Computer hackers, when sneaking viruses and malware, one of their objectives is to make a financial profit. That’s the thing with ransomware, for example. We are used to seeing threats of this type that encrypt files and systems and later demand a ransom in return. But things are changing and now we meet him double extortion ransomware. We will explain how it works and what to do to avoid it.
Double attack ransomware
This is known as double attack or double extortion ransomware. It basically means that the attackers are going to have another additional path to be able to extort money from the victim. One more problem that is added to the existing one and with which we could have to pay a ransom.
The first and main attack is encrypt files. The victim will not be able to open text documents, access folders, etc. But they add a second attack that consists of threatening to make that information public. Let’s think about private documents of a company that they fear may come to light and be seen by the competition.
This is exactly what cybercriminals trade with. They ask for a financial ransom that goes beyond simply releasing the files and making them available again, but threatens to make all that content public. It is an extra opportunity for attackers to get money.
But why has this double extortion increased lately? One of the reasons is that businesses and home users increasingly have more resources to protect yourself. For example, create automatic backup copies and recovery plans so as not to lose the files that have been encrypted. So, in order to get money, what they do is extort money by publishing that data.
This problem is not new, as it first appeared with the Maze ransomware a few years ago, but it is certainly on the rise and has grown quite a bit in recent months. This indicates that we may be facing a trend that will continue in the coming years.
Tips to avoid these attacks
So what can we do to avoid attacks with the evolution of ransomware? The first thing is to always have the correctly updated equipment. Having the latest version of Windows or any program will avoid many problems. Sometimes vulnerabilities appear and it is precisely what attackers use to enter.
It is also essential to have good security programs. In this way we will be able to detect malicious files and attacks that they may launch against our system. Some options like Windows Defender or Avast work very well in Windows, although these programs should not be trusted.
But if there is something really important it is the common sense. Avoiding making mistakes, such as downloading malicious files by mistake or opening a link that has reached us through social networks or mail, can be the entry point for cybercriminals. If we do not make these types of mistakes, we will have a lot of cattle in order to be protected against double extortion ransomware.
