Anyone can be a victim of fraud. Fraudsters are everywhere and they cast their net wide, strike when you least expect thus not impossible to be a victim of fraud. They can deceive the most intelligent person because they are unbelievably deceptive. With internet and telephones, scammers easily set traps for their victims. Scammers exploit and manipulate the emotions of their victims to steal their money.
Ghanaians have not yet woken up from the aftermath of the closed down of Menzgold and trading in cryptocurrency companies like Global Coin Community Help (GCCH), Wealth Drive Ghana Limited (WDGL) but the quest to make more money has not reduced in anyway. Customers are practically mourning for their loss despite the pressure on Government to assist them to retrieve their lost investments; others are still taking advantage of the situation. Since money is not easy to come by today, anything enticing and tempting as making quick money is welcoming to a lot of people. Thus taking advantage of a “cheap” opportunity to make lots of money within a short possible time may seem like a smart decision.
The Economic and Organised Crime Office has a mandate to educate the general public on crime trends and also to prevent the commission of a crime. Currently what is being paraded on social media sites like Instagram, Twitter and Facebook is what is called the Money Flipping or Cash Flipping.
Ransomware is a sophisticated piece of malware that blocks the victim’s access to his/her files.
There are two types of ransomware in circulation:
- Encrypting ransomware, which incorporates advanced encryption algorithms. It’s designed to block system files and demand payment to provide the victim with the key that can decrypt the blocked content. Examples include CryptoLocker, Locky, CrytpoWall and more.
- Locker ransomware, which locks the victim out of the operating system, making it impossible to access the desktop and any apps or files. The files are not encrypted in this case, but the attackers still ask for a ransom to unlock the infected computer. Examples include the police-themed ransomware or Winlocker.Another version pertaining to this type is the Master Boot Record (MBR) ransomware. The MBR is the section of a PC’s hard drive which enables the operating system to boot up. When MBR ransomware strikes, the boot process can’t complete as usual, and prompts a ransom note to be displayed on the screen. Examples include Satana and Petya ransomware.However, the most widespread type of ransomware is crypto-ransomware or encrypting ransomware, which I’ll focus on in this guide. The cyber security community agrees that this is the most prominent and worrisome cyber threat of the moment.
Read more: What is Ransomware and 15 Easy Steps To Keep Your System Protected
