Around a year ago we made a post warning users about the CryptoLocker virus. In the past two weeks we have witnessed the onslaught of the second version of this nasty, malicious program. CryptoWall 2.0 is a program that is installed by clicking on fake ads, phishing links in emails, fake program updates (ie. Flash, Office, or Java) and it immediately begins encrypting your personal files. It starts with the most important files like pictures, documents, and the items on your desktop.
We can’t tell you for sure what symptoms to watch for, but certainly be extra vigilant about clicking on things you are unsure about. If you are concerned about something, give us a call and we can help.
The most important thing we can recommend to keep you from losing everything on your computer is this one simple piece of advice: Get a backup solution. Whether you burn your pictures/documents to a disc, put them on an external drive or thumb drive, do something! If you do put them on an external device, make sure that you disconnect it afterward so that CryptoWall cannot spread to that device as well.
If you think you are infected, shut off your computer IMMEDIATELY. The sooner you do that, the more likely you are to save your files. We can remove the virus and attempt to recover any non-encrypted files.
A website similar to this may come up after the encryption is complete.
