Ransomware
 Ransomware(malware)   | |
|---|---|
Ransomware is a type of malware which attempts to extort money.
Contents
History
The first attempt to extort money from victimes was made with the "Aids Info Drive" trojan by Joseph Popp [1] in 1989. He mailed out 20,000 disks with a program that did hide directories and encrypts the names of all files on drive C: to a mailing list of subscribers PC Business World, other mailing lists and delegates at a World Health Organization conference on AIDS.[2][3]
Payment
Ransomware often seeks payment in the form of cryptocurrency such as bitcoins.[4]
Prevalence
A 2019 story reported that "More than 50 cities across the United States, large and small, have been hit by ransomware attacks during the past two years. Among them: Atlanta; Baltimore; Albany, N.Y.; Greenville, N.C.; Imperial County, Calif.; Cleveland, Ohio; Augusta, Maine; Lynn, Mass.; Cartersville, Ga.; and in April, nearby Stuart."[4]
References
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20240414095832/https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_L._Popp_Jr.
- ↑ https://www.heise.de/en/news/Missing-Link-35-years-of-ransomware-It-began-with-a-simple-floppy-disk-10247713.html
- ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AIDS_%28Trojan_horse%29
- ↑ a b https://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/20190619/why-riviera-beach-agreed-to-pay-600000-ransom-payment-to-regain-data-access-and-will-it-work
