Soaring number of computers being hijacked for ransom
Gene Pane’s computer abruptly stopped working, save for a jarring message that appeared on his screen.
“It was a warning that said I had downloaded a virus and had to pay $199 to get rid of it,” Pane, a retired business executive who lives in Carlsbad, said of the recent incident. “I needed the files on my computer, so I paid. The money won’t break me, but still ...”
Pane had accidentally downloaded ransomware, a rapidly growing form of extortion in which hackers slyly load malicious software onto people’s computers — via emails, decoy ads, bogus news stories and code embedded in all manner of websites.
“It’s entirely possible that we’ll have far in excess of $1 billion in losses” worldwide related to ransomware, said Special Agent Chris Christopherson, who investigates cyber crimes out of the FBI’s field office in San Diego.
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