Computer Security Symantec Discovers Ransomware Gangs Making Monumental...

Symantec Discovers Ransomware Gangs Making Monumental Profits

hackers making money with ransomwareRansomware, or what can be technically classified as ransom malware (malicious software), has been a growing pain for hundreds of thousands of victimized PC users around the globe. Symantec has recently discovered that the gangs behind ransomware have had much success in defrauding victims at alarming rates accounting for monumental profits for these cybercrooks.

Malware by itself, without the help of newfound ransomware, was already an affliction that had security expert teams working relentlessly in an attempt to combat new instances of malware. With the emergence of ransomware, it has thrown a proverbial wrench into everything that we knew about malware before and placed our undivided attention to the unique methodology cybercrooks behind ransomware utilize to extort money from victims.

Ransomware has grown into a serious epidemic, mostly due to the way it attacks and specifically targets potential victims to collect massive amounts of money from cheated PC users. Some of the disturbing findings made by Symantec are of uncovering criminals behind ransomware who have collected between $50 to $200 from each victimized PC user.

Symantec has also identified at least 16 distinct families circulating with their own (ransomware) development cycle. Most are Russian-based criminal groups where most could have originated at the hand of a single programmer. The structure in itself is unlike familiar rogue antivirus/antispyware applications from many years ago. What has been overturned here is a potentially layered industry branching out to all corners of the world.

Ransomware comes in various forms but yet all variations have the same basic demands and actions of locking up an infected system and then demanding hundreds of dollars from its victim payable through a legitimate online payment system that can later be laundered into cash.

It was discovered that, in a given day, the criminals behind a particular type of ransomware would net $33,600 minus their losses during laundering of their funds. Within a year's time the amounts would reach millions, reiterating how much of an emerging issue ransomware has become.

Experts, not only Symantec, believe that there is a looming underestimation of the broad range and examples of ransomware attacks. Adding up the number of potential rings and families circulating ransomware around the globe is an ongoing effort by many security firms and experts.

"As awareness of these scams increases, the attackers and their malware are likely to evolve and use more sophisticated techniques to evade detection and prevent removal. The 'ransom letter' will likely also evolve and the attackers will use different hooks to defraud innocent users," Symantec researchers concluded in their recent findings of ransomware analysis.

As the growing threat of ransomware continues to evolve, and expand to extort monumental amounts of money from victims, PC users are urged to stay abreast of the most recent and popular ransomware threats. Below are the top 5 ransomware threats to be on the lookout for from our very own ransomware analysis.

Current Top 5 Ransomware Threats

  1. FBI Moneypak Ransomware
  2. Ukash Virus
  3. Reveton Ransomware
  4. Windows Genuine Advantage Ransomware
  5. Ulocker Ransomware
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