STAY SAFE FROM RANSOMWARE – WHAT YOU MUST DO NOW
Never miss another Windows update
The workplace PCS hit by Wannacry were probably blocked from accessing Windows Update by IT departments looking to control the version running on their company’s PCS. On your own computer, you don’t have that excuse. Now that hackers have started publicly boasting about targeting Windows 10, it’s vital that you get patches the moment they’re available.
Automatic updates are enabled by default in Windows 10, but it’s not infallible, so check regularly for patches that have slipped through the net. To check, click the Start button, type update, then click ‘Windows Update settings’ from the list of results. When the Windows Update window opens, look for the ‘Update status’ section (at the top), then click the grey button just below it that says ‘Check for updates’. If any updates are found, click each in the list to install until all have been installed.
If you suspect that Windows Update isn’t working correctly – if for example it never seems to find any updates, or regularly begins installing updates, only to crash halfway through – there are ways to fix it. The first thing to do is to ensure that Windows isn’t overloading your PC by using it to supply updates to other PCS on the internet. To check, go back to Windows Update, click ‘Advanced options’, then ‘Choose how updates are delivered’. Slide the switch to ‘On’ if it’s not already, then select ‘PCS on my local network’.
If Windows Update is still crashing midway through updates, you should download Microsoft’s Windows Update Troubleshooter tool. To get it, go to www. snipca.com/24485 and click the ‘Download troubleshooter for Windows 10’ link. Once it downloads, double-click the downloaded file (called ‘wu170509. diagcab’), click Windows Update (see screenshot below left), then click Next. It will now automatically find and fix problems with Windows Update on your PC. If it finds anything, click ‘Apply this fix’. If it fails to find anything, it might ask you to run the process again as an administrator. To do this click ‘Try troubleshooting as an administrator’ and repeat the above steps.
Windows 7 and 8.1 users could be more at risk of ransomware attack because these operating systems let you switch off Windows Update completely. To switch automatic updates back on in Windows 7 and 8.1, follow the steps in Microsoft’s ‘Fix Windows Update errors guide’ ( www.snipca.com/24492). If you suspect Windows Update is broken, there’s an Update Troubleshooter tool for Windows 7 and 8.1 too. Go to www.snipca. com/24485, but this time click the ‘Download troubleshooter for Windows 7 and Windows 8’ link.
Update all your software automatically
Hackers exploit vulnerabilities in all sorts of software besides Windows. Programs such as your browser, office software and antivirus (AV) need regular patching to stay ahead of ransomware and other threats.
AV and browsers tend to update automatically by default, but go to their Settings to check. In Chrome, for example, click Menu (the three dots at the top right), Settings, then About (on the left). Chrome will then check for updates, and download and install them. Once you see a message that says ‘Google Chrome is up to date’ you have the most current version. In Firefox, you need to click the menu button (three horizontal lines at the top right), Help (the question mark icon), then About Firefox. The About Firefox window will open and Firefox will download any outstanding updates automatically.
Microsoft Office is one of the most popular programs that you need to keep updated. Office 365 users don’t have to worry as the program is patched automatically along with Windows. Other versions of Office need settings tweaks to make them update automatically. In Windows 10, go to Windows Update settings, click ‘Advanced options’, then tick ‘Give me updates for other Microsoft products when I update Windows’.
Some programs aren’t as forthcoming with their updates and tend to reserve automatic updates for paying customers. Ccleaner, for example, doesn’t update automatically, but does if you buy Ccleaner Professional. To keep these kinds of programs updated automatically, we suggest using the Software Updater tool by Kaspersky, the same company that develops our Buy It antivirus recommendation – see page 68 for our reader offer.
The Kaspersky Software Updater is an entirely separate (and free) entity from Kaspersky Antivirus. To get it go to www. snipca.com/24275, click the red Download Now button and double-click the downloaded file to install the program. Open the Software Updater and click the ‘Search for updates’ button. Once the scan has completed you’ll see a list of all the available updates for the programs on your computer. Click the ‘Update all’ button, then ‘Update all’ when the pop-up window appears. Progress bars will then appear for each program in the list as each program is updated. See our Workshop in Issue 499 (page 35) for more guidance on how to use the tool.
Configure your AV to block new threats
Why didn’t AV stop Wannacry infecting its victims’ computers? Because Wannacry was a zero-day attack, meaning it spread before AV tools knew what it was. All reputable AVS were updated very quickly to detect and block it, but not before devastating damage had been done.
Make no mistake, AV is essential. It’s by far the most powerful way to keep criminals off your files. If you don’t have it you’re throwing the doors open to ransomware. AV is constantly running to keep up with hackers, who release 400,000 new pieces of malware every day. That’s one every 0.4 seconds, 24 hours a day. So make sure your AV is set to automatically update its database (usually called ‘virus definitions’). You should be able to access your AV’S update settings by right-clicking its icon in the system tray.
Avoid phishing traps
Wannacry wasn’t spread by phishing, but nearly all other ransomware is. Cryptolocker, for example, was embedded in fake parcel-tracking emails. Locky, last year’s major menace, is still circulated in spam attachments ( www. snipca.com/24477), and Cerber is currently lurking in bogus pop-up messages ( www.snipca.com/24478). Threats like these are constantly tweaked by their hackers to evade capture by AVS.
The standard advice is “don’t click dodgy links”, but the thing about phishing traps is they don’t look dodgy. Hackers managed to hide Locky ransomware in Facebook messages supposedly sent by friends and family, and malware recently circulated in Google Docs from your own contacts.
You don’t have to give up clicking completely though. There are clever free browser extensions to help you spot the fakes. Gmail Senders Icons for Chrome ( www.snipca.com/24480) displays company icons on genuine emails so you can instantly spot interlopers. Bitdefender Trafficlight ( www.snipca.com/24487) alerts you to phishing attempts in Chrome and Firefox, and reveals if you’re being tracked unexpectedly (see screenshot above). Epic Browser ( www. epicbrowser.com) is stuffed with anti-phishing tools including an automatic highlighter for misspelled web addresses, and a built-in malware scanner that blocks dodgy downloads before they reach your hard drive.
Keep backups out of ransomware’s reach
Backing up your data gives you a spare set of everything, so you’ll never have to pay a ransom. That’s the common wisdom, but it’s wrong. We’ve seen some nasty ransomware that finds and deletes your backups as well as encrypting your files. So we recommend keeping multiple backups and storing them somewhere ransomware can’t touch – such as on DVDS. Free program Disc Archiver lets you back up to multiple CDS, DVDS and Blu-ray discs, and has just been updated for Windows 10 (see Best Free Software, page 16 for more info).
The free ‘standard’ version of AOMEI Backupper ( www.snipca.com/24489) lets you keep a folder on your PC in sync with multiple backup destinations, including online storage services such as Dropbox and Onedrive. Its new version (4.0) adds a ‘Real-time Sync’ option that automatically backs up all changes to your files as soon as they happen. Click Local Download to get the huge but junk-free installer.