Anonymous ransomware – but who is hiding behind this malware’s mask?

Here’s an interesting twist of the Reveton/FBI/police ransomware that has been plaguing internet users lately.

In this example, the malware that locks you out of your data, and demands £100 be paid via Ukash to gain access back to your files, claims to be from the Anonymous hacktivist group.

Part of the message reads:

We are Anonymous. We are Legion. We do not forgive. We do not forget. Expect us.

Tango down!

Your computer has been hacked by the Anonymous Hackers Group and locked for the moment. All files have been encrypted. You need to pay a ransom of £100 within 24 hours to restore the computer back to normal. If the ransom is not paid on time all the contents of your computer…

Read more in my article on the Naked Security website.

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Graham Cluley •   @gcluley

Graham Cluley is a veteran of the anti-virus industry having worked for a number of security companies since the early 1990s when he wrote the first ever version of Dr Solomon's Anti-Virus Toolkit for Windows. Now an independent security analyst, he regularly makes media appearances and is an international public speaker on the topic of computer security, hackers, and online privacy. Follow him on Twitter at @gcluley, on Mastodon at @[email protected], or drop him an email.