Obviously, if police forces could track payments back to the criminal operators, it might be possible to arrest them. Ransomware programs are becoming more common now because of the availability of the anonymous Tor network, and anonymous payment systems such as bitcoin. Some claimed they were the FBI, Metropolitan Police or whatever and pretended to “fine” you for looking at “illegal” content. Sometimes they just locked your PC’s screen rather than encrypting files.
The first ransomware programs appeared at the end of the 1980s. This may include the offer to decrypt one file free to show that it works. Then it gives you a limited time to pay for your files to be decrypted. Ransomware is malware that (usually) encrypts your files using an encryption system that is so strong there is no practical means of cracking it. However, it doesn’t always work properly, so it is still worth trying. Ransomware is getting more and more sophisticated, and making it harder to recover files. If you have been hit by the latest CryptoWall 3 then your presumption is probably correct – unless you pay the criminals who are holding your files hostage. I presume I have lost everything, but is there anything I can do to rescue them? Tara
