Woman's computer was "kidnapped" by a Bitcoin virus, and she was forced to spend tens of thousands of yuan to buy Bitcoin

According to Xiamen Daily on October 18, Ms. Peng was shocked by what happened after she opened an email: her computer was instantly paralyzed, as if it was controlled by hackers, and all the files could not be opened. Just when Ms. Peng was worried about whether her office files would be lost, an English "ransom note" popped up, "You can't open the files? If you want to recover, buy 3 bitcoins." Ms. Peng checked and found that one bitcoin cost more than 4,000 yuan, and 3 would cost 12,000 yuan. "My computer has been kidnapped?!"

Yesterday, the reporter consulted 360 anti-virus engineers to reveal the true face of the Bitcoin virus for you.

Buy 3 Bitcoins to restore your computer

At about 9:00 am on September 23, Ms. Peng was working at her computer. Suddenly, a new email came in. Before she could see the sender, she clicked on it out of habit. Suddenly, the computer was stuck on the desktop and could not move.

Ms. Peng was so shocked that she broke out in a cold sweat. There were many important company files in the computer! But no matter which folder Ms. Peng clicked, the computer did not respond. "Is it infected?!"

Just as Ms. Peng was getting anxious, an English page popped up, "The file can't be opened, right? If you want to recover it, buy 3 bitcoins." What is Bitcoin? Ms. Peng quickly used her mobile phone to search on Baidu, and was shocked to find that the price of one bitcoin was more than 4,000 yuan. "So, won't I have to spend 12,000 yuan to unbind it?"

After calling the police, Ms. Peng had to ask the company's technicians to format the computer.

Even after the victim pays the ransom, the computer may still not be decrypted

How can we effectively prevent "Bitcoin virus"? To this end, the reporter consulted 360 anti-virus engineer Wang Liang.

"Bitcoin viruses mainly encrypt files and extort money. Since Bitcoin is an anonymous virtual currency, it is difficult to track the recipient." Wang Liang told reporters that this type of virus is generally spread through emails or Internet Trojans. Once infected, all types of documents in the computer will be highly encrypted. If the ransom is not paid, it is likely that the files cannot be recovered.

Wang Liang said that at present, the Bitcoin virus is jointly developed by several "families" (gangs), and each family targets different groups of people. From the perspective of transmission, the first victims in the mainland were mostly people engaged in foreign trade. They often received some foreign emails, which led to their computers being infected. After that, these "families" began to send "phishing emails" to various companies and schools. As of now, there are Trojans that are specifically targeted at ordinary users. "There may also be fraud. After being infected, most of them can be restored by paying a ransom, but there are also cases where decryption is not provided after paying the ransom."

Bitcoin virus

It is understood that the Bitcoin virus is also called Bitcoin Trojan. Once infected, it will not only encrypt 114 types of files in the computer, but also pop up a window to "extort" the owner. As early as 2014, the Bitcoin virus appeared abroad, and in early 2015, it began to appear in China. The reason why it is called the Bitcoin virus is that the virus will ask the victim to pay 3 Bitcoins as a ransom to buy decryption software.

After reciting in English, all files are encrypted

Citizens in Chengdu were also "poisoned"

Recently, a similar incident happened to Mr. Li, a resident of Chengdu. According to a report by West China Metropolis Daily on October 11, on the afternoon of October 4, Mr. Li's child finished his English homework on the computer and left it on. An hour later, the computer suddenly emitted an English recitation, and soon after, the computer desktop was modified.

Six days later, Mr. Li's computer desktop remained the same as it was that day, with a white background and a few lines of green English in the middle of the screen. All the files on the desktop were changed in format. Mr. Li tried to translate the English on the desktop, "The files and data have been encrypted. The only way to decrypt them safely is to pay 3 bitcoins to buy the decryption files. If you use third-party software to decrypt, you will suffer irreparable losses." There were several URLs attached to the text. You could buy bitcoins by clicking on them. Mr. Li hurriedly reported the case to the local police station and waited for the police to investigate.

【remind】

Back up important data in time

For this type of virus, the key is to prevent it. Wang Liang reminds citizens to pay attention to the following points:

1. Back up important data in time and store the backups in multiple places to prevent data from being damaged, lost, or encrypted.

2. Install system and software patches to prevent all kinds of Trojans and vulnerability attacks.

3. Develop good Internet habits and do not easily open email attachments sent by strangers.

4. Choose a reliable security software to protect your computer from all kinds of Trojan viruses.