Beware Of The Ransomware

Jonni Bidwell knows how not to do a lot of things,  including how not to pay ransoms and how not to  be fooled by social engineering scams…

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We’re still patiently waiting for the year of the Linux desktop, but one sign that Linux has become mainstream is that it is now actively targeted by malware pushers. Perhaps not to the same extent as Windows, and perhaps those miscreants are more interested in hijacking servers than desktops, but peddling the old “Linux doesn’t get viruses” line does not make for credible journalism. (don’t use the J word!–Ed)

Linux servers are compromised all the time. It’s a little too easy for your run-of-the-mill script kiddie to find their favourite exploit in Metasploit, find some vulnerable servers via shodan.io and create havoc. Attacking desktop Linux is a little more delicate, but that’s not to say it doesn’t happen. Rogue websites may serve drive-by downloads, bona fide websites may get hacked or a long-standing bug in the kernel may be discovered. All of which might spell the end for your data.