{"id":52605,"date":"2016-02-18T17:01:47","date_gmt":"2016-02-18T17:01:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pcmatic.com\/blog\/?p=52605"},"modified":"2016-09-16T19:14:39","modified_gmt":"2016-09-16T19:14:39","slug":"52605","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pcmatic.com\/blog\/52605\/","title":{"rendered":"Ransomware Strikes 3rd Largest South Carolina School District"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ransomware hits Horry County Schools in South Carolina, locking 25 servers…<\/strong><\/p>\n

The risk of ransomware has never been higher, with the latest victim being Horry County Schools in South Carolina.\u00a0 According to Myrtle Beach Online<\/a>, the virus that encrypted various files came from outside of the United States, which\u00a0has lead to the involvement of the\u00a0federal and state government.\u00a0 The virus did not cause a data breach, but has encrypted 25 servers rendering them inaccessible.\u00a0 In order to obtain the encryption key the school is being ordered to pay thousands of dollars.<\/p>\n

According to WBTW News 13<\/a>, the school has gained approval to pay $8,500 to obtain the encryption key.\u00a0 Unfortunately, the more times these ransoms are paid, the increased likelihood scammers will continue to strike business and personal computers alike.<\/p>\n

In order to prevent ransomware, you need to understand how it works.\u00a0 First, it gains access to your most important files and encrypts them.\u00a0 This makes them inaccessible until you obtain the encryption key, or restore your computer with your backup files.\u00a0 The ransomware gains access to your PC by bypassing the blacklist that most security software programs use to protect your PC.\u00a0 What this means is, your security software has a list of all the known viruses, malware, and ransomware threats and prevents them from getting onto your PC.\u00a0 Keeping this blacklist up to date is nearly impossible with viruses, malware, and ransomware constantly changing to become undetected.\u00a0 PC Matic<\/a> is the only security software with a whitelisting approach, meaning we make a list of all the good programs and only allow them to run.\u00a0 This eliminates the risk of polymorphic viruses, as no matter how many times the virus changes to become undetectable to the blacklist, it will still be identified as an “unsafe” program on the whitelist.<\/p>\n

We encourage all PC users to recognize ransomware as the growing threat it is, and to be proactive\u00a0by using proper\u00a0prevention methods to avoid\u00a0becoming the next victim.<\/p>\n

Check out our interactive, live map of the ransomware attacks that have taken place within the U.S. below: <\/p>\n