe they will die tomorrow. I'll take my chances. It is my understanding (I'm no computer geek), that any storage device can go bad.

X2 I have been using two flash drives for several years and have never lost a file or had it "drop dead" on me. I actually do carry one with me at all times and it does have enough room to carry all the needed files.

greenrvgreen wrote:
Your best defence against Ransomware is not to click on dodgy porno or clearly pirated files. If that seems too draconian, your second best defense is to make backups that you never touch again. I have a collection of 2.5" PATA drives (and an adapter) and these drives are happily gathering dust with important backups on them. Because a partial or dated backup is better than no backup at all.

I too am bewildered by the "thumbdrives have a habit of going bad" comment. I highly recommend them, but do read the reviews on Amazon, as the ridiculously cheap ones (50 for $3) may in fact habitually go bad.

As said, downgrading from Admin priviledges and setting drives to read only will prevent ransomware that is on your computer from locking your files. Also, taking the time to disble auto scripting in your browser will prevent the driveby infections.

That ISN'T where most "ransom ware" comes from.

You CAN get Ransomware from ANY website which has been compromised OR is allowing third party advertisers which may have been compromised.

It is so simple to get, just hovering over a advertising banner or even just viewing the first page of a compromised website.

Ransomware is just a more advanced form of malware but with a twist that the creator of the program extorts your files by encrypting them.. In exchange to get them decripted they ask for payment in Bitcoins.

Lately Ransomware has been showing up payloaded on bogus emails.. some examples are airline confirmations you didn't make, shipment confirmations you didn't buy, bogus court summons and many more.. My company recently had someone open a email and ended up with "locky" encrypting every mapped drive of that PC.. IT spent a day restoring the files from a backup..

Best practice is to be very careful about opening any email which has attachments.. Many are easy to spot but folks for some reason open them anyway..

As far as thumb drives goes, yeah, I USED to think they could not go bad.. That is until I plugged one in that had been sitting unused for 6 months and the computer refused to read the drive.. Only wanted to format..

Plugged the drive into a different PC with same result.

Performed a format on the drive and it was fine, but all files that were on it were gone. It was used as a "backup" for my music files! So much for a backup..

And no, that was not a "cheap" thumb drive.. It was a PNY..

It is still working but I no longer trust it so it now is simply a extra drive I use in rotation for my music in the vehicle.

i have one that must be close to 13yrs old
one of the fairly early ones only 128mb "Cigar Pro", named by its shape
these are great quality, think it $25 Back then, i'm not sure

only enough space for some Emg utilities, these were made with first class top end memory chips, that lack the density of todays chips
SSD drives as we think of them, did not exist then in the market place,
only in somebody's R&D

i have newer ones that have failed, including two designed to look like tiny hard drives, little silver square boxes, with swing out USB plug 2gig each $49 each
both died, i thing they are around six years old, did not last (1) yr

i did revive one with a utility program, but it died again, and was unusable when I needed it

i have several new ones in various sizes, that are still working

surprisingly i have never had an SD or MicroSd card for phone, tablet or camera, give me any problem

MrWizard wrote:

surprisingly i have never had an SD or MicroSd card for phone, tablet or camera, give me any problem

perhaps the answer then is to use a sd card in one of those adapters??
bumpy

Most ransomware is known, that is, web filtering systems know the server and IP addresses that's coming from. Anti-Malware software will not always pick it up.

To dramatically reduce the likelihood of getting ransom-ware use Open DNS and/or Bluecoat K9.

Anything connected can be invaded by Ransom Ware... Or other mal-ware.

Regular Full Backups (at least two different HD's used alternately) is your best protection.. My mother used to use 3 levels of backup

Daily incremental backup (Desk Drawer)
Weekly full backup (Office vault)
Monthly full backup (Stored in a vault at her house 30 miles away).

She ... knew her business (She was an IT instructor back before we called it IT).

What I'd like to see:

Ransom ware companies want payment, Payment means you have a record of who you paid.. So call Dewy Cheatum & Howe (Fictional law firm from 3 stooges but I use the name generically) or Ben Dover & C. Howitt Feels (Same thing) and hand the Ransom ware company a request to show cause why they should not pay you 1,000,000 in damages.. Publish their names and address so others can also ask for a million dollars, Also ask for an injunction against them ever touching any computer for as long as they live.

NOTE: computers we use every day:
My wrist watch (A very accurate one) is a computer
My phone is a computer
My care is a computer
My televisions (and the related electronics like the digital converters, DVR's and such) all computers
And of course I'm typing on a computer.

The injunction should include all these devices.

(This kind of limits the jobs they can hold.. Digging ditches the old fashion way (With a shovel) does not involve computers).