Ransom is malicious and displays the worst aspects of cyber thieving. Unfortunately, with the vast amounts of information we send and receive each day, we’re all at risk. If the worst ever happens to you and your computer suddenly won’t respond when you need it, then we recommend this Business Insider article:

“Ransomware is evolving and that’s bad news for just about everybody except cyber thieves. Ransomware, which is a form of malware, works by either holding your entire computer hostage or by blocking access to all of your files by encrypting them. A person infected with ransomware is typically ordered (via a pop-up window) to pay anything from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars in order to get the key to unlock their encrypted data.

Of course, there’s no guarantee that even if a victim pays the demanded amount they will actually get access to their files again, which makes dealing with ransomware somewhat of a tricky issue. And with new, sophisticated strands of ransomware on the rise, it’s likely that more people will become infected and have to deal with the headache that comes along with it, security experts tell Business Insider.

Cyber criminals are now using the most modern cryptography to encrypt stolen files and are getting really good at making their dangerous links and downloads seem perfectly benign. One new strand of ransomware that falls into this category is called CDT-Locker and is often times very hard to detect. CDT-Locker can be hidden in files in such a way that even security software can’t tell it’s there. To make matters worse, hackers are getting people to willingly download these dangerous files by using sneaky tricks to make them appear legitimate.

For example, a hacker might pose as your utility company in an email stating that they need you to fill out an attached form or else your power will be cut off. Or a hacker might even use social engineering to pose as someone in your contact list to get you to click on a link in an email.”

Read more on Business Insider‘s site.