Currently, security researchers are trying to find a solution to prevent Petya Ransomware attacks. There are many countries under attack. Here is all about Petya Ransomware. How to prevent, identify and protect your PC from Petya Ransomware.
After WannaCry’s Ransomware attack as well as EternalRocks, a new ransomware called Petya is emerging throughout the world. Petya Ransomware’s attack method is similar to WannaCry Ransomware. What we know is that this attack is similar to that took place in 2016.
To understand the impact of this virus attack, we need to know the danger of the new Ransomware. And what makes it different from EternalRocks or WannaCry. Also, we need to find out what Petya Ransomware is? How to avoid, recognize and protect our computer from this attack.
What is Petya Ransomware?
Ransomware is a standalone software that takes control of your system and files. Once it goes into your operating system, it will apply the file system encryption and ask for a ransom to retrieve the file recovery key. In this virus attack, the ransomware usually retrieves the file names and change the extension of Those files.
WHAT IS PETYA RANSOMWARE? HOW TO AVOID, RECOGNIZE AND PROTECT YOUR COMPUTER
The first Petya attacks take place in 2016. The latest attack is a new variation or Petya’s “baby.” Security researchers call it Petware or Golden Eye.
How does Petya Ransomware work?
Now talking about the virus attacking strategy, the Ransomware Peyta takes advantage of the EternalBlue vulnerability. Since Petya Ransomware works just like WannaCry, but it uses more complex code. Petya also “leveraged” the EternalRomance vulnerability leaked by the NSA.
Ransomware uses an open-source tool called Minikatz to obtain information from network administrators. It then spreads the virus across the network using the PsExec and WMIC tools. Therefore, even if only one system is affected, it can get into the entire network.
Who was attacked by Petya Ransomware?
The Petya Ransomware attack started from Ukraine. Malicious software “injected” into government software and used by many domestic agencies, including banks, airports, transport systems in Ukraine has been affected.
Up to the present time, Petya Ransomware has spread to many countries including India and other nations. What are the signs, if your computer is getting affected by this virus attack? Here we have a screenshot of a computer that is attacked by Petya Ransomware:
How much did hackers earn from the Petya Ransomware attack?
A total of 9,070$ is passed to hackers through 36 transactions at the time of the report. The question is how To Protect Your PC From Petya Ransomware? One of the best options is to download Security Patches that comes from the operating system manufacturers like Microsoft security patches. Like WannaCry, Petya is targeting a vulnerability called EternalBlue on older Windows systems.
Like WannaCry, Petya is targeting a vulnerability called EternalBlue on older Windows systems. One of the best solutions you can do to protect yourself from Petya Ransomware attacks is to download the security patches that Microsoft provides during the update process. Microsoft released a security patch to protect vulnerabilities on Windows XP systems in March. Earlier this June, it released patches for older Windows operating systems.
If you allow Microsoft to update your computer automatically, you will have security patches without searching and installing by yourself. For older versions of Windows that Microsoft does not support updates. In this case, you have to visit the Microsoft Web site and download the patches that you need to protect your computer.
Back Up Your Computer
It is best to back up and back up your computer data regularly to avoid ransomware attacks. And if unfortunately becomes one of the “victims,” you still have copies of files that you backed up and stored. It is useful if you backup the data to another location, such as an external hard drive orCloud storage.
Users are prompted to back up their data several times each month. In the case of an attack. So, in this case, you will also have a copy of the files to use without the ransom payment.
Install The Protection Program
You should download and install antivirus software to protect your system not only against the attacks but this will also notify you whenever a threat appears on your computer. These include anti-virus software as well as programs like protection firewalls and other security software.
These programs can alert you if there are malicious software trying to encrypt your files and it will remove that malware.
One thing that is most important Do Not Click And Any Suspicious Emails even for opening or any attachment.
Some attacks occur due to phishing emails. These e-mails are designed to make users believe they are legitimate emails. But, when you open these emails, these install the malware on your computer without your awareness. So do not click to open any suspicious email unless you want to be one of the victims of Petya Ransomware.
If there is a valid email, you will see the name of the company or the sender of the email. One thing that you should open emails only from people you know. Also, do not visit any site nor download and install the unknown software. It will probably attach more malware when you click on the link on the site or when you download and install the unknown software.
Protect Yourself When Using Public Wi-Fi
When using public Wi-Fi, you can see other people that are also using the same network with you. You have to make sure that you’ve changed the security settings on your computer when using the public network. Typically, the computer will ask you to set it up automatically if you want to see other people on the same network. But you should recheck your security settings to make sure that these settings are not public.
Another safe way is to use a Virtual Private Network ( VPN ) to “hide” your computer from other users using the public network. Using VPNs will not help fight malware, but it can help you “not target” the malware.
In the article, we gave you all the information about Petya Ransomware, which what it is? And how to prevent, identify and protect your PC from Petya Ransomware? Hopefully, the article gives you more useful information on Petya Ransomware and how to avoid this kind of ransomware.
Please have a look at our guide on Best antivirus and AntiMalware Programs for 2017 on Optocrypto.