Don’t Let Ransomware Boo You on Halloween

Halloween is coming up. The time when we have fun scaring ourselves and others with spooky stories, films, costumes and more. Unfortunately, these hauntings are not so funny comparing to… ransomware. Oh, yes, this is something you should really be scared of. For most people, that’s why ransomware attacks are among the spookiest things. After all, who wouldn’t get spooked by a computer screen suddenly flashing a notice telling that all your precious files have been kidnapped and won’t be released until you pay a ransom? And if you don’t, they will be lost for good.  This can include photos of loved ones, college and academic essays, or financial records such as bank statements.

How much would you pay to retrieve a college dissertation a week before the deadline? Or, a batch of wedding photos from a day that can never be relived? If the idea of being vulnerable to cyber criminals makes you anxious, take the necessary steps now so you won’t have to make a difficult decision in the future. Protect your home computer against ransomware attacks and other viruses. It could be the smartest move you ever make.

There still is no silver bullet to stop ransomware. Organizations, for instance, are usually obsessed with careful backups to ensure the ransomware has not infiltrated the backup files as well.

Halloween falls on the last day of October, closing the National Cyber Security Awareness Month. That’s when global events on the topic have become top of mind for people and businesses in recent years, given the staggering number of recent data breaches and global ransomware attacks.

Therefore, what better time to reflect on the universe of cyber threats and to do their part to protect your networks, your devices, and your data from those threats? Cyber criminals do not discriminate; they target vulnerable computer systems regardless of whether they are part of a large corporation, a small business, or belong to a home user.

2017 is shaping up to be a record breaking year for cyber attacks. Ransomware, malware, and phishing are now occurring at an alarming rate. Knowing how cyber attacks happen, and what cyber security strategies and technologies successfully prevent attacks, is critical.

A recent survey indicated that 53% of organizations that were struck by a ransomware attack in the past year had strong security measures in place. Organizations that deployed security tools combined with frequent training and simulations had the lowest percentage of ransomware attacks (21%).

Your “training” as a home PC user must be on your own! That means that you must trust the best solutions in the market. ZoneAlarm Anti-Ransomware is Check Point’s solution to ransom-proof your PC. It is the result of years of research and development and offers the best enterprise-grade protection against ransomware threats.

Millions of people worldwide trust ZoneAlarm to protect their PCs and mobile devices with powerful anti-ransomware, antivirus software, firewall and additional virus protection solutions. Our internet security tools are designed with people’s cyber safety in mind, while using industry-leading solutions.

Every 10 seconds, a PC user gets hit with ransomware, making consumers the most targeted for attacks. But… What is Ransomware? How does it work? What’s the most popular type? How is it delivered? What’s the cost of ransomware attacks? Why home PC users should pay attention? How can you protect your PC?

ZoneAlarm Anti-Ransomware brings you all these answers and more. Click to learn What is Ransomware – From A to Z.

Happy Halloween! Get protected and boo those cyber criminals!